I'm making some last-minute updates to my U-boat history book before it goes to press in a few months. On 13-14 May 1942, a naval conference was held at the Wolf's Lair. There were only a handful in attendance. I have the full meeting transcript, but I'm trying to determine specifically which part of the "Wolfsschanze" this meeting would have been held (evidently, ther
Forum: General Discussions

I know the Type VII and IX each had two small washrooms, but I am having a tough time identifying where three of the four were located: TYPE VII 1.) Aft head: between the Chief Petty Officer quarters & forward torpedo room? Or is it at the very aft end of the CPO quarters? Or at the aft end of the torpedo room just before the berthing? 2.) Forward head: across from galley. TYPE IX 1.
Forum: General Discussions

Once a firing solution has been achieved and the target is being held in the UZO/periscope, what would require re-calculating? A change in course or speed by the target?
Forum: Technology and Operations

I've found some conflicting information on this... For both surfaced & submerged attacks, was it the boatswain or IWO that plugged the data into the targeting calculator?
Forum: Technology and Operations

I know the Type VII boats had some buoyancy tanks within the pressure hull and some outside of it, but was this also the case with the Type IXs? I seem to recall reading somewhere that all the Type IX tanks were outside of the pressure hull, but perhaps I misremembered or it was incorrect.
Forum: Technology and Operations

I know that two separate pipes fed air to the superchargers, but was there one intake duct on the conning tower or two?
Forum: Technology and Operations

It's presumably a copy provided to the next-of-kin by the shipping company or government.
Forum: General Discussions

What color tracers would have been fired from the 20mm & 37mm AA guns?
Forum: General Discussions

I would assume some mix of tracer and AP?
Forum: General Discussions

On Type IXs pre-1943 (one 20mm on wintergarten, one 37mm on aft deck), how many men would crew each?
Forum: General Discussions

Interesting, thank you. Do you know what the command for blowing all the tanks immediately would be?
Forum: General Discussions

Asking specifically regarding Type IX boats circa 1942. I would presume some mix of tracers and AP?
Forum: Technology and Operations

Who actually fires the deck gun? I know it can be fired from either side, but which of the gunners actually sent the shell downrange? How was deck gun usually fired: the lanyard, or the trigger? How many men usually operated the deck gun? I've heard between 3 and 5 depending on the source. Where would the IIWO (the gunnery officer) typically be when the deck gun is being fired?
Forum: Technology and Operations

Can anyone clarify the difference between the commands "Anblasen" and "Ausblasen"? I've found conflicting information about the contexts in which each would be used. As I understand it, one is a routine order to blow the tanks upon surfacing and another is an emergency order used in a "we have to surface now or we're all going to die" scenario. Lookin
Forum: Technology and Operations

I know German wristwatch dials of the era were lit by radium salts mixed with zinc, and I know that gauges (etc) aboard the boat also had glow-in-the-dark properties. I would presume these had the same coating as watch dials, but does anyone know for sure?
Forum: General Discussions

Can anyone clarify the difference between the commands "Anblasen" and "Ausblasen"? I've found conflicting information about the contexts in which each would be used. As I understand it, one is a routine order to blow the tanks upon surfacing and another is an emergency order used in a "we have to surface now or we're all going to die" scenario. Looki
Forum: General Discussions

I've read quite few books describing U-boat crewmen hearing depth charges splashing into the water above (sometimes onomatopoeia'ed as "klatsch, klatsch, klatsch"). At what depth could U-boat sailors no longer hear this? Would they hear this at 300 feet?
Forum: General Discussions

3 question regarding bridge watch: 1.) When one shift is relieving another, how early did they arrive topside? Say I'm the watch officer leading the 0400-0800 shift, at approximately what time am I emerging from the hatch? 2.) I know that acclimatizing the eyes to the darkness was a part of turnover and that, for this purpose, special infrared goggles were worn for ~15 minutes inside t
Forum: General Discussions

I'm trying to make sense of some WW2 sonar search info. Context: the USS JOYCE (DE-317), commanded by LCDR Wilcox, is hunting for a U-boat that's hiding on the bottom very close by. A torpedoed commercial tanker, the PAN PENNSYLVANIA, was crippled- but still afloat- in the immediate vicinity. The U-550 is hiding on the bottom directly under, or close to under, the tanker. Here are
Forum: Warship forum

I have seen the terms "Schumütze" and "Schirmmütze" used by different sources to refer to the U-boat commander's peaked cap. Does anyone know which is correct? My knowledge of German is close to nil, but I wonder if one word may just be an Anglicized version.
Forum: General Discussions

I am trying to solve the mystery of the exact circumstances of the sinking of the tanker R.P. RESOR off New Jersey on 26 February 1942. The matter ultimately hinges on two questions: 1.) Whether U-boats had any sort of running lights. 2.) Whether the U-578's captain, Ernst-August Rehwinkel, had any reason to falsify his log. The accounts of the R.P. RESOR's sinking are highly cons
Forum: General Discussions

I have 2 questions regarding U-boat Flak guns in the time period of July 1941-July 1942: 1.) How many boats had their single C/3 20mm Flak replaced by (2) MG151 low-velocity cannons? I know this changeover occurred for some boats, but I don't know how many boats this was done with. Specifically, I'd also like to know which specific boats were involved. 2.) To my knowledge, in the
Forum: General Discussions