German submarine U-194

German submarine U-194 was a Type IXC/40 U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built during World War II for service in the Atlantic Ocean. Notable for having been fitted with the new Balkon sonar, she was a short-lived vessel, being sunk on her first and only operational war patrol.

History
Nazi Germany
Name: U-194
Ordered: 4 November 1940
Builder: AG Weser, Bremen
Yard number: 1040
Laid down: 17 January 1942
Launched: 22 September 1942
Commissioned: 8 January 1943
Fate: Sunk, 24 June 1943
General characteristics
Class and type: Type IXC/40 submarine
Displacement:
  • 1,120 t (1,100 long tons) surfaced
  • 1,232 t (1,213 long tons) submerged
Length:
  • 76.76 m (251.8 ft) o/a
  • 58.75 m (192 ft 9 in) pressure hull
Beam:
  • 6.90 m (22 ft 8 in) o/a
  • 4.40 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height: 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Draught: 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in)
Installed power:
  • 4,400 PS (3,200 kW; 4,300 bhp) (diesels)
  • 1,000 PS (740 kW; 990 shp) (electric)
Propulsion:
Range:
  • 13,850 nmi (25,650 km; 15,940 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 117 nmi (217 km; 135 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth: 230 m (750 ft)
Complement: 4 officers, 44 enlisted48 to 56
Armament:
Service record
Part of:
Identification codes: M 36350
Commanders:
  • Kptlt. Hermann Hesse
  • 8 January – 24 June 1943
Operations: 1st patrol: 12–24 June 1943
Victories: None

Design

German Type IXC/40 submarines were slightly larger than the original Type IXCs. U-194 had a displacement of 1,144 tonnes (1,126 long tons) when at the surface and 1,257 tonnes (1,237 long tons) while submerged.[1] The U-boat had a total length of 76.76 m (251 ft 10 in), a pressure hull length of 58.75 m (192 ft 9 in), a beam of 6.86 m (22 ft 6 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a draught of 4.67 m (15 ft 4 in). The submarine was powered by two MAN M 9 V 40/46 supercharged four-stroke, nine-cylinder diesel engines producing a total of 4,400 metric horsepower (3,240 kW; 4,340 shp) for use while surfaced, two Siemens-Schuckert 2 GU 345/34 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 1,000 shaft horsepower (1,010 PS; 750 kW) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.92 m (6 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).[1]

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h; 21.1 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h; 8.4 mph).[1] When submerged, the boat could operate for 63 nautical miles (117 km; 72 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 13,850 nautical miles (25,650 km; 15,940 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). U-194 was fitted with six 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and two at the stern), 22 torpedoes, one 10.5 cm (4.13 in) SK C/32 naval gun, 180 rounds, and a 3.7 cm (1.5 in) SK C/30 as well as a 2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of forty-eight.[1]

Service history

U-194 was laid down in Bremen on 17 January 1942 and launched on 22 September. Kapitänleutnant Hermann Hesse took command upon commissioning on 8 January 1943.

Balkon group listening apparatus

The passive sonar, known as Gruppenhorchgerät (group listening apparatus) or GHG, fitted to early U-boats could not be used at periscope depth. To solve this, a new listening device, known as Balkon (balcony) fitted to a second, lower hull, was successfully tested on U-194 in January 1943.[2]

Loss

Twelve days into her first and only patrol, U-194 was attacked and sunk by a homing torpedo from an American Consolidated PBY Catalina aircraft of VP-84 in position 59°00′N 26°18′W. All 54 men aboard were lost. An initial post-war assessment gave credit for sinking U-194 to a British Consolidated B-24 Liberator aircraft of No. 120 Squadron RAF squadron, however this attack actually resulted in the sinking of U-200.

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References
  1. Gröner 1991, p. 68.
  2. A O Bauer (2005) Some hardly known aspects of the GHG, the U-boat's group listening apparatus

Bibliography
  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
  • Morgan, Daniel; Taylor, Bruce (2012). HMS Gurka. UBoat Attack Logs: A Complete Record of Warship Sinkings from Original Sources, 1939-1945. United States: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 184832118X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXC/40 boat U-194". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  • Hofmann, Markus. "U 194". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 30 January 2015.

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