German submarine U-17 was a Type IIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine. It was built in Germaniawerft, Kiel, where it was laid down on 1 July 1935 and commissioned on 3 December 1935, under the command of Werner Fresdorf.
German Type IIB submarines were enlarged versions of the original Type IIs. U-17 had a displacement of 279t when at the surface and 328t while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was 2500NaN0, however. The U-boat had a total length of 42.7m (140.1feet), a pressure hull length of 28.2m (92.5feet), a beam of 4.08m (13.39feet), a height of 8.6m (28.2feet), and a draught of 3.9m (12.8feet). The submarine was powered by two MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder diesel engines of 700PS for cruising, two Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 460PS for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 0.85abbr=onNaNabbr=on propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 80-.
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, the boat could operate for 35- at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . U-17 was fitted with three 53.30NaN0 torpedo tubes at the bow, five torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a 2cm (01inches) anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of twentyfive.
Its career consisted of four patrols, all served while under the 1st U-boat Flotilla where it sank three ships for a total of . Later in the war it served under the 22nd U-boat Flotilla as a training boat, including Oberleutnant zur See Walter Sitek as an instructor. Sitek had previously escaped imprisonment after the disabling and sinking of by in February 1942. He swam to Pico Island in the Azores, made his way through neutral Spain and returned to the Kriegsmarine to serve as an instructor on U-17,, and .
On 5 May 1945 U-17 was scuttled at Wilhelmshaven at the western entrance of the Raeder lock.
| Date | Name | Nationality | Tonnage (GRT) | Fate[1] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 September 1939 | Hawarden Castle |  United Kingdom | 210 | Sunk (mine) | |
| 2 March 1940 | Rijnstroom |  Netherlands | 695 | Sunk | |
| 5 March 1940 | Grutto | Netherlands | 920 | Sunk |