SM UB-118

SM UB-118 was a German Type UB III submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 22 January 1918 as SM UB-118.[Note 1]

UB-148 at sea, a U-boat similar to UB-118.
History
German Empire
Name: UB-118
Ordered: 6/8 February 1917[1]
Builder: AG Weser, Bremen
Cost: 3,654,000 German Papiermark
Yard number: 291
Launched: 13 December 1917[2]
Commissioned: 22 January 1918[2]
Fate: Surrendered 20 November 1918, broken up in 1919/20.[2]
General characteristics [2]
Class and type: German Type UB III submarine
Displacement:
  • 512 t (504 long tons) surfaced
  • 643 t (633 long tons) submerged
Length: 55.85 m (183 ft 3 in) (o/a)
Beam: 5.80 m (19 ft)
Draught: 3.72 m (12 ft 2 in)
Propulsion:
Speed:
  • 13.9 knots (25.7 km/h; 16.0 mph) surfaced
  • 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged
Range:
  • 7,280 nmi (13,480 km; 8,380 mi) at 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph) surfaced
  • 55 nmi (102 km; 63 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth: 50 m (160 ft)
Complement: 3 officers, 31 men[2]
Armament:
Service record
Part of:
  • III Flotilla
  • 26 March – 11 November 1918
Commanders:
  • Kptlt. Hermann Arthur Krauß[3]
  • 22 January – 11 November 1918
Operations: 5 patrols
Victories: 4 merchant ships sunk (17,416 GRT)

UB-118 was surrendered to the Allies at Harwich on 21 November 1918 in accordance with the requirements of the Armistice with Germany. She was allocated to British explosive trials at Falmouth (see UB-86, UB-97, UC-92, UB-106, UB-112 and UB-128), but began to take water while in tow from Devonport to Falmouth, and was therefore sunk by her escort on 21 November 1920.[4]

Construction

She was built by AG Weser of Bremen and following just under a year of construction, launched at Bremen on 13 December 1917. UB-118 was commissioned early the next year under the command of Kptlt. Hermann Arthur Krauß. Like all Type UB III submarines, UB-118 carried 10 torpedoes and was armed with a 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun. UB-118 would carry a crew of up to 3 officers and 31 men and had a cruising range of 7,280 nautical miles (13,480 km; 8,380 mi). UB-118 had a displacement of 512 t (504 long tons) while surfaced and 643 t (633 long tons) when submerged. Her engines enabled her to travel at 13.9 knots (25.7 km/h; 16.0 mph) when surfaced and 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) when submerged.

Summary of raiding history

Date Name Nationality Tonnage[Note 2] Fate[5]
16 May 1918 Yturri Bide  Spain 582 Sunk
27 August 1918 Ant Cassar  United Kingdom 3,544 Sunk
1 September 1918 City of Glasgow  United Kingdom 6,457 Sunk
1 September 1918 Mesaba  United Kingdom 6,833 Sunk

References

Notes

  1. "SM" stands for "Seiner Majestät" (English: His Majesty's) and combined with the U for Unterseeboot would be translated as His Majesty's Submarine.
  2. Tonnages are in gross register tons

Citations

  1. Rössler 1979, p. 55.
  2. Gröner 1991, pp. 25-30.
  3. Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boat commanders: Hermann Arthur Krauß". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  4. Dodson, Aidan; Cant, Serena (2020). Spoils of War: the fate of enemy fleets after the two World Wars,. Barnsley: Seaforth. pp. 51–52, 97–98, 130. ISBN 978 1 5267 4198 1.
  5. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by UB 118". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 10 March 2015.

Bibliography

  • Bendert, Harald (2000). Die UB-Boote der Kaiserlichen Marine, 1914-1918. Einsätze, Erfolge, Schicksal (in German). Hamburg: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn GmbH. ISBN 3-8132-0713-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
  • Rössler, Eberhard (1979). U-Bootbau bis Ende des 1. Weltkrieges, Konstruktionen für das Ausland und die Jahre 1935 – 1945. Die deutschen U-Boote und ihre Werften (in German). I. Munich: Bernard & Graefe. ISBN 3-7637-5213-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.