Wolfpack Eisbär Explained

Eisbär (English: Polar Bear) was a wolfpack of German U-boats that operated from 23 to 29 August 1942 in World War II. This pack was assembled to operate in the South Atlantic off Cape Town which was considered to be virgin waters. Some of the most experienced U-boat commanders available such as Harald Gelhaus, Werner Hartenstein and Carl Emmermann were included. They shadowed the Freetown, Sierra Leone to Liverpool Convoy SL-119, and sank only one ship for a total of .^[1]

U-boats, commanders and dates

• , Karl-Friedrich Merten, 25 August–1 September
• , Werner Hartenstein, 25 August–1 September
• , Carl Emmermann, 25 August–1 September
• , Georg von Wilamowitz-Möllendorf, 25 August–1 September
• , Hans-Georg Friedrich Poske, 25 August–1 September

Ships hit by this Wolfpack

Clan Macwhirter

At 01:00 on 27 August 1942, the unescorted 5,941-ton British merchant ship, a straggler from Convoy SL-119, was torpedoed and sunk by U-156 north-west of Madeira.^[2]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Wolfpack Eisbär . Wolfpacks - U-boat Operations - uboat.net . 27 January 2010.
2. Web site: Clan Macwhirter (Steam merchant) . Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net . 27 January 2010.