Name SMS Vulkan Commissioned 4 March 1908 Speed 12 knots Launched 28 September 1907 Beam 16 m | Laid down 1907 Construction started 1907 Length 85 m | |
Displacement 1,595 gross register tons (GRT) Builder Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft | ||
SMS Vulkan was a U-boat salvage tug in the Kaiserliche Marine laid down in 1907 and commissioned 1908. The ship displaced 1595 tons and had a top speed of 12 knots.
The famous U-boat ace Max Valentiner served as salvage officer on Vulkan in early 1911. On 17 January 1911, he and the crew saved all 30 men from U-3 by getting them out of the torpedo tube after it was sunk near Kiel harbour in Heikendorfer Bay because of an unclosed valve in the ventilation shaft. Amongst the saved crew was Otto Weddigen, the later commander of U-9 and Paul Clarrendorf, the commander of U-boot-Abnahme-Kommando in Kiel which enlisted u-boat crews.
Vulkan is also famous for salvaging two U-boats, U-30 on 27 August 1915 and UC-45 on 17 September 1917.
Vulkan was taken out of service 11 November 1918 and surrendered to the British forces together with the bigger salvage tug, SMS Cyclop. Being pulled to Harwich it was sunk 6 April 1919 in position 54°54′N 06°18′E.
