SM UC-79 was a German Type UC II minelaying submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I.
A Type UC II submarine, UC-79 had a displacement of 410t when at the surface and 493t while submerged. She had a length overall of 50.45m (165.52feet), a beam of 5.22m (17.13feet), and a draught of 3.650NaN0. The submarine was powered by two six-cylinder four-stroke diesel engines each producing 290PS300PS (a total of 580PS600PS), two electric motors producing 620PS, and two propeller shafts. She had a dive time of 30 seconds and was capable of operating at a depth of .
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a submerged speed of . When submerged, she could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . UC-79 was fitted with six mine tubes, eighteen UC 200 mines, three torpedo tubes (one on the stern and two on the bow), seven torpedoes, and one 8.8sp=usNaNsp=us Uk L/30 deck gun. Her complement was twenty-six crew members.
UC-79 was ordered on 12 January 1916 and was launched on 19 December 1916. She was commissioned into the Imperial German Navy on 22 January 1917 as SM UC-79.[1] In eleven patrols UC-79 was credited with sinking 10 ships, either by torpedo or by mines laid. On 28 April 1917, she captured the Danish coaster in the Skagerrak.[2] UC-79 was sunk by a mine off Cap Gris Nez, France in late March or early April 1918. Royal Navy divers located the wreck in that area in August 1918.
| Date | Name | Nationality | Tonnage[3] | Fate[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 April 1917 | Ydun |  Denmark | 645 | Captured as prize | |
| 24 April 1917 | Harald Haarfager |  Norway | 475 | Captured as prize | |
| 28 April 1917 | Denmark | 787 | Captured as prize | ||
| 28 April 1917 | Storebelt | Denmark | 599 | Captured as prize | |
| 15 May 1917 | Ellen | Denmark | 786 | Captured as prize | |
| 16 May 1917 | Thorunn | Norway | 990 | Captured as prize | |
| 17 May 1917 | Alexander Shukoff | Denmark | 1,652 | Captured as prize | |
| 18 May 1917 | Magnus | Denmark | 1,297 | Captured as prize | |
| 20 May 1917 | Otto | Denmark | 152 | Captured as prize | |
| 20 May 1917 | Pomona |  Netherlands | 789 | Captured as prize | |
| 6 July 1917 | Rhone | Denmark | 1,050 | Captured as prize | |
| 8 July 1917 | Eos | Denmark | 838 | Captured as prize | |
| 8 July 1917 | Nyhamn |  Sweden | 302 | Captured as prize | |
| 8 July 1917 | Storebelt | Denmark | 599 | Captured as prize | |
| 13 August 1917 | Emilie Galline |  France | 1,944 | Sunk | |
| 15 October 1917 | Garthclyde |  United Kingdom | 2,124 | Sunk | |
| 17 October 1917 | HMT Ruby | 251 | Sunk | ||
| 19 October 1917 | Renard | 285 | Sunk | ||
| 19 October 1917 | Cupica | 1,240 | Sunk | ||
| 21 October 1917 | Tom Roper | United Kingdom | 120 | Sunk | |
| 19 November 1917 | Jutland | United Kingdom | 2,824 | Sunk | |
| 24 November 1917 | Pomone | France | 2,911 | Sunk | |
| 31 January 1918 | Elephant | 286 | Sunk | ||
| 2 February 1918 | HMT Remindo | 256 | Sunk |