German submarine U-714 explained

German submarine U-714 was a Type VIIC U-boat Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II. She was laid down on 29 December 1941 by H. C. Stülcken Sohn at Hamburg and commissioned on 10 February 1943. She was commanded throughout her career by Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Joachim Schwebcke.

Design

German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-714 had a displacement of 769t when at the surface and 871t while submerged. She had a total length of 67.1m (220.1feet), a pressure hull length of 50.5m (165.7feet), a beam of 6.2m (20.3feet), a height of 9.6m (31.5feet), and a draught of 4.74m (15.55feet). The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of NaNPS for use while surfaced, two Garbe, Lahmeyer & Co. RP 137/c double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750PS for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23abbr=onNaNabbr=on 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-714 was fitted with five 53.30NaN0 torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.82NaN2 SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and two twin 2sp=usNaNsp=us C/30 anti-aircraft guns. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.

Fate

She was sunk on 14 March 1945 near Eyemouth in the Firth of Forth at position 55.95°N -58°W by depth charges from the South African frigate HMSAS Natal. was granted a share of the credit for this kill as well. She had a complement of 50 crew, and when she sank, all of her crew died. She was designated as a protected place under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 in 2008.

Wolfpacks

U-714 took part in six wolfpacks, namely:

Summary of raiding history

DateShip NameNationalityTonnage[1] Fate[2]
10 March 1945HNoMS Nordhav II425Sunk
14 March 1945Magne Sweden1,226Sunk

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Merchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.
  2. Web site: Ships hit by U-714 . Helgason . Guðmundur . German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net . 10 February 2014.