German Type IIB submarines were enlarged versions of the original
Type IIs. U-18 had a displacement of 279 tonnes (275 long tons) when at the surface and 328 tonnes (323 long tons) while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was 250 long tons (254 t), however.[2] The U-boat had a total length of 42.70 m (140 ft 1 in), a
pressure hull length of 28.20 m (92 ft 6 in), a
beam of 4.08 m (13 ft 5 in), a height of 8.60 m (28 ft 3 in), and a
draught of 3.90 m (12 ft 10 in). The submarine was powered by two
MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder
diesel engines of 700 metric horsepower (510 kW; 690 shp) for cruising, two
Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36
double-acting electric motors producing a total of 460 metric horsepower (340 kW; 450 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 0.85 m (3 ft)
propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 80–150 metres (260–490 ft).[2]
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph).[2] When submerged, the boat could operate for 35–42 nautical miles (65–78 km; 40–48 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 3,800 nautical miles (7,000 km; 4,400 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph). U-18 was fitted with three 53.3 cm (21 in)
torpedo tubes at the bow, five
torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a
2 cm (0.79 in) anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a
complement of twenty-five.[2]
Fate
While a training boat, U-18 sank at 0954 hrs on 20 November 1936 in
Lübeck Bay, after a collision with
T-156. Eight men died and 12 survived. It was raised on 28 November 1936. It returned to service on 30 September 1937. On 3 September 1939 it attacked a Polish submarine, most probably
ORP_Sęp, but missed.[3] Starting late 1942 she served in the
30th U-boat Flotilla, after being transported in sections along the Danube to the Romanian port of
Galați. She was then re-assembled by the Romanians at the
Galați shipyard and sent to the
Black Sea.[4]
On 20 August 1944, in a
Sovietair raid on the Romanian harbor of
Constanţa in the
Black Sea, U-18 was damaged and as a result was deemed not seaworthy and was scuttled on the 25th.[1]
The boat was raised by the
USSR in late 1944. It was sunk for target practice by the Soviet
submarineM-120 on 26 May 1947 off
Sevastopol (also sunk that day was the former
U-24).
^Bartelski, Jan (2014). "Nieudane ataki torpedowe U-Bootów na ORP Sęp". Morze, Statki i Okręty (in Polish). No. 9-10/2014 (148). Warsaw. p. 24.
ISSN1426-529X.
^Steel and Ice: The U-boat Battle in the Arctic and Black Sea 1941-45, Chapter 5 - The Black Sea: War in the South 1942-43, page 5
^Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Ships hit by U-18". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
Bibliography
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press.
ISBN1-55750-186-6.
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler.
ISBN3-8132-0514-2.
Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press.
ISBN0-85177-593-4.
Kemp, Paul (1999). U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. London: Arms & Armour.
ISBN1-85409-515-3.
External links
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"The Type IIB boat U-18". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
Hofmann, Markus.
"U 18". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 2014-12-06.