German submarine U-565


German submarine U-565 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II.
She was laid down on 3 March 1940 by Blohm & Voss in Hamburg as yard number 541, launched on 20 February 1941 and commissioned on 10 April 1941 under Oberleutnant Johann Jebsen.

Design

were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-565 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 BBC GG UB 720/8 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-565 was fitted with five torpedo tubes, 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 boat's service began on 10 April 1941 with training as part of the 1st U-boat Flotilla. She was transferred to the 29th flotilla on 1 January 1942 in the Mediterranean where she remained until being scuttled in 1944. In 21 patrols she sank three merchant ships, for a total of, plus two warships sunk and another two merchant ships damaged.

Wolfpacks

She took part in two wolfpacks, namely,
U-565 was badly damaged by bombs dropped by US aircraft on 19 September 1944 in the Mediterranean near Skaramanga in Greece. She was eventually scuttled in Salamis by 3 depth charges on 24 September 1944.

Summary of raiding history

Citations