Name U-476 Yard number 307 Commissioned 28 July 1943 Launched 5 June 1943 Draft 4.74 m Builder Deutsche Werke | Ordered 10 April 1941 Laid down 19 September 1942 Construction started 19 September 1942 Length 67 m Beam 6.18 m | |
Fate Damaged by a British aircraft, northeast of Trondheim, May 1944; then scuttled by a German U-boat Part of 5th U-boat Flotilla, 3rd U-boat Flotilla | ||
German submarine U-476 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
Contents
She carried out one patrol. She sank no ships.
She was damaged by a British aircraft northwest of Trondheim in May 1944, then scuttled by a German U-boat.
Design
German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-476 had a displacement of 769 tonnes (757 long tons) when at the surface and 871 tonnes (857 long tons) while submerged. She had a total length of 67.10 m (220 ft 2 in), a pressure hull length of 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in), a beam of 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a draught of 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, two Siemens-Schuckert GU 343/38–8 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph). When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). U-476 was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and an anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.
Service history
The submarine was laid down on 19 September 1942 at the Deutsche Werke in Kiel as yard number 307, launched on 5 June 1943 and commissioned on 28 July under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Otto Niethmann.
She served with the 5th U-boat Flotilla from 28 July 1943 for training and the 3rd flotilla from 1 April 1944 for operations.
Patrol and loss
U-432's only patrol was preceded by a short trip from Kiel in Germany to Bergen in Norway. The patrol itself began with the boat's departure from Bergen on 20 May 1944.
On the 24th she was attacked by a British PBY Catalina flying boat of No. 210 Squadron RAF. The damage inflicted was so serious that U-990 scuttled the boat with a torpedo the following day. U-990 had also rescued the survivors, but salvation was short-lived; she was sunk later-on, on the 25th.
Thirty-four men went down with U-469; there were twenty-one survivors.