 U-9, a typical Type IIB boat
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| History | |
|---|---|
 Nazi Germany | |
| Name | U-14 |
| Ordered | 2 February 1935 |
| Builder | Deutsche Werke, Kiel |
| Yard number | 249 |
| Laid down | 6 July 1935 |
| Launched | 28 December 1935 |
| Commissioned | 18 January 1936 |
| Fate | Scuttled on 5 May 1945 at Wilhelmshaven |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Type IIB coastal submarine |
| Displacement | |
| Length |
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| Beam |
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| Height | 8.60 m (28 ft 3 in) |
| Draught | 3.90 m (12 ft 10 in) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion |
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| Speed |
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| Range |
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| Test depth | 80 m (260 ft) |
| Complement | 3 officers, 22 men |
| Armament |
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| Service record | |
| Part of: |
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| Identification codes: | M 28 451 |
| Commanders: |
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| Operations: |
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| Victories: |
9 merchant ships sunk (12,344 GRT) |
German submarine U-14 was a Type IIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. It served with 3rd U-boat Flotilla from 18 January 1936 to 31 October 1939. U-14 completed six wartime patrols and sank nine ships totalling 12,344 GRT.
Design
German Type IIB submarines were enlarged versions of the original Type IIs. U-14 had a displacement of 279 tonnes (275 long tons) when at the surface and 328 tonnes (323 long tons) while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was 250 long tons (254 t), however. The U-boat had a total length of 42.70 m (140 ft 1 in), a pressure hull length of 28.20 m (92 ft 6 in), a beam of 4.08 m (13 ft 5 in), a height of 8.60 m (28 ft 3 in), and a draught of 3.90 m (12 ft 10 in). The submarine was powered by two MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder diesel engines of 700 metric horsepower (510 kW; 690 shp) for cruising, two Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 460 metric horsepower (340 kW; 450 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 0.85 m (3 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 80–150 metres (260–490 ft).
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph). When submerged, the boat could operate for 35–42 nautical miles (65–78 km; 40–48 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 3,800 nautical miles (7,000 km; 4,400 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph). U-14 was fitted with three 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes at the bow, five torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a 2 cm (0.79 in) anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of twentyfive.
Service history
Early in the war, on 3 September 1939 in the evening, U-14 attacked a Polish submarine with one torpedo from a surface, and claimed to have sunk it. In reality the Polish submarine, ORP Sęp, was not damaged as the torpedo launched by U-14 exploded prematurely. According to Jan Bartelski, the torpedo also missed the target.
After serving on six operational patrols, U-14 was used as a training boat and transferred to U-boat training flotillas, serving with the 23rd and 24th U-boat Flotillas until the end of the war. Despite the high casualties suffered by the Unterseebootwaffen (German submarine arm), U-14 suffered no known casualties during the war.
U-14 was scuttled on 5 May 1945 at Wilhelmshaven.
Summary of raiding history
| Date | Name | Nationality | Tonnage (GRT) |
Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 January 1940 | Biarritz |  Norway
|
1,752 | Sunk |
| 15 February 1940 | Sliepner |  Denmark
|
1,066 | Sunk |
| 16 February 1940 | Liana |  Sweden
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1,646 | Sunk |
| 16 February 1940 | Osmed | Sweden
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1,526 | Sunk |
| 16 February 1940 | Rhone | Denmark
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1,064 | Sunk |
| 7 March 1940 | Vecht |  Netherlands
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1,965 | Sunk |
| 9 March 1940 | Abbotsford |  United Kingdom
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1,585 | Sunk |
| 9 March 1940 | Akeld | United Kingdom
|
643 | Sunk |
| 9 March 1940 | Borthwick | United Kingdom
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1,097 | Sunk |
References
- ^ Gröner 1991, pp. 39–40.
- "ORP Sęp – Operational History". polishnavy.pl. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
- Bartelski, Jan (2014). "Nieudane ataki torpedowe U-Bootów na ORP Sęp". Morze, Statki i Okręty (in Polish). No. 9-10/2014 (148). Warsaw. pp. 25–27. ISSN 1426-529X.
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-14". German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
- Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
- Bishop, Chris (2006). Kriegsmarine U-Boats, 1939-45. London: Amber Books. ISBN 978-1-904687-96-2.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IIB boat U-14". German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
- Hofmann, Markus. "U 14". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 – u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 30 January 2015.
| German Type II submarines | |
|---|---|
| Type IIA | |
| Type IIB | |
| Type IIC | |
| Type IID | |
