German submarine U-378
German submarine "U-378" was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's "Kriegsmarine" during World War II. She carried out eight patrols before being sunk by US aircraft on 20 October 1943 in mid-Atlantic at position . She was a member of 16 wolfpacks. She sank one warship. Design. German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. "U-378" had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. She had a total length of , a pressure hull length of , a beam of , a height of , and a draught of . The submarine  was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of for use while surfaced, two Garbe, Lahmeyer & Co. RP 137/c double-acting electric motors producing a total of for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to . The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, the boat could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . "U-378" was fitted with five torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one  at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty. Service history. The submarine was laid down on 3 May 1940 at the Howaldtswerke yard at Kiel as yard number 9, launched on 13 September 1941 and commissioned on 30 October under the command of "Kapitänleutnant" Alfred Hoschatt. First patrol. The boat's first patrol was in two parts and commenced with her departure from Kiel on 11 March 1942. The second part began from the German island of Helgoland (sometimes  spelt 'Heligoland'). She was attacked northeast of Norway's North Cape by the British destroyer . No damage was sustained. Second to sixth patrols. "U-378" continued to operate in northern waters such as the Barents, Greenland and Norwegian seas until April 1943 when her sphere of operations changed to the Atlantic Ocean. Seventh patrol. This sortie saw the boat leave Trondheim on 12 April 1943, negotiate the gap separating Iceland and the Faroe Islands and sail as far eastward as Newfoundland and Labrador. She then re-crossed the Atlantic, docking at La Pallice in occupied France on 4 June. At 54  days, this was easily the submarine's longest patrol. Eighth patrol and loss. "U-378" sank the Polish destroyer on 8 October 1943. Her commander, ten officers, 166 ratings and seven British crew members were lost. On 13 October, the boat was the target of a FIDO homing torpedo that had been dropped from a Grumman TBF Avenger, but the weapon missed. The submarine was sunk by an Avenger / Wildcat pair on 20 October in mid-Atlantic from . Forty-eight men died in the depth charge attack; there were no survivors. Wolfpacks. "U-378" took part in 16 wolfpacks, namely: German submarine