Hi,

U 2540 was scuttled in the Flensburg Förde, near the lightship (i.e. near the position 54°50'18''N, 9°53'55'') at depth ~25-30 m. The boat was raised by means of two floating cranes: Ausdauer and Energie (2500 t capacity each). The lifted boat was moved to the Eckernförde Bay and put aground, where divers could work safely inside the hull. After drying the hull and repairing the ballast tanks, the ballast tanks could be blown (by means of the external source of compressed air) and the boat was towed to Kiel, to the Howaldtswerke yard.

The photos of the interior taken after drying the hull show that the hull was flooded completely. I guess that while scuttling, the vents were opened and conning tower hatch was left open.

However, the interior was in surprisingly good condition, for example, the intake and exhaust valves at the diesel engine head could be still moved, and the voice-powered telephone in the aft room could be still operated.

Of course, Wilhelm Bauer was not a restored U 2540 (pure type XXI boat). During overhaul in the Howaldtswerke, the propelling plant was replaced, new Schnorchel was fitted, two (bottom) torpedo tubes were removed, control room equipment was automated, new air-compressors were fitted.

Was it worth to overhaul the scuttled boat? At this time Germans did not have any submarines (except U-Hai and U-Hecht, also war-time salvaged U-Boats, used for training purposes) to conduct trials and development of new equipment. So it was the fastest way to get working platform, before brand new U-Boats would be designed.

--
Regards
Maciek


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