| History of U616: U-616 attacked and damaged two allied merchants (the 10,627 ton US
tanker G.S. Walden and the 7,127 ton British freighter Fort
Fidler) on May 14, 1944 and immediately the allies began to swamp the
area . Aircraft from 5 squadrons and eight American destroyers hunted the
boat until it was defeated on May 17.
Only 5 hours later U-960 attacked the US destroyer USS Ellyson
off Oran. The destroyer then had survivors from U-616 on board, but missed
and another Swamp operation began which eventually caught and sank U-960
on May 19.
A Swamp operation is a method of ASW in which every
available aircraft and/or destroyer in the contact area hurries to the
submarines location. Intense searching and patrolling are employed. All
possible roots of escape are cut off and suffocation methods are used to
keep the submarine down with a large barrage of depth charges, etc.
Eventually the submarine must come up to charge its batteries and refresh
the air supply within the compartments. The submarines chances are almost
nill to escape this tactic
The
Hunt:
Following the torpedoing of two merchant vessels in convoy GUS 39,
Destroyer Division 19, Ellyson, Rodman,Hambleton, and Emmons got underway
to the scene to begin the search. Gleaves, Nields, and Macomb joined
shortly thereafter. After several depth charge attacks in the running
chase, the submarine completely surprised Macomb, shorty before midnight,
16 May 1944.
Running from the first destroyer group, the German sub commander did
not sight Macomb until she turned her searchlight on him, only 2400 yards
away. Mistaking the light for an aircraft light, the U-boat opened fire
with her 20mm gun and Macomb replied with 6 rounds of 5"38 before the sub
crash dived. Making an immediate depth charge attack, Macomb followed up
with another, and then directed Gleaves in a creeping attack, during which
contact was lost. Nields and Emmons dropped patterns before contact was
lost about 0230, 17 May, when a box search was instituted. At daylight,
Hambleton had a sound contact and made two attacks, and the submarine
surfaced in the center of the destroyers, who immediately opened fire,
sending the sub down within minutes. Fifty-three prisoners were
rescued. |
