German submarine U - 43 ( 1939 ) German submarine " U - 43 " was a Type IXA U - boat of the Nazi German " Kriegsmarine " during World War II . The keel for " U - 43 " was laid down in August 1938 at Bremen ; she was launched in May 1939 and commissioned in August . Between November 1939 and July 1943 , the U - boat conducted 14 combat patrols , sinking 21 merchant ships for a total of , damaging one ship of and another of - enough for it to be declared a total loss . " U - 43 " was sunk on 30 July 1943 southwest of the Azores by a torpedo dropped by a United States Navy aircraft ; all 55 hands were lost . Construction . " U - 43 " was ordered for the " Kriegsmarine " on 21 November 1936 ( as part of Plan Z and in violation of the Treaty of Versailles ) . Her keel was laid down on 15 August 1938 by AG Weser , Bremen as " Werk 946 " . She was launched on 23 May 1939 and commissioned on 26 August of that same year under the command of " Korvettenkapitän " Wilhelm Ambrosius . Like all Type IXA submarines , " U - 43 " had two MAN M9V40 / 46 supercharged 9 - cylinder diesel engines that put out as well as two SSW GU345 / 34 double - acting electric motors that produced and allowed her to travel at up to while surfaced and submerged . She had a range of at while on the surface and at while submerged . " U - 43 " had six torpedo tubes , ( four in the bow , two in the stern ) . She also carried a total of twenty - two torpedoes and had a 105 mm / 45 deck gun and 110 rounds . She was equipped with one and one anti - aircraft gun . " U - 43 " had a crew of 55 men ; however , she could hold up to 56 crew members at any given time . After being commissioned and deployed , " U - 43 " was stationed in the German port city of Wilhelmshaven . Service history . 1st patrol . Commissioned into the 6th U - boat Flotilla , based at Kiel , " U - 43 " left for her first combat patrol of the war on 6 November 1939 , sailing around the British Isles and into the Atlantic . There , on 16 November , she attacked the 4 , 915 ton British merchant ship " Arlington Court " , a straggler from Convoy SL - 7A , en route from Rosario , Argentina to Hull with a cargo of 7 , 340 tons of maize . The ship was hit by a single torpedo west - south - west of Start Point in Devon . The crew abandoned ship , the U - boat fired another torpedo , which sank the ship within 30 minutes . Seven of the crew were lost , the survivors were picked up by Dutch and Norwegian freighters . After the attack , " U - 43 " was hunted by convoy escorts for 20 hours , sustaining some damage from depth charge s . Continuing with her patrol , " U - 43 " attacked Convoy 14 - BS in the Bay of Biscay , and sank the 4 , 374 ton French merchant ship " Arijon " on 22 November . Convoy escorts counter - attacked with 23 depth charges , but " U - 43 " escaped without damage . Late on 25 November 1939 , about west - north - west of Cape Finisterre ( northwest Spain ) , " U - 43 " attacked the unescorted 2 , 483 ton British collier " Uskmouth " . Both G7a torpedo es malfunctioned ( a common problem in the early years of the war ) , so the U - boat opened fire with her deck gun . After a while she fired another torpedo , but missed , so recommenced shelling . After firing 149 rounds , " U - 43 " left the ship on fire and slowly sinking . Two crewmen were killed , while 23 survivors were picked up by an Italian merchant ship . On the morning of 8 December " U - 43 " was attacked by an unidentified aircraft and severely damaged . She returned to Wilhelmshaven six days later , on the 14th . 2nd patrol . After the 6th U - boat Flotilla was disbanded in December 1939 , " U - 43 " was assigned to the 2nd U - boat Flotilla based in Wilhelmshaven . " U - 43 " departed from there on 13 March 1940 and sailed along the coast of Norway , north of Scotland , and into the waters west of Ireland , but had no success . The First Watch Officer ( second - in - command of the U - boat ) " Oberleutnant zur See " Hans - Wilhelm Behrens fell overboard and was lost on 31 March . " U - 43 " returned to Wilhelmshaven , after 25 days at sea , on 6 April . 3rd patrol . " U - 43 " s third voyage began on 12 April 1940 . She patrolled the North Sea and along the Norwegian coast , supporting the invasion of that country . On 22 April she was bombed by two British Hudson aircraft and suffered slight damage . She returned to Wilhelmshaven the next day . 4th patrol . " U - 43 " sailed from Wilhelmshaven on 13 May 1940 and out into the Atlantic . Her first attack took place on 28 May , south - west of Land ' s End , when she fired a torpedo at the British merchant ship " Alca " . She missed , and then opened fire with her deck gun . The armed ship returned fire , but neither vessel made any hits ; the U - boat broke off the attack . " U - 43 " finally found success on 21 June when she attacked Convoy 65 - X south - west of Figueira da Foz , Portugal , hitting the 8 , 627 ton British tanker " Yarraville " with a single torpedo . The ship caught fire and sank . Five crew members were killed , the 45 survivors were picked up by a French trawler . Late on 30 June " U - 43 " hit the 13 , 376 ton British merchant ship SS " Avelona Star " with a single torpedo northwest of Cape Finisterre . The ship , part of Convoy SL - 36 , was en route from Buenos Aires to London with a cargo of 5 , 630 tons of frozen meat and 1 , 000 tons of oranges . The crew abandoned the ship , which foundered the next day . One crewman was killed in the attack , the 84 survivors were picked up by the British merchant ship " Beignon " , which was subsequently torpedoed and sunk by on 1 July . Three survivors from " Avelona Star " were killed . On the evening of 9 July " U - 43 " sank the unescorted 3 , 944 ton British merchant ship " Aylesbury " about southeast of Ireland . Hit by two torpedoes , the ship sank in 15 minutes . All 35 crew survived . " U - 43 " s fourth and final success on her fourth patrol took place on the morning of 17 July when she sank the 3 , 509 - ton British merchant ship " Fellside " , a straggler from convoy OA - 184 , about north - west of Bloody Foreland ( " Cnoc Fola " ) , Donegal . The U - boat ' s first torpedo passed under the vessel , but the second struck the ship and caused her to sink within five minutes . Twelve of the crew were killed , 21 survivors were rescued . " U - 43 " arrived back at Wilhelmshaven on 22 July after 71 days at sea . 5th patrol . " U - 43 " sailed from Wilhelmshaven on 9 September 1940 , stopping at Bergen , Norway for three days before sailing on the 15th for another Atlantic patrol . She sank only one ship , the 5 , 802 ton British merchantman " Sulairia " , separated from Convoy OB - 217 , on 25 September . The U - boat hit the ship with a single torpedo causing her to sink west of Achill Head , County Mayo . One man was lost , the remaining 56 crewmen were picked up by . " U - 43 " then made for her new home port at Lorient in France , where the 2nd U - boat Flotilla had relocated in June after the fall of that country , arriving there on 18 October . Her commander , Wilhelm Ambrosius , was promoted to " Korvettenkapitän " on 1 November , and left " U - 43 " , going on to take command of the 22nd U - boat Flotilla in January 1941 . Command of the U - boat passed to " Oberleutnant zur See " Wolfgang Lüth , who would go on to become the second most successful German submarine commander of the war . 6th patrol . Under her new captain , " U - 43 " left Lorient on 10 November 1940 and returned to the waters west of Ireland , where she sank three more merchant ships and damaged a fourth . On the morning of 2 December she attacked Convoy OB - 251 west - south - west of Rockall and sank two ships . Her first victim was the 7 , 113 ton British merchant ship " Pacific President " , which was hit by two torpedoes and quickly sank with the loss of her crew of 50 men . Forty - five minutes later " U - 43 " hit the 12 , 247 ton British oil tanker " Victor Ross " with two torpedoes . A third torpedo was fired five minutes later , but missed , the U - boat evaded a ramming attempt by crash - diving shortly afterwards . However , she persisted and hit the ship with a fourth torpedo 20 minutes later , sinking her . There were no survivors from her 44 crew . In the evening of 6 December , " U - 43 " spotted a ship and pursued her for three and a half hours before firing a single torpedo , which missed . The U - boat fired another torpedo 20 minutes later , hitting the unknown ship and sinking her in 63 seconds . The vessel is believed to be the 1 , 902 ton Norwegian merchant ship " Skrim " , which had lost contact with Convoy OB - 252 two days before in heavy weather and was never seen again . Finally , on 13 December , " U - 43 " fired two torpedoes at the unescorted 10 , 350 ton British merchant ship " Orari " about southwest of Ireland . One torpedo hit the ship in the stern . However , " U - 43 " had no torpedoes left , and the sea was too rough for her to use her deck gun . The crew of the ship managed to plug the hole with tarpaulin s , and the ship made it under her own power to the Clyde . " U - 43 " returned to Lorient on 17 December 1940 after a patrol of 38 days . On 4 February 1941 , while at Lorient docks , " U - 43 " was sunk after a valve was accidentally left open , putting the U - boat out of action for the next three months . 7th patrol . After this enforced absence " U - 43 " began her next patrol on 11 May 1941 , still under the command of Wolfgang Lüth , who had been promoted to " Kapitänleutnant " on 1 January . Once again she sailed out into the mid - Atlantic , where she sank three ships . Early on the morning of 15 May " U - 43 " opened fire with her deck gun and anti - aircraft guns on the 488 ton French three - masted sailing ship " Notre Dame du Châtelet " , en route from St . Malo to the Grand Banks of Newfoundland to fish . After being hit by 45 shells the ship sank . Lüth suspected that the vessel was reporting the positions of U - boats to Allied forces , while the 10 survivors thought they had been attacked by a British submarine . They , from her crew of 38 , abandoned ship in two lifeboats . Two were picked up by the Italian submarine " Otaria " on 23 May . On the evening of 6 June " U - 43 " put two torpedoes into the 4 , 802 ton Dutch merchant ship " Yselhaven " about east of Newfoundland . The ship , separated from Convoy OB - 328 , sank within two minutes . Only 10 of her crew of 34 survived to be rescued by the Finnish merchantman " Hammarland " on 15 June . In the early hours of 17 June , " U - 43 " torpedoed and sank the 2 , 727 ton British merchant ship " Cathrine " , part of Convoy SL - 76 , which was loaded with 3 , 700 tons of manganese ore , about south - west of Cape Clear ( southern Ireland ) . Only three men survived from her crew of 27 ; they spent 33 days in a lifeboat before being found by a British trawler . " U - 43 " returned to Lorient on 1 July after a patrol lasting 52 days . 8th and 9th patrols . " U - 43 " s next patrol , beginning on 2 August 1941 , took her back out into the mid - Atlantic for 53 days , but she had no success before returning to Lorient on 23 September . " U - 43 " went to sea again on 10 November 1941 , this time she was more successful , sinking three ships near the Azores . Early on the morning of 29 November , " U - 43 " fired two torpedoes at the 5 , 569 ton British merchant ship " Thornliebank " , part of Convoy OS - 12 , and loaded with general cargo and munitions , about north - north - west of the Azores . Both torpedoes struck the ship , which exploded violently . There were no survivors from the crew of 75 men . Despite being about distant , debris from the explosion struck the surfaced U - boat , slightly injuring a crewman ; the next day an unfuzed shell was found lodged in the conning tower . On the evening of 30 November , the 4 , 868 - ton British merchant ship " Ashby " , a straggler from Convoy OS - 12 , was hit by one of two torpedoes fired by " U - 43 " , south - south - east of Flores in the Azores . The ship sank within four minutes with the loss of 17 of her crew of 50 . The survivors were picked up by the Portuguese destroyer " Lima " . After the attack the U - boat was depth charged for several hours by convoy escorts , but managed to escape unharmed . At about 17 : 00 on 1 December 1941 , " U - 43 " and spotted the 7 , 542 ton unescorted and unarmed tanker " Astral " . Both U - boats gave chase , but after four hours " U - 575 " , commanded by " Kapitänleutnant " Günther Heydemann , observed the large American flag painted on her side and abandoned the pursuit . " U - 43 " continued to follow the neutral ship , firing a torpedo at her around midnight , which missed . The ship immediately began to sail a zigzag evasive course at full speed , but the U - boat had no problem following her in the light of the full moon . The next morning " U - 43 " hit the " Astral " with two torpedoes . The ship , loaded with of gasoline and kerosene , exploded and sank within minutes . There were no survivors from her crew of 37 . The " Astral " was the third of four American merchant ships sunk by U - boats prior to America ' s entry into the war . " U - 43 " returned to Lorient on 16 December . 10th patrol . Lüth ' s last patrol with the boat began on 30 December 1941 , when " U - 43 " sailed from Lorient into the mid - Atlantic , where she sank three more ships . The first was the 5 , 246 ton Swedish cargo ship " Yngaren " , straggling from convoy HX - 168 due to bad weather , about west of Ireland . On the morning of 12 January 1942 the ship was hit by two torpedoes and sank within a minute . Six British passengers and 32 crewmen were lost , the only two survivors were spotted on a raft on 10 February by a British patrol aircraft , which directed a fishing trawler to their position the next day . Early in the morning of 14 January , " U - 43 " attacked Convoy ON - 55 south of Iceland and sank the 6 , 641 ton British merchant ship " Empire Surf " . Only six of the crew of 53 survived to be picked up by . About two hours later " U - 43 " attacked the convoy again and sank the 5 , 707 ton Panama - registered American merchant ship " Chepo " . There were 21 survivors from her 38 crew . The U - boat then sailed to Kiel , arriving on 22 January . Command of the U - boat passed to her 1 . WO , " Oberleutnant zur See " Hans - Joachim Schwantke , as Lüth left to commission . 11th patrol . " U - 43 " s first patrol under her new commander began on 4 July 1942 , as she sailed from Kiel via the ' gap ' between Iceland and the Faroe Islands into the mid - Atlantic . However , she achieved no success , and arrived back at Lorient on 15 August after 43 days at sea . 12th patrol . " U - 43 " s next patrol was more successful , departing from Lorient on 23 September 1942 , sailing across the Atlantic and into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence . On the morning of 18 November , " U - 43 " fired four torpedoes at Convoy SC - 109 and hit the 9 , 131 ton American tanker " Brilliant " , loaded with of fuel oil . A diameter hole was made in her side , and the cargo caught fire . While some of the crew abandoned ship , those remaining aboard managed to put the fires out ; making only three knots , the ship limped the to Bonavista Bay , Newfoundland , arriving on 24 November . " Brilliant " eventually left Newfoundland on 18 January 1943 under tow , but after two days the ship broke in half . The fore section sank immediately , while the aft section drifted for some days before it was found and the 44 crew rescued . The aft section was taken in tow , but sank the next day . " U - 43 " arrived back at Lorient on 9 December after a patrol of 78 days . 13th patrol . " U - 43 " s first patrol of 1943 began on 9 January , patrolling the waters between the Azores and the West African coast . On 3 March she spotted a vessel , identified it as a British Blue Star Line merchant ship , and hit it with three torpedoes , it sank it within two minutes . Only later did " U - 43 " learn that it was the 5 , 154 ton German blockade runner " Doggerbank " , formerly the British " Speybank " that had been captured by the auxiliary cruiser in January 1941 . The ship was carrying 7 , 000 tons of rubber , fats , fish oil , and other raw materials from Yokohama to France ; she was several days ahead of her scheduled arrival date . " U - 43 " returned to Lorient on 31 March after 82 days at sea . 14th patrol . " U - 43 " s final patrol began when she sailed from Lorient on 13 July 1943 and headed southwest into the Atlantic . On the evening of 19 July , in company with in the Bay of Biscay , the two U - boats were attacked by a British Liberator Mk . V bomber of No . 86 Squadron RAF . " U - 403 " crash - dived immediately , covered by the AA fire of " U - 43 " , which then dived . The Liberator was slightly damaged and a crewman wounded , but dropped two homing torpedoes . Neither U - boat was damaged and both escaped . Sinking . On 30 July 1943 , " U - 43 " was attacked again , this time by an Avenger torpedo bomber from the American escort carrier . The aircraft dropped a FIDO homing torpedo and sank the U - boat southwest of the Azores , in position . All 55 crew members went down with the submarine . Summary of raiding history . During her service in the " Kriegsmarine " , " U - 43 " sank 21 merchant ships for a total of , damaged one vessel of , and another of - enough for it to be declared a total loss .