Re: 'Ghostboat'
Posted by:
Ken Dunn
()
Date: July 28, 2006 01:16PM
Hi Chris,
I just wanted to make sure someone coming along later wouldn’t mistake the movie U-571 for one that was historically accurate in any way.
U-570 was captured by the Brits and taken home during the war and U-505 was captured and brought home by the Americans during the war and the Brits also captured U-110 but it sunk before they could get it home. There were other U-boats that were boarded for a short time before they sank too. That’s about the extent of the U-571 story’s accuracy (a U-boat was captured) though. None of the captures happened anywhere close to the way the capture in the movie was depicted and the entire plot of the U-571 movie was fiction.
Its one thing to capture an enemy submarine and sail it or tow it home on the surface but it is entirely something else to actually immediately operate the captured sub on a mission. All WWII subs had some fundamental things in common but the devil is in the details and one small mistake operating a submarine and everybody dies.
U-570 was studied by the Brits and eventually put into service by them but I don’t think U-505 was ever even dived after it was captured. The Germans also put a captured Brit sub (and some from other countries as well) into operation during the war too but only after taking the time to study them.
Regards,
Ken Dunn
I just wanted to make sure someone coming along later wouldn’t mistake the movie U-571 for one that was historically accurate in any way.
U-570 was captured by the Brits and taken home during the war and U-505 was captured and brought home by the Americans during the war and the Brits also captured U-110 but it sunk before they could get it home. There were other U-boats that were boarded for a short time before they sank too. That’s about the extent of the U-571 story’s accuracy (a U-boat was captured) though. None of the captures happened anywhere close to the way the capture in the movie was depicted and the entire plot of the U-571 movie was fiction.
Its one thing to capture an enemy submarine and sail it or tow it home on the surface but it is entirely something else to actually immediately operate the captured sub on a mission. All WWII subs had some fundamental things in common but the devil is in the details and one small mistake operating a submarine and everybody dies.
U-570 was studied by the Brits and eventually put into service by them but I don’t think U-505 was ever even dived after it was captured. The Germans also put a captured Brit sub (and some from other countries as well) into operation during the war too but only after taking the time to study them.
Regards,
Ken Dunn