Submarine fleet of the Germans during the Second World War. German submarine aces: the birth of traditions The best German submariners of the second world war

Submarines dictate the rules in naval war and force everyone to meekly follow the established order.

Those stubborn ones who dare to neglect the rules of the game will face a quick and painful death in cold water, among floating debris and oil slicks. Boats, regardless of the flag, remain the most dangerous fighting vehicles capable of crushing any enemy.

I bring to your attention short story about the seven most successful submarine projects of the war years.

Boats type T (Triton-class), UK
The number of submarines built is 53.
Surface displacement - 1290 tons; underwater - 1560 tons.
Crew - 59 ... 61 people.
Operating immersion depth - 90 m (riveted hull), 106 m (welded hull).
Full speed on the surface - 15.5 knots; in the underwater - 9 knots.
A fuel reserve of 131 tons ensured a surface cruising range of 8,000 miles.
Armament:
- 11 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm (on boats of sub-series II and III), ammunition load - 17 torpedoes;
- 1 x 102 mm universal gun, 1 x 20 mm anti-aircraft "Oerlikon".

HMS Traveler

A British submarine Terminator capable of knocking the crap out of the head of any enemy with a bow-mounted 8-torpedo salvo. The T-type boats had no equal in destructive power among all submarines of the WWII period - this explains their ferocious appearance with a bizarre bow superstructure, which housed additional torpedo tubes.

The notorious British conservatism is a thing of the past - the British were among the first to equip their boats with ASDIC sonar. Alas, despite their powerful weapons and modern means of detection, the T-type boats of the high seas did not become the most effective among the British submarines of the Second World War. Nevertheless, they went through an exciting battle path and achieved a number of remarkable victories. "Tritons" were actively used in the Atlantic, in the Mediterranean Sea, smashed Japanese communications on pacific ocean, several times noted in the cold waters of the Arctic.

In August 1941, the Taigris and Trident submarines arrived in Murmansk. British submariners demonstrated a master class to their Soviet colleagues: 4 enemy ships were sunk in two campaigns, incl. "Baia Laura" and "Donau II" with thousands of soldiers of the 6th Mountain Division. Thus, the sailors prevented the third German attack on Murmansk.

Among the others famous trophies boats of the "T" type are the German light cruiser "Karlsruhe" and the Japanese heavy cruiser Ashigara. The samurai were “lucky” to get acquainted with the full 8-torpedo salvo of the Trenchent submarine - having received 4 torpedoes on board (+ one more from the stern TA), the cruiser quickly capsized and sank.

Boats of the "Cruising" type of the XIV series, the Soviet Union
The number of submarines built is 11.
Surface displacement - 1500 tons; underwater - 2100 tons.
Crew - 62 ... 65 people.

Full speed on the surface - 22.5 knots; in the underwater - 10 knots.
Surface cruising range 16,500 miles (9 knots)
Submerged cruising range - 175 miles (3 knots)
Armament:

- 2 x 100 mm universal guns, 2 x 45 mm anti-aircraft semi-automatic;
- up to 20 minutes of barriers.

... On December 3, 1941, German hunters UJ-1708, UJ-1416 and UJ-1403 bombarded Soviet boat, who tried to attack the convoy at Bustad-sund.

Hans, do you hear that creature?
- Nine. After a series of explosions, the Russians sank to the bottom - I detected three hits on the ground ...
- Can you tell where they are now?
- Donnerwetter! They are blown. Surely they decided to surface and surrender.

The German sailors were wrong. From the depths of the sea, a MONSTER rose to the surface - a cruising submarine K-3 of the XIV series, which unleashed a barrage of artillery fire on the enemy. From the fifth salvo, the Soviet sailors managed to sink U-1708. The second hunter, having received two direct hits, smoked and turned aside - his 20 mm anti-aircraft guns could not compete with the “hundreds” of a secular submarine cruiser. Having scattered the Germans like puppies, K-3 quickly disappeared over the horizon at 20 knots.

The Soviet Katyusha was a phenomenal boat for its time. Welded hull, powerful artillery and mine-torpedo weapons, powerful diesel engines (2 x 4200 hp!), high surface speed of 22-23 knots. Huge autonomy in terms of fuel reserves. Remote control of ballast tank valves. A radio station capable of transmitting signals from the Baltic to Far East. An exceptional level of comfort: shower cabins, refrigerated tanks, two seawater desalters, an electric galley ... Two boats (K-3 and K-22) were equipped with Lend-Lease ASDIC sonars.

But, oddly enough, neither the high performance nor the most powerful weapons made the Katyusha effective - in addition to the dark one with the K-21 attack on the Tirpitz, during the war years, only 5 successful torpedo attacks and 27 thousand br. reg. tons of sunk tonnage. Most of the victories were won with the help of exposed mines. Moreover, their own losses amounted to five cruiser boats.

K-21, Severomorsk, today

The reasons for the failures lie in the tactics of using the Katyushas - the mighty submarine cruisers, created for the expanses of the Pacific Ocean, had to "stomp" in the shallow Baltic "puddle". When operating at depths of 30-40 meters, a huge 97-meter boat could hit the ground with its bow, while its stern was still sticking out on the surface. It was a little easier for sailors from the North Sea - as practice has shown, the effectiveness of the combat use of Katyushas was complicated poor preparation personnel and lack of leadership.

It's a pity. These boats were counting on more.

"Baby", Soviet Union
Series VI and VI bis - 50 built.
Series XII - 46 built.
Series XV - 57 built (4 took part in the fighting).

TTX boat type M series XII:
Surface displacement - 206 tons; underwater - 258 tons.
Autonomy - 10 days.
Working depth of immersion - 50 m, limit - 60 m.
Full speed on the surface - 14 knots; in the underwater - 8 knots.
Cruising range on the surface - 3380 miles (8.6 knots).
Submerged cruising range - 108 miles (3 knots).
Armament:
- 2 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 2 torpedoes;
- 1 x 45 mm anti-aircraft semi-automatic.

Baby!

The project of mini-submarines for the rapid strengthening of the Pacific - main feature boats of type M became the possibility of transportation by rail in a fully assembled form.

In pursuit of compactness, many had to be sacrificed - service on the "Baby" turned into a grueling and dangerous event. Difficult living conditions, strong "chatter" - the waves ruthlessly threw a 200-ton "float", risking breaking it into pieces. Shallow diving depth and weak weapons. But the main concern of the sailors was the reliability of the submarine - one shaft, one diesel engine, one electric motor - the tiny "Baby" left no chance for the careless crew, the slightest malfunction on board threatened the submarine with death.

Kids evolved quickly - performance characteristics of each new series differed many times from the previous project: contours were improved, electrical equipment and detection tools were updated, diving time was reduced, and autonomy was growing. The “babies” of the XV series no longer resembled their predecessors of the VI and XII series: one and a half hull design - the ballast tanks were moved outside the pressure hull; The power plant received a standard twin-shaft layout with two diesel engines and electric motors for underwater travel. The number of torpedo tubes increased to four. Alas, the XV series appeared too late - the brunt of the war was borne by the "Babies" of the VI and XII series.

Despite their modest size and only 2 torpedoes on board, the tiny fish were distinguished by simply terrifying "gluttony": in just the years of World War II, Soviet M-type submarines sank 61 enemy ships with a total tonnage of 135.5 thousand gross tons, destroyed 10 warships, and also damaged 8 transports.

The little ones, originally intended only for operations in the coastal zone, have learned how to fight effectively in open sea areas. They are on par with more large boats they cut enemy communications, patrolled at the exits of enemy bases and fjords, deftly overcame anti-submarine barriers and undermined transports right at the piers inside protected enemy harbors. It's just amazing how the Red Navy could fight on these flimsy boats! But they fought. And they won!

Boats of the "Medium" type of the IX-bis series, the Soviet Union
The number of submarines built is 41.
Surface displacement - 840 tons; underwater - 1070 tons.
Crew - 36 ... 46 people.
Working depth of immersion - 80 m, limit - 100 m.
Full speed on the surface - 19.5 knots; submerged - 8.8 knots.
Surface cruising range 8,000 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 148 miles (3 knots).

“Six torpedo tubes and the same number of spare torpedoes on racks convenient for reloading. Two cannons with a large ammunition load, machine guns, explosive equipment ... In a word, there is something to fight. And 20-knot surface speed! It allows you to overtake almost any convoy and attack it again. Technique is good…”
- opinion of the S-56 commander, Hero Soviet Union G.I. Shchedrin

The Eskis were distinguished by their rational layout and balanced design, powerful armament, and excellent running and seaworthiness. Initially german project Deshimag firm, modified to meet Soviet requirements. But do not rush to clap your hands and remember the Mistral. After the start of serial construction of the IX series at Soviet shipyards, the German project was revised with the aim of a complete transition to Soviet equipment: 1D diesel engines, weapons, radio stations, a noise direction finder, a gyrocompass ... - there was not a single boat that received the designation "IX-bis series". bolts of foreign production!

The problems of the combat use of boats of the "Middle" type, in general, were similar to the cruising boats of the K type - locked in mine-infested shallow water, they could not realize their high combat qualities. Things were much better in the Northern Fleet - during the war years, the S-56 boat under the command of G.I. Shchedrin made the passage through the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, moving from Vladivostok to Polyarny, subsequently becoming the most productive boat of the USSR Navy.

An equally fantastic story is connected with the S-101 “bomb catcher” - over the years of the war, over 1000 depth charges were dropped on the boat by the Germans and the Allies, but each time the S-101 returned safely to Polyarny.

Finally, it was on the S-13 that Alexander Marinesko achieved his famous victories.

Torpedo compartment S-56

“The brutal alterations that the ship got into, bombing and explosions, depths far exceeding the official limit. The boat protected us from everything ... "

- from the memoirs of G.I. Shchedrin

Boats like Gato, USA
The number of submarines built is 77.
Surface displacement - 1525 tons; underwater - 2420 tons.
Crew - 60 people.
Working depth of immersion - 90 m.
Full speed on the surface - 21 knots; in a submerged position - 9 knots.
Surface cruising range 11,000 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 96 miles (2 knots).
Armament:
- 10 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 24 torpedoes;
- 1 x 76 mm universal gun, 1 x 40 mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun, 1 x 20 mm Oerlikon;
- one of the boats - USS Barb was equipped with a multiple launch rocket system for shelling the coast.

The ocean-going submarines of the Getow type appeared at the height of the Pacific War and became one of the most effective tools of the US Navy. They tightly blocked all strategic straits and approaches to the atolls, cut off all supply lines, leaving the Japanese garrisons without reinforcements, and Japanese industry without raw materials and oil. In the skirmishes with the Gatow, the Imperial Navy lost two heavy aircraft carriers, lost four cruisers and a damn dozen destroyers.

High speed, lethal torpedo weapons, the most modern electronic means of detecting the enemy - radar, direction finder, sonar. The cruising range that provides combat patrols off the coast of Japan when operating from a base in Hawaii. Increased comfort on board. But the main thing is the excellent training of the crews and the weakness of Japanese anti-submarine weapons. As a result, the Gatow ruthlessly destroyed everything in a row - it was they who brought victory in the Pacific Ocean from the blue depths of the sea.

... One of the main achievements of the Getow boats, which changed the whole world, is the event of September 2, 1944. On that day, the Finback submarine detected a distress signal from a falling plane and, after many hours of searching, found a frightened pilot in the ocean, and there was already a desperate pilot . The one who was saved was George Herbert Bush.

The cabin of the submarine "Flasher", a memorial in the city of Groton.

The list of trophies "Flasher" sounds like a fleet joke: 9 tankers, 10 transports, 2 patrol ship with a total tonnage of 100,231 brt! And for a snack, the boat grabbed a Japanese cruiser and a destroyer. Lucky damn!

Type XXI electric robots, Germany

By April 1945, the Germans managed to launch 118 submarines of the XXI series. However, only two of them were able to achieve operational readiness and go to sea in last days war.

Surface displacement - 1620 tons; underwater - 1820 tons.
Crew - 57 people.
Working depth of immersion - 135 m, maximum - 200+ meters.
Full speed on the surface - 15.6 knots, in the submerged position - 17 knots.
Surface cruising range 15,500 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 340 miles (5 knots).
Armament:
- 6 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 17 torpedoes;
- 2 anti-aircraft guns "Flak" caliber 20 mm.

U-2540 "Wilhelm Bauer" at the eternal parking lot in Bremerhaven, today

Our allies were very lucky that all the forces of Germany were thrown into Eastern front- the Fritz did not have enough resources to release a flock of fantastic "Electroboats" into the sea. If they appeared a year earlier - and that's it, kaput! Another turning point in the battle for the Atlantic.

The Germans were the first to guess: everything that shipbuilders of other countries are proud of - a large ammunition load, powerful artillery, high surface speed of 20+ knots - is of little importance. The key parameters that determine the combat effectiveness of a submarine are its speed and power reserve in a submerged position.

Unlike its peers, "Eletrobot" was focused on being constantly under water: the most streamlined body without heavy artillery, fences and platforms - all for the sake of minimizing underwater resistance. Snorkel, six groups of batteries (3 times more than on conventional boats!), powerful el. full speed engines, quiet and economical el. creep engines.

Aft part of U-2511, flooded at a depth of 68 meters

The Germans calculated everything - the entire campaign "Electrobot" moved at periscope depth under the RDP, remaining difficult to detect for enemy anti-submarine weapons. At great depths, its advantage became even more shocking: 2-3 times the range, at twice the speed, than any of the submarines of the war years! High stealth and impressive underwater skills, homing torpedoes, a set of the most advanced detection tools ... "Electrobots" opened a new milestone in the history of the submarine fleet, determining the vector of development of submarines in the post-war years.

The Allies were not ready to face such a threat - as post-war tests showed, the Electrobots were several times superior in terms of mutual sonar detection range to the American and British destroyers guarding the convoys.

Type VII boats, Germany
The number of submarines built is 703.
Surface displacement - 769 tons; underwater - 871 tons.
Crew - 45 people.
Working depth of immersion - 100 m, limit - 220 meters
Full speed on the surface - 17.7 knots; in a submerged position - 7.6 knots.
Surface cruising range 8,500 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 80 miles (4 knots).
Armament:
- 5 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 14 torpedoes;
- 1 x 88 mm universal gun (until 1942), eight options for add-ons with 20 and 37 mm anti-aircraft guns.

* the given performance characteristics correspond to boats of the VIIC sub-series

Most Effective warships of all that have ever plied the oceans.
A relatively simple, cheap, massive, but at the same time well-armed and deadly means for total underwater terror.

703 submarines. 10 MILLION tons of sunk tonnage! Battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, destroyers, enemy corvettes and submarines, oil tankers, transports with aircraft, cars, rubber, ore, machine tools, ammunition, uniforms and food ... The damage from the actions of German submariners exceeded all reasonable limits - if not for the inexhaustible the industrial potential of the United States, capable of compensating for any losses of the allies, the German U-bots had every chance to “strangle” Great Britain and change the course of world history.

U-995. Graceful underwater killer

Often the successes of the "sevens" are associated with the "prosperous time" of 1939-41. - allegedly when the Allies had the escort system and Asdik sonars, the successes of the German submariners ended. A completely populist claim based on a misinterpretation of "prosperous times".

The alignment was simple: at the beginning of the war, when there was one Allied anti-submarine ship for each German boat, the “sevens” felt like invulnerable masters of the Atlantic. It was then that the legendary aces appeared, sinking 40 enemy ships each. The Germans already had victory in their hands when the Allies suddenly deployed 10 anti-submarine ships and 10 aircraft for every active Kriegsmarine boat!

Beginning in the spring of 1943, the Yankees and the British began methodically bombarding the Kriegsmarine with anti-submarine warfare and soon achieved an excellent loss ratio of 1:1. So they fought until the end of the war. The Germans ran out of ships faster than their opponents.

The whole history of the German "sevens" is a formidable warning from the past: what kind of threat does the submarine pose and how high are the costs of creating an effective system to counter the underwater threat.

Funky American poster of those years. "Hit the pain points! Come serve in the submarine fleet - we account for 77% of the sunk tonnage!" Comments, as they say, are unnecessary

The article uses materials from the book "Soviet submarine shipbuilding", V. I. Dmitriev, Military Publishing, 1990.

Every war is a terrible grief for any people that it affects in one way or another. Throughout its history, mankind has known many wars, two of which were world wars. The First World War almost completely destroyed Europe and led to the fall of some large empires, such as the Russian and Austro-Hungarian. But even more terrible in its scale was the Second World War, in which many countries from almost all over the world were involved. Millions of people died, and even more were left without a roof over their heads. This terrible event still affects in one way or another modern man. Its echoes can be found throughout our lives. This tragedy left behind a lot of mysteries, disputes over which have not subsided for decades. He took upon himself the heaviest burden in this battle not for life, but for death, then not quite strong from the revolution and civil wars and only the Soviet Union, which was building up its military and civilian industry. Irreconcilable rage and a desire to fight the invaders who encroached on the territorial integrity and freedom of the proletarian state settled in the hearts of people. Many went to the front voluntarily. At the same time, the evacuated industrial capacities were reorganized for the production of products for the needs of the front. The struggle took on the scale of a truly popular one. That is why it is called the Great Patriotic War.

Who are the aces?

Both the German and Soviet armies were well trained and equipped with equipment, aircraft and other weapons. The personnel numbered in the millions. The collision of these two war machines gave birth to its heroes and its traitors. One of those who can rightfully be considered heroes are the aces of World War II. Who are they and why are they so famous? An ace can be considered a person who has achieved such heights in his field of activity that few people managed to conquer. And even in such a dangerous and terrible business as the military, there have always been professionals. Both the USSR and the allied forces, and Nazi Germany, had people who showed the best results in terms of the number of destroyed enemy equipment or manpower. This article will tell about these heroes.

The list of aces of World War II is extensive and includes many individuals famous for their exploits. They were an example for a whole nation, they were adored, admired.

Aviation is without a doubt one of the most romantic, but at the same time dangerous branches of the military. Since any technique can fail at any moment, the pilot's work is considered very honorable. It requires iron restraint, discipline, the ability to control oneself in any situation. Therefore, aviation aces were treated with great respect. After all, to be able to show a good result in such conditions, when your life depends not only on technology, but also on yourself, - highest degree military art. So, who are they - the aces of the Second World War, and why are their exploits so famous?

One of the most productive Soviet pilot aces was Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub. Officially, during his service on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, he shot down 62 German aircraft, and he is also credited with 2 American fighters, which he destroyed at the end of the war. This record-breaking pilot served in the 176th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment and flew a La-7 aircraft.

The second most successful during the war was Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin (who was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union three times). He fought in southern Ukraine, in the Black Sea region, liberated Europe from the Nazis. During his service he shot down 59 enemy aircraft. He did not stop flying even when he was appointed commander of the 9th Guards Aviation Division, and won some of his air victories while already in this position.

Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev is one of the most famous military pilots, who set a record - 4 sorties for one destroyed aircraft. In total, during his military service, he destroyed 57 enemy aircraft. Awarded twice the honorary title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

He also shot down 55 German aircraft. Kozhedub, who happened to serve for some time with Evstigneev in the same regiment, spoke very respectfully about this pilot.

But, despite the fact that the tank troops were among the most numerous in the Soviet army, for some reason the USSR did not have aces tankers of the Second World War. Why this is so is unknown. It is logical to assume that many personal scores were deliberately overestimated or underestimated, so it is not possible to name the exact number of victories of the aforementioned tank battle masters.

German tank aces

But the German tank aces of World War II have a much longer track record. This is largely due to the pedantry of the Germans, who strictly documented everything, and they had much more time to fight than their Soviet "colleagues". Active actions german army began to lead in 1939.

German tankman number 1 is Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittmann. He fought on many tanks (Stug III, Tiger I) and destroyed 138 vehicles during the entire war, as well as 132 self-propelled artillery installations of various enemy countries. For his successes he was repeatedly awarded various orders and signs of the Third Reich. Killed in action in 1944 in France.

You can also single out such a tank ace as For those who are somehow interested in the history of development tank troops Third Reich, the book of his memoirs "Tigers in the Mud" will be very useful. During the war years, this man destroyed 150 Soviet and American self-propelled guns and tanks.

Kurt Knispel is another record holder tanker. He knocked out 168 tanks and self-propelled guns of the enemy for his military service. About 30 cars are unconfirmed, which does not allow him to catch up with Wittmann in terms of results. Knispel was killed in battle near the village of Vostits in Czechoslovakia, in 1945.

In addition, Karl Bromann had good results - 66 tanks and self-propelled guns, Ernst Barkmann - 66 tanks and self-propelled guns, Erich Mausberg - 53 tanks and self-propelled guns.

As can be seen from these results, both the Soviet and German tank aces of World War II knew how to fight. Of course, the quantity and quality of Soviet combat vehicles was an order of magnitude higher than that of the Germans, however, as practice has shown, both of them were used quite successfully and became the basis for some post-war tank designs.

But the list of military branches in which their masters distinguished themselves does not end there. Let's talk a little about aces-submariners.

Submarine Warfare Masters

Just as in the case of aircraft and tanks, the most successful are the German sailors. During the years of its existence, the Kriegsmarine submariners sank 2603 ships of the allied countries, the total displacement of which reaches 13.5 million tons. This is a truly impressive number. And the German submarine aces of World War II could also boast of impressive personal scores.

The most productive German submariner is Otto Kretschmer, who has 44 ships, including 1 destroyer. The total displacement of the ships sunk by him is 266629 tons.

In second place is Wolfgang Luth, who sent 43 enemy ships to the bottom (and according to other sources - 47) with a total displacement of 225,712 tons.

He was also a famous sea ace who even managed to sink the British battleship Royal Oak. It was one of the first officers to receive oak leaves for Prien and destroyed 30 ships. Killed in 1941 during an attack on a British convoy. He was so popular that his death was hidden from the people for two months. And on the day of his funeral, mourning was declared throughout the country.

Such successes of the German sailors are also quite understandable. The fact is that Germany began a naval war back in 1940, with a blockade of Britain, thus hoping to undermine its maritime greatness and, taking advantage of this, to carry out a successful capture of the islands. However, very soon the plans of the Nazis were frustrated, as America entered the war with its large and powerful fleet.

The most famous Soviet sailor of the submarine fleet is Alexander Marinesko. He sank only 4 ships, but what! Heavy passenger liner "Wilhelm Gustloff", transport "General von Steuben", as well as 2 units of heavy floating batteries "Helene" and "Siegfried". For his exploits, Hitler listed the sailor personal enemies. But the fate of Marinesko did not work out well. He fell into disgrace Soviet power and died, and his exploits ceased to speak. The great sailor received the Hero of the Soviet Union award only posthumously in 1990. Unfortunately, many aces of the USSR of the Second World War ended their lives in a similar way.

Also famous submariners of the Soviet Union are Ivan Travkin - sank 13 ships, Nikolai Lunin - also 13 ships, Valentin Starikov - 14 ships. But Marinesko topped the list of the best submariners of the Soviet Union, as he caused the greatest damage to the German navy.

Accuracy and Stealth

Well, how can one not remember such famous fighters as snipers? Here the Soviet Union takes the well-deserved palm from Germany. Soviet sniper aces of World War II had very high service records. In many respects, such results were achieved thanks to the mass state training of the civilian population in shooting from various weapons. About 9 million people were awarded the Voroshilovsky shooter badge. So, what are the most famous snipers?

The name of Vasily Zaitsev frightened the Germans and inspired courage in Soviet soldiers. This ordinary guy, a hunter, killed 225 Wehrmacht soldiers from his Mosin rifle in just a month of fighting near Stalingrad. Among the outstanding sniper names are Fedor Okhlopkov, who (for the entire war) accounted for about a thousand Nazis; Semyon Nomokonov, who killed 368 enemy soldiers. There were also women among the snipers. An example of this is the famous Lyudmila Pavlichenko, who fought near Odessa and Sevastopol.

German snipers are less known, although in Germany since 1942 there were several sniper schools that dealt with vocational training frames. Among the most productive German shooters are Matthias Hetzenauer (345 killed), (257 destroyed), Bruno Sutkus (209 soldiers shot dead). Also a famous sniper from the countries of the Hitlerite bloc is Simo Hayha - this Finn killed 504 Red Army soldiers during the war years (according to unconfirmed reports).

Thus, the sniper training of the Soviet Union was immeasurably higher than that of the German troops, which allowed the Soviet soldiers to wear the proud title of aces of World War II.

How did they become aces?

So, the concept of "ace of the Second World War" is quite extensive. As already mentioned, these people achieved truly impressive results in their work. This was achieved not only due to good army training, but also due to outstanding personal qualities. After all, for a pilot, for example, coordination and quick reaction are very important, for a sniper - the ability to wait for the right moment to sometimes fire a single shot.

Accordingly, it is impossible to determine who had the best aces of the Second World War. Both sides committed unparalleled heroism, which made it possible to single out individuals from the general mass. But one could become a master only by training hard and improving one's combat skills, since war does not tolerate weakness. Of course, the dry lines of statistics will not be able to convey to a modern person all the hardships and hardships that war professionals experienced during their formation on an honorary pedestal.

We, the generation that lives without knowing such terrible things, should not forget about the exploits of our predecessors. They can become an inspiration, a reminder, a memory. And we must try to do everything to ensure that such terrible events as past wars do not happen again.

In this article you will learn:

The submarine fleet of the Third Reich has its own interesting history.

The defeat of Germany in the war of 1914-1918 brought her a ban on the construction of submarines, but after Adolf Hitler came to power, it radically changed the situation with weapons in Germany.

Creation of the Navy

In 1935, Germany signed a naval agreement with Great Britain, which resulted in the recognition of submarines as obsolete weapons, and thus obtaining permission for their construction by Germany.

All submarines were subordinate to the Kriegsmarine - the Navy of the Third Reich.

Karl Demitz

In the summer of the same 1935, the Fuhrer appointed Karl Dönitz commander of all submarines of the Reich, in this post he remained until 1943, when he was appointed commander-in-chief of the German Navy. In 1939, Dönitz received the rank of Rear Admiral.

Many operations were developed and planned personally by him. A year later, in September, Karl becomes vice admiral, and a year and a half later he receives the rank of admiral, at the same time he receives the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves.

It is he who owns most of the strategic developments and ideas used during submarine wars. Dönitz created a new super caste of "unsinkable Pinocchios" from his subordinate submariners, and he himself received the nickname "Papa Carlo". All submariners underwent intensive training, and knew the capabilities of their submarine thoroughly.

Dönitz's submarine tactics were so talented that they earned the nickname "wolf packs" from the enemy. The tactics of the "wolf packs" was as follows: the submarines lined up in such a way that one of the submarines could detect the approach of the enemy convoy. The submarine that found the enemy transmitted an encrypted message to the center, and then it continued its journey already on the surface parallel to the enemy, but rather far behind him. The rest of the submarines focused on the enemy convoy, and they surrounded him like a pack of wolves and attacked, taking advantage of their numerical superiority. Such hunts were usually conducted in the dark.

Construction

The German Navy was armed with 31 combat and training fleets of the submarine fleet. Each of the fleets had a clearly organized structure. The number of submarines included in a particular flotilla could change. Submarines were often withdrawn from one unit and introduced into another. During combat exits at sea, one of the commanders of the operational group of the submarine fleet was in command, and in cases of very important operations, the commander of the submarine fleet, Befelshaber der Unterseebote, took control.

During the war, Germany built and fully manned 1153 submarines. During the war, fifteen submarines were seized from the enemy, they were introduced into the "wolf pack". Turkish and five Dutch submarines took part in the battles, two Norwegian, three Dutch and one French and one English were training, four Italian were transport and one Italian submarine stood at the docks.

As a rule, the main targets of the Dönitz submarines were enemy transport ships, which were responsible for providing the troops with everything they needed. During the meeting with the enemy ship, the main principle of the "wolf pack" was in effect - to destroy more ships than the enemy can build. Such tactics bore fruit from the first days of the war in the vast expanses of water from Antarctica to South Africa.

Requirements

The basis of the Nazi submarine fleet were submarines of series 1,2,7,9,14,23. At the end of the 30s, Germany mainly built submarines of three series.

The main requirement for the first submarines was the use of submarines in coastal waters, such were the second class submarines, they were easy to maintain, well maneuverable and could sink in a few seconds, but their disadvantage was a small ammunition load, so they were discontinued in 1941.

During the battle in the Atlantic, the seventh series of submarines, which were originally developed by Finland, were used, they were considered the most reliable, since they were equipped with snorkels - a device through which it was possible to charge the battery under water. In total, more than seven hundred of them were built. For combat in the ocean, submarines of the ninth series were used, since they had a large radius of action and could even sail to the Pacific Ocean without refueling.

complexes

The construction of a huge submarine flotilla meant the construction of a complex of defense structures. It was supposed to build powerful concrete bunkers with fortifications for minesweepers and torpedo boats, with the presence of firing points and shelters for artillery. Special shelters were also built in Hamburg, Kiel at their naval bases. After the fall of Norway, Belgium and Holland, Germany received additional military bases.

So for their submarines, the Nazis created bases in Norwegian Bergen and Trondheim and French Brest, Lorient, Saint-Nazaire, Bordeaux.

In German Bremen, a plant for the production of submarines of the 11th series was equipped, it was equipped in the middle of a huge bunker near the Weser River. Several bases for submarines were provided to the Germans by the Japanese allies, the base in Penang and the Malay Peninsula, and was also equipped in Indonesian Jakarta and Japanese Kobe additional center for the repair of German submarines.

Armament

The main weapons of Dönitz's submarines were torpedoes and mines, the effectiveness of which was constantly increasing. Also, the submarines were equipped with artillery pieces of 88 mm or 105 mm caliber, and anti-aircraft guns with a caliber of 20 mm could also be installed. However, starting from 1943, the artillery guns were gradually removed, as the effectiveness of the deck guns decreased significantly, but the danger of an air attack, on the contrary, forced the power of anti-aircraft weapons to be increased. For the effectiveness of underwater combat, German engineers were able to develop a radar detector, which made it possible to avoid English radar stations. Already at the end of the war, the Germans began to equip their submarines with a large number of batteries, which made it possible to reach speeds of up to seventeen knots, but the end of the war did not allow the fleet to be re-equipped.

fighting

Submarines participated in combat operations in 1939-1945 in 68 operations. During this time, 149 enemy warships were sunk by submarines, of which two battleships, three aircraft carriers, five cruisers, eleven destroyers and many other ships, with a total tonnage of 14,879,472 gross register tons.

The sinking of the Korages

The first major victory of the "wolf packs" was the sinking of the aircraft carrier "Koreydzhes". This happened in September 1939, the aircraft carrier was sunk by the submarine U-29 under the command of Lieutenant Commander Shewhart. After the sinking of the aircraft carrier, the submarine was pursued by the destroyers accompanying it for four hours, but U-29 was able to slip out, almost without damage.

Destruction of Royal Oak

The next brilliant victory was the destruction of the battleship Royal Oak. This happened after the U-47 submarine under the command of Lieutenant Commander Gunter Prien penetrated the British naval base in Skala Flow. After this raid, the British fleet had to be relocated to another location for six months.

Victory over Ark Royal

Another resounding victory for Dönitz's submarines was the torpedoing of the aircraft carrier Ark Royal. In November 1941, the submarines U-81 and U-205, located near Gibraltar, were ordered to attack british ships returning from Malta. During the attack, the Ark Royal aircraft carrier was hit, at first the British hoped that they could tow the wrecked aircraft carrier, but this did not work out, and the Ark Royal sank.

From the beginning of 1942, German submariners began to conduct military operations in US territorial waters. The cities of the United States were not even dark at night, cargo ships and tankers moved without military escort, so the number of American ships destroyed was calculated by the stock of torpedoes on the submarine, so the U-552 submarine sank seven American ships in one exit.

Legendary submariners

The most successful submariners of the Third Reich were Otto Kretschmer and Captain Wolfgang Luth, who managed to sink 47 ships each with a tonnage of over 220 thousand tons. The most successful submarine was U-48, whose crew sank 51 ships with a tonnage of about 305,000 tons. The submarine U-196, under the command of Eitel-Friedrich Kentrath, stayed on the voyage for 225 days.

Equipment

To communicate with the submarines, radiograms were used, encrypted on a special Enigma encryption machine. Great Britain made every possible effort to obtain this device, since there was no other way to decipher the texts, however, as soon as it became possible to steal such a machine from a captured submarine, the Germans first of all destroyed the device and all encryption documents. However, they succeeded after capturing U-110 and U-505, and a number of encrypted documents also fell into their hands. U-110 was attacked by British depth charges in May 1941, as a result of damage, the submarine was forced to surface, the Germans planned to escape from the submarine and sink it, but they did not have time to sink it, so the boat was captured by the British, and Enigma fell into their hands and magazines with ciphers and maps of minefields. In order to keep the secret of the capture of the Enigma, the entire surviving crew of submariners was rescued from the water, the boat itself was soon sunk. The resulting ciphers allowed the British until 1942 to keep abreast of German radio messages, until Enigma was complicated. The capture of encrypted documents on board U-559 helped break this cipher. She was attacked by British destroyers in 1942 and taken in tow, a new variation of the Enigma was also found there, but the submarine began to sink quickly and the cipher machine, along with two British sailors, drowned.

victories

During the war, German submarines were captured many times, some of them were also subsequently put into service with the enemy fleet, such as U-57, which became the British submarine Graf, which conducted combat operations in 1942-1944. The Germans lost several of their submarines due to the presence of defects in the structure of the submarines themselves. So the submarine U-377 went to the bottom in 1944 due to the explosion of its own circulating torpedo, the details of the sinking are not known, since the entire crew also died.

Fuhrer convoy

In the service of Dönitz, there was also another subdivision of submarines, called the Fuhrer's Convoy. The secret group included thirty-five submarines. The British believed that these submarines were intended to transport minerals from South America. However, it remains a mystery why at the end of the war, when the submarine fleet was almost completely destroyed, Dönitz did not withdraw more than one submarine from the Fuhrer's Convoy.

There are versions that these submarines were used to control the secret Nazi Base 211 in Antarctica. However, two of the convoy submarines were discovered after the war near Argentina, the captains of which claimed to be transporting an unknown secret cargo and two secret passengers in South America. Some of the submarines of this “ghostly convoy” were never found after the war, and there were almost no mentions of them in military documents, these are U-465, U-209. In total, historians talk about the fate of only 9 out of 35 submarines - U-534, U-530, U-977, U-234, U-209, U-465, U-590, U-662, U863.

Sunset

The beginning of the end for the German submarines was 1943, when the first failures of the Dönitz submariners began. The first failures were due to the improvement of the Allied radar, the next blow to Hitler's submarines was the growing industrial power of the United States, they managed to build ships faster than the Germans sank them. Even the installation of the latest torpedoes on submarines of the 13th series could not tip the scales in favor of the Nazis. During the war, Germany lost almost 80% of its submariners; at the end of the war, only seven thousand were alive.

However, Dönitz's submarines fought for Germany until the last day. Dönitz himself became Hitler's successor, later arrested and sentenced to ten years.

Submarines dictate the rules in naval warfare and force everyone to meekly follow the established order.

I bring to your attention a short story about the seven most successful submarine projects of the war years.

Boats type T (Triton-class), UK

The number of submarines built is 53.
Surface displacement - 1290 tons; underwater - 1560 tons.
Crew - 59 ... 61 people.
Operating immersion depth - 90 m (riveted hull), 106 m (welded hull).
Full speed on the surface - 15.5 knots; in the underwater - 9 knots.
A fuel reserve of 131 tons ensured a surface cruising range of 8,000 miles.
Armament:
- 11 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm (on boats of sub-series II and III), ammunition load - 17 torpedoes;
- 1 x 102 mm universal gun, 1 x 20 mm anti-aircraft "Oerlikon".

The notorious British conservatism is a thing of the past - the British were among the first to equip their boats with ASDIC sonar. Alas, despite their powerful weapons and modern means of detection, the T-type boats of the high seas did not become the most effective among the British submarines of the Second World War. Nevertheless, they went through an exciting battle path and achieved a number of remarkable victories. "Tritons" were actively used in the Atlantic, in the Mediterranean Sea, smashed Japanese communications in the Pacific Ocean, and were noted several times in the cold waters of the Arctic.

Other famous T-boat trophies include the German light cruiser Karlsruhe and the Japanese heavy cruiser Ashigara. The samurai were “lucky” to get acquainted with the full 8-torpedo salvo of the Trenchent submarine - having received 4 torpedoes on board (+ one more from the stern TA), the cruiser quickly capsized and sank.

After the war, the powerful and perfect Tritons were in service with the Royal Navy for another quarter of a century.
It is noteworthy that Israel acquired three boats of this type in the late 1960s - one of them, INS Dakar (formerly HMS Totem), died in 1968 in the Mediterranean Sea under unclear circumstances.

Boats of the "Cruising" type of the XIV series, the Soviet Union
The number of submarines built is 11.
Surface displacement - 1500 tons; underwater - 2100 tons.
Crew - 62 ... 65 people.

Full speed on the surface - 22.5 knots; in the underwater - 10 knots.
Surface cruising range 16,500 miles (9 knots)
Submerged cruising range - 175 miles (3 knots)
Armament:

- 2 x 100 mm universal guns, 2 x 45 mm anti-aircraft semi-automatic;
- up to 20 minutes of barriers.

... On December 3, 1941, German hunters UJ-1708, UJ-1416 and UJ-1403 bombarded a Soviet boat that tried to attack a convoy near Bustad Sund.

“Hans, can you hear that creature?
— Nine. After a series of explosions, the Russians sank to the bottom - I detected three hits on the ground ...
Can you tell where they are now?
— Donnerwetter! They are blown. Surely they decided to surface and surrender.

The German sailors were wrong. From the depths of the sea, a MONSTER rose to the surface - a K-3 cruiser submarine of the XIV series, which unleashed a flurry of artillery fire on the enemy. From the fifth salvo, the Soviet sailors managed to sink U-1708. The second hunter, having received two direct hits, smoked and turned aside - his 20 mm anti-aircraft guns could not compete with the "hundreds" of a secular submarine cruiser. Having scattered the Germans like puppies, K-3 quickly disappeared over the horizon at 20 knots.

The Soviet Katyusha was a phenomenal boat for its time. Welded hull, powerful artillery and mine-torpedo weapons, powerful diesel engines (2 x 4200 hp!), high surface speed of 22-23 knots. Huge autonomy in terms of fuel reserves. Remote control of ballast tank valves. A radio station capable of transmitting signals from the Baltic to the Far East. An exceptional level of comfort: shower cabins, refrigerated tanks, two seawater desalters, an electric galley ... Two boats (K-3 and K-22) were equipped with Lend-Lease ASDIC sonars.

But, oddly enough, neither the high performance nor the most powerful weapons made the Katyusha an effective weapon - in addition to dark history with the K-21 attack on the Tirpitz, during the war years, only 5 successful torpedo attacks and 27 thousand br. reg. tons of sunk tonnage. Most of the victories were won with the help of exposed mines. Moreover, their own losses amounted to five cruiser boats.

The reasons for the failures lie in the tactics of using the Katyushas - the mighty submarine cruisers, created for the expanses of the Pacific Ocean, had to "stomp" in the shallow Baltic "puddle". When operating at depths of 30-40 meters, a huge 97-meter boat could hit the ground with its bow, while its stern was still sticking out on the surface. Severomorsk sailors had a little easier time - as practice has shown, the effectiveness of the combat use of the Katyushas was complicated by the poor training of personnel and the lack of initiative of the command.
It's a pity. These boats were counting on more.

"Baby", Soviet Union

Series VI and VI-bis - 50 built.
Series XII - 46 built.
Series XV - 57 built (4 took part in the fighting).

TTX boat type M series XII:
Surface displacement - 206 tons; underwater - 258 tons.
Autonomy - 10 days.
The working depth of immersion is 50 m, the limit is 60 m.
Full speed on the surface - 14 knots; in the underwater - 8 knots.
Cruising range on the surface - 3380 miles (8.6 knots).
Cruising range in a submerged position - 108 miles (3 knots).
Armament:
- 2 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 2 torpedoes;
- 1 x 45 mm anti-aircraft semi-automatic.

The project of mini-submarines for the rapid strengthening of the Pacific Fleet - the main feature of the M-type boats was the ability to be transported by rail in a fully assembled form.

The kids evolved quickly - the performance characteristics of each new series differed several times from the previous project: contours were improved, electrical equipment and detection tools were updated, diving time was reduced, and autonomy grew. The "babies" of the XV series no longer resembled their predecessors of the VI and XII series: one and a half hull design - the ballast tanks were moved outside the pressure hull; The power plant received a standard twin-shaft layout with two diesel engines and electric motors for underwater travel. The number of torpedo tubes increased to four. Alas, the XV series appeared too late - the brunt of the war was borne by the "Baby" VI and XII series.

The little ones, originally intended only for operations in the coastal zone, have learned how to fight effectively in open sea areas. They, along with larger boats, cut enemy communications, patrolled at the exits of enemy bases and fjords, deftly overcame anti-submarine barriers and undermined transports right at the piers inside protected enemy harbors. It's just amazing how the Red Navy could fight on these flimsy boats! But they fought. And they won!

Boats of the "Medium" type of the IX-bis series, the Soviet Union

The number of submarines built is 41.
Surface displacement - 840 tons; underwater - 1070 tons.
Crew - 36 ... 46 people.
The working depth of immersion is 80 m, the limit is 100 m.
Full speed on the surface - 19.5 knots; submerged - 8.8 knots.
Surface cruising range 8,000 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 148 miles (3 knots).

“Six torpedo tubes and the same number of spare torpedoes on racks convenient for reloading. Two cannons with a large ammunition load, machine guns, explosive equipment ... In a word, there is something to fight. And 20-knot surface speed! It allows you to overtake almost any convoy and attack it again. Technique is good…”
- opinion of the S-56 commander, Hero of the Soviet Union G.I. Shchedrin

The Eskis were distinguished by their rational layout and balanced design, powerful armament, and excellent running and seaworthiness. Originally a German design by Deshimag, modified to meet Soviet requirements. But do not rush to clap your hands and remember the Mistral. After the start of serial construction of the IX series at Soviet shipyards, the German project was revised with the aim of a complete transition to Soviet equipment: 1D diesel engines, weapons, radio stations, a noise direction finder, a gyrocompass ... - in the boats that received the designation "IX-bis series", there was not a single bolts of foreign production!

The problems of the combat use of boats of the "Medium" type, in general, were similar to the cruising boats of the K type - locked in mine-infested shallow water, they could not realize their high combat qualities. Things were much better in the Northern Fleet - during the war years, the S-56 boat under the command of G.I. Shchedrina made the transition across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, moving from Vladivostok to the Polar, subsequently becoming the most productive boat of the Soviet Navy.

Finally, it was on the S-13 that Alexander Marinesko achieved his famous victories.

“The brutal alterations that the ship got into, bombing and explosions, depths far exceeding the official limit. The boat protected us from everything ... "
- from the memoirs of G.I. Shchedrin

Boats like Gato, USA

The number of submarines built is 77.
Surface displacement - 1525 tons; underwater - 2420 tons.
Crew - 60 people.
The working depth of immersion is 90 m.
Full speed on the surface - 21 knots; in a submerged position - 9 knots.
Surface cruising range 11,000 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 96 miles (2 knots).
Armament:
- 10 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 24 torpedoes;
- 1 x 76 mm universal gun, 1 x 40 mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun, 1 x 20 mm Oerlikon;
- one of the boats - USS Barb was equipped with a multiple launch rocket system for shelling the coast.

High speed, lethal torpedo weapons, the most modern electronic means of detecting the enemy - radar, direction finder, sonar. The cruising range that provides combat patrols off the coast of Japan when operating from a base in Hawaii. Increased comfort on board. But the main thing is the excellent training of the crews and the weakness of Japanese anti-submarine weapons. As a result, the Getow ruthlessly destroyed everything - it was they who brought victory in the Pacific Ocean from the blue depths of the sea.

The list of Flasher trophies sounds like a fleet joke: 9 tankers, 10 transports, 2 patrol ships with a total tonnage of 100,231 gross tons! And for a snack, the boat grabbed a Japanese cruiser and a destroyer. Lucky damn!

Type XXI electric robots, Germany
By April 1945, the Germans managed to launch 118 submarines of the XXI series. However, only two of them were able to achieve operational readiness and go to sea in the last days of the war.

Surface displacement - 1620 tons; underwater - 1820 tons.
Crew - 57 people.
The working depth of immersion is 135 m, the maximum one is 200+ meters.
Full speed on the surface - 15.6 knots, in the submerged position - 17 knots.
Surface cruising range 15,500 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 340 miles (5 knots).
Armament:
- 6 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 17 torpedoes;
- 2 Flak anti-aircraft guns of 20 mm caliber.

Our allies were very lucky that all the forces of Germany were thrown to the Eastern Front - the Fritz did not have enough resources to release a flock of fantastic "Electric boats" into the sea. If they appeared a year earlier - and that's it, kaput! Another turning point in the battle for the Atlantic.

The Germans were the first to guess: everything that shipbuilders of other countries are proud of - a large ammunition load, powerful artillery, a high surface speed of 20+ knots - is of little importance. The key parameters that determine the combat effectiveness of a submarine are its speed and power reserve in a submerged position.

Type VII boats, Germany

The number of submarines built is 703.
Surface displacement - 769 tons; underwater - 871 tons.
Crew - 45 people.
Working depth of immersion - 100 m, limit - 220 meters
Full speed on the surface - 17.7 knots; in a submerged position - 7.6 knots.
Surface cruising range 8,500 miles (10 knots).
Submerged cruising range 80 miles (4 knots).
Armament:
- 5 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm, ammunition - 14 torpedoes;
- 1 x 88 mm universal gun (until 1942), eight options for superstructures with 20 and 37 mm anti-aircraft guns.

* the given performance characteristics correspond to boats of the VIIC sub-series

The most effective warships ever to sail the world's oceans.
A relatively simple, cheap, massive, but at the same time well-armed and deadly means for total underwater terror.

703 submarines. 10 MILLION tons of sunk tonnage! Battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, destroyers, enemy corvettes and submarines, oil tankers, transports with aircraft, tanks, cars, rubber, ore, machine tools, ammunition, uniforms and food ... The damage from the actions of German submariners exceeded all reasonable limits - if not the inexhaustible industrial potential of the United States, capable of compensating for any losses of the allies, the German U-bots had every chance to “strangle” Great Britain and change the course of world history.

The entire history of the German "sevens" is a formidable warning from the past: what a threat the submarine poses and how high the costs of creating an effective system to counter the underwater threat.

Dispassionate statistics show that during the Second World War, the best submariners were German submariners. They sank 2,603 Allied warships and transport ships with a total displacement of 13.5 million tons. As a result, 70 thousand military sailors and 30 thousand sailors died merchant fleet. The ratio of losses and victories, thus, was 1:4 in favor of the German submarines. Soviet submariners Of course, they could not boast of such successes, but they nevertheless delivered major troubles to the enemy. List of German submarine war aces who sank ships with a total displacement of more than 100 thousand tons: 1. Otto Kretschmer- sank 44 ships, including 1 destroyer - 266629 tons. 2. Wolfgang Luth- 43 ships, including 1 submarine - 225,712 tons (according to other sources, 47 ships - 228,981 tons). 3. Erich Topp- 34 ships, including 1 American destroyer - 193684 tons. 4. Herbert Schulze- 28 ships - 183432 tons (on his account the first of all the ships officially sunk by German submarines - the transport "Bosnia" - was sunk on September 5, 1939). 5. Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock- 25 ships - 183253 tons. 6. Karl-Friedrich Merten- 29 ships - 180869 tons. 7. Heinrich Liebe- 31 ships - 167886 tons. 8. Günther Prien- 30 ships, including the English battleship "Royal Oak", sunk by him on October 14, 1939 in the roadstead in the main naval base of the British fleet Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands - 164953 tons. Günter Prien became the first German officer to receive oak leaves for the Knight's Cross. An outstanding submariner of the Third Reich died very early - on March 8, 1941 (during the attack of a convoy en route from Liverpool to Halifax). 9. Joachim Schepke- 39 ships - 159130 tons. 10. Georg Lassen- 26 ships - 156082 tons. 11. Werner Henke- 24 ships - 155714 tons. 12. Johan Mor- 27 ships, including a corvette and an air defense cruiser - 129292 tons. 13. Engelbert Endras- 22 ships, including 2 cruisers - 128879 tons. 14. Reinhardt Hardegen- 23 ships - 119405 tons. 15. Werner Hartmann- 24 ships - 115616 tons.

Also worthy of mention Albrecht Brandi who sank a minelayer and a destroyer; Reinhardt Suhren(95,092 tons), which sank a corvette; Fritz Julius Lemp(68607 tons), which damaged the English battleship "Barham" and actually sank the first ship of all destroyed by the German submarine fleet, the passenger liner "Athenia" (this happened on September 3, 1939 and was not then recognized by the German side); Otto Shewhart(80688 tons), which sank the English aircraft carrier Courageous on September 17, 1939; Hans Dietrich von Tiesenhausen, which sank the English battleship Barham on November 25, 1941.

Only five of Germany's best submariners sank 174 combat and transport ships allies with a total displacement of 1 million 52 thousand 710 tons.

For comparison: Soviet submarine fleet had by June 22, 1941 in combat strength 212 submarines (to this must be added 54 submarines built already during the war). These forces (267 submarines) were sunk 157 enemy warships and transports- 462,300 tons (meaning only confirmed data).

The losses of the Soviet submarine fleet amounted to 98 boats (of course, excluding 4 submarines lost Pacific Fleet). In 1941 - 34, in 1942 - 35, in 1943 - 19, in 1944 - 9, in 1945 - 1. The ratio of losses and victories is 1: 1.6 in favor of submarines.

The best submariner of the Soviet Navy Alexander Ivanovich Marinesko sank 4 passenger and commercial vehicles with a total displacement of 42,507 tons:

January 30, 1945 - passenger liner "Wilhelm Gustlov" - 25484 tons (on the submarine S-13); February 10, 1945 - large transport ship "General von Steuben" - 14660 tons (on S-13); August 14, 1942 - Helene transport ship - 1800 tons (on M-96); October 9, 1944 - a small transport "Siegfried" - 563 tons (on S-13).

For the destruction of the Wilhelm Gustlov liner, Alexander Marinesko was "honored" to be included in the list of personal enemies of the Fuhrer and Germany.

On the sunken liner, 3,700 non-commissioned officers died - graduates of the diving school, 100 submarine commanders who graduated from a special advanced training course in managing boats with a single engine of the Walter system, 22 high-ranking party officials from East Prussia, several generals and senior officers of the RSHA, a battalion of the auxiliary service of the Danzig port from the SS troops numbering 300 people, and only about 8000 people (!!!).

As after the surrender of the 6th Army, Field Marshal Paulus in Stalingrad, mourning was declared in Germany, and the implementation of Hitler's plans to continue the all-out submarine war was seriously hampered.

For two outstanding victories in January-February 1945, all Marinesko crew members were awarded state awards, and submarine S-13- Order of the Red Banner.

The legendary submariner himself, who fell into disgrace, was awarded his main award posthumously only in May 1990. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union 45 years after the end of the war.

Without a doubt, Alexander Marinesko deserved to have monuments erected not only in Russia, but also in Great Britain and the United States of America. His feat saved the lives of many thousands of English and American sailors and brought closer the hour Great Victory.

Captain 3rd rank Alexander Marinesko tops the list of Soviet submariner aces not in terms of the number of enemy ships destroyed, but in terms of the amount of their displacement and the amount of damage inflicted on Germany's military potential. Following him are the following most successful submariners:

2. Valentin Starikov(lieutenant captain, commander of the submarine M-171, K-1, Northern Fleet) - 14 ships; 3. Ivan Travkin(captain of the 3rd rank, commander of the submarine Shch-303, K-52, Baltic Fleet) - 13 ships; 4. Nikolai Lunin(captain of the 3rd rank, commander of the submarine Shch-421, K-21, Northern Fleet) - 13 ships; 5. Magomed Gadzhiev(captain of the 2nd rank, submarine division commander, Northern Fleet) - 10 ships; 6. Grigory Shchedrin(captain of the 2nd rank, commander of the S-56 submarine, Northern Fleet) - 9 ships; 7. Samuil Bogorad(captain of the 3rd rank, commander of the Shch-310 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 7 ships; 8. Mikhail Kalinin(lieutenant commander, commander of the Shch-307 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 6 ships; 9. Nikolai Mokhov(lieutenant commander, commander of the Shch-317 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 5 ships; 10. Evgeny Osipov(lieutenant commander, commander of the Shch-407 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 5 ships.

AT United States Navy The greatest success was achieved by the crews of the Totog submarine - it sank 26 enemy warships and transports. In terms of displacement, the best result belongs to the crew of the Flasher submarine - 100231 tons. But the most famous US submariner during the Second World War was Joseph Inright.

NewsInfo based on materials from the website "Russian Submarine Fleet"