U-591

Type

VIIC

Ordered

16 Jan 1940

Laid down

30 Oct 1940

Blohm & Voss, Hamburg (werk 567)

Launched

20 Aug 1941

Commissioned

9 Oct 1941

Oblt. Hans-Jürgen Zetsche

Commanders

9 Oct 1941 - 8 Sep 1942	Kptlt. Hans-Jürgen Zetzsche
9 Sep 1942 - 12 Nov 1942	Oblt. Peter Schrewe
12 Nov 1942 - 17 May 1943	Kptlt. Hans-Jürgen Zetzsche
15 May 1943 - 17 May 1943	Ltn. Joachim Sauerbier
1 Jun 1943 - 30 Jul 1943	Oblt. Reimar Ziesmer

Career

8 patrols

9 Oct 1941 - 1 Jan 1942  6. Flottille (training)
1 Jan 1942 - 30 Jun 1942  6. Flottille (front boat)
1 Jul 1942 - 31 May 1943  11. Flottille (front boat)
1 Jun 1943 - 30 Jul 1943  9. Flottille (front boat)

Successes

4 ships sunk for a total of 19,932 GRT
1 ship damaged for a total of 5,701 GRT

Fate

Sunk 30 July, 1943 in the South Atlantic near Pernambuco, in position 08.36S, 34.34W, by depth charges from a US Ventura aircraft (VB-127/B-10). 19 dead and 28 survivors.

See the 5 ships hit by U-591 - View the 8 war patrols

Wolfpack operations

U-591 operated with the following Wolfpacks during its career:
   Ungestüm (14 Dec 1942 - 23 Dec 1942)
   Sturmbock (21 Feb 1943 - 25 Feb 1943)
   Wildfang (25 Feb 1943 - 7 Mar 1943)
   Westmark (6 Mar 1943 - 11 Mar 1943)
   Seewolf (25 Mar 1943 - 30 Mar 1943)

Attacks on this boat

15 May 1943
At 12.36 hours, the outbound boat was strafed and bombed by a British Whitley aircraft (RAF Sqdn 10 OTU / M, pilot F/Sgt G.W. Brookes) in the Bay of Biscay. The boat was not damaged, but the commander Kptlt. Hans-Jürgen Zetzsche and one crew member had been wounded by gunfire and this forced the boat to abort the patrol. (Sources: Norman Franks)

23 Jul 1943
An American B-24 liberator bomber twice attacked the boat but in both instances the boat dived instead of fighting it out and escaped. (Sources: Blair, vol 2, page 370)

2 recorded attacks on this boat.

Men lost from the boat

15 May 1943
The boat was hit with machine gun fire from a Whitley aircraft (Sqdn 10 OTU/M) that wounded the Commander and one seaman on 15 May, 1943. The boat had to abort its 3 day-old patrol and returned to St. Nazaire 2 days later.

Related: For more info on such losses see - Men lost from U-boats -