German submarine U - 161 ( 1941 ) German submarine " U - 161 " was a Type IXC U - boat of the Nazi German " Kriegsmarine " built for service during World War II . The keel for this boat was laid down on 23 March 1940 at the " Deutsche Schiff und maschinenbau AG " , Bremen yard as ' werk ' 700 . She was launched on 1 March 1941 and commissioned on 8 July under the command of " Kapitänleutnant " Hans - Ludwig Witt ( Knight ' s Cross ) . The U - boat ' s service began with training as part of the 4th U - boat Flotilla . She then moved to the 10th flotilla on 1 January 1942 for operations . She sank 12 ships , totalling 60 , 107 tons ; one warship of 1 , 130 tons and damaged five others , for 35 , 672 tons . She also damaged one warship ( 5 , 450 tons ) and caused one merchant vessel to be declared a total loss ( 3 , 305 tons ) . She was sunk by an American aircraft in September 1943 . Operational career . 1st and 2nd patrols . The submarine ' s first patrol took her from Kiel on 3 January 1942 , across the North Sea and into the Atlantic Ocean through the gap between the Faroe and Shetland Islands . She arrived at Lorient , in occupied France , on 3 May . She would be based at this Atlantic port for the rest of her career . " U - 161 " s second sortie proved to be successful , damaging the " British Consul " and the " Mokihana " on 19 February 1942 while the ship rode at anchor in the Gulf of Paria off Port of Spain , Trinidad . She went on to sink ships such as the " Circe Shell " , the " Lihue " the petrol tanker " Uniwaleco " off St Vincent and daringly she made her way at night through the narrow passage into Castries Harbour , St Lucia where she damaged the " Lady Nelson " and the " Umtata " ' One victim , the " Sarniadoc " , was particularly tragic : she sank in 30 seconds after her boiler exploded . There were no survivors . 3rd patrol . The boat ' s third patrol took her past the Azores and Cape Verde Islands , to the Brazilian coast north of Fortaleza . She then followed that coastline north until she reached the Caribbean . On 16 June 1942 she stopped the sailing ship " Neuva Altagracia " with gunfire and sank the vessel with scuttling charges . She also attacked the " San Pablo " while the ship was being unloaded in Puerto Limón , Costa Rica on 3 July . Although the ship sank , she was raised with the intention of repair ; but she was declared a total loss and sunk as a target on 25 September . She crossed the Atlantic in an easterly direction , but turned about and returned to the Caribbean . Having commenced the return leg to France , she encountered the " Fairport " north of St . Thomas , Virgin Islands on 16 July and sank her . The boat returned to Lorient on 7 August . 4th patrol . Her fourth foray was to west Africa . This patrol was her longest — 113 days . She damaged the light cruiser HMS " Phoebe " six miles and 282° from Pointe Noire , French Equatorial Africa on 23 October 1942 and sank the " West Humhaw " southwest of Takoradi in Ghana on 8 November . 5th patrol . The boat ' s fifth patrol involved another Atlantic crossing and sinking a second sailing ship , the " Angelus " , north of Bermuda , again with gunfire . Ten survivors abandoned the vessel ; only two were still alive when their lifeboat was discovered . 6th patrol and loss . The U - boat departed Lorient for the last time on 8 August 1943 . Returning to the Brazilian coast , she sank the " St . Usk " on 20 September and the " Itapagé " on the 26th . She was sunk with all hands ( 53 men ) , on 27 September 1943 by an American PBM Mariner aircraft of VP - 74 in the South Atlantic .