Korvettenkapitän Manfred Buchmann
Patrol # 20

Duration:	10.09.1942 - 20.09.1942, 11 days on sea
Patrol Area:	AL 12
Ship:	U 519, Crossed Swords
Type:	IX C
Flotilla:	9. Flotille, Brest

12 Sep, 15:05, BE3626
A large troop ship is sighted at 75 degrees (relative), coming fast! Flying the British flag, guns are visible on the forward and after decks. After submerging, I fire one torpedo, which strikes the boiler room, breaking the ship in two! It sinks soon afterwards for 11.000 BRT.

13 Sep, 15:05, AM4475
Exactly one day later, an aircraft is spotted. Crash Dive. No damage.

15 Sep, 06:58, AL1437
Smoke on the horizon at 85 degrees! A convoy! The visibility is sickeningly good. The sun is coming up, and my chances for an immediate attack diminish. I radio HQ to inform them of the convoy's status and also that I will be shadowing until nightfall. I also suspect that U-519 has been seen, for the escorts of the convoy, as well as the whole convoy itself, changes direction. I submerge, expecting the escorts to come blasting down my throat. However, nothing happens. Bewildered, I come to periscope depth to view what is happening, and I find that the entire convoy is headed in my direction! What luck! I must not have been seen after all! I must be getting too cautious. No matter - I will now take advantage of this situation despite the rising sun and the risk of detection.
The torpedoes are launched at 09:47. Each torpedo hits its target, sinking 31.828 BRT of shipping! The destroyers now approach my position, so I submerge and wait out the battering. It is not very intense at all, and we ride at 155 meters quite comfortably until 15:50. The destroyers dissipate, and low-speed screws can be heard faintly. One of the ships must be damaged. Let's see if I can give them a send-off.

Target destroyed!

At 16:00 U-519 breaks the surface, and it's after the damaged ship! However, not long after we are all up on the bridge scanning the seas and skies, lookouts report destroyers and an aircraft approaching. Down we go again, waiting another 7.5 hours! How agonizing knowing that you just have to sit there while the rest of the merchants plod along ahead of you. We surface after 7.5 hours. After the convoy again!

At 01:50, a destroyer is spotted dead ahead. I am beginning to get frustrated, knowing that they can somehow see us before we see them. We submerge to periscope depth, and I open the bow torpedo tubes. The destroyer reduces speed to search for us, and I wait patiently. The periscope is just barely breaking the surface, and the screws are at a minimum of rpms. Closer and closer the destroyer comes, slightly turning to get a better reading of our position. At 470 meters, I launch two torpedoes. Both hit the destroyer, sinking it! Another destroyer approaches, and my set-up is exactly the same, except that it veers the other direction. Another two torpedoes sink that destroyer! I reverse direction to focus on a corvette approaching slowly with my stern tube. The men in the forward torpedo room are working feverishly to load the forward tubes. At 480 meters, the stern tube hits and sinks the corvette! &n! bsp;Swinging around to the front again, a 4-stack destroyer (I didn't know they still used them!) joins the attempt to sink me. The set-up, again, is nerve-wracking, but it works! Two torps hit aft of the destroyer, and it sinks by the stern!

In a very short period of time I have sunk 4 escorts. However, as much of a feat as that was, the fact is that those sinkings used seven precious torpedoes that I had hoped to use on merchants. I have but two torpedoes left, so I abandon the chase for the convoy and turn around to go home.

As I turn to head back, would you believe it! The damaged tanker is sitting there on the horizon, crippled yet still afloat! The engines must have finally given out. I approach on the surface, then submerge, and fire one torpedo, which breaks the back of that tough old ship for another 8.579 BRT. We set a course for Brest.

At this time I send a message to U-53 requesting his status and position, also telling him of the convoy's status. I have heard no word from him since we left to go to our different grid squares. I hope he is alright and has not met with misfortune.

16 Sep, 18:26, AL1833
On the way back home a lone ship is spotted, and I use the last torpedo to send another 3.209 BRT to the bottom. We resume our path to Brest.

20 Sep, 05:20, Brest
We return to base.

PATROL RESULTS

DECORATIONS

U-boat badge	1939 Iron Cross 2nd Class	1939 Iron Cross 1st Class	Knights Cross	Knights Cross with Oak Leaves	Knights Cross with Oak Leves and Swords	Knights Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds

Back to top of page