65 years ago this week, Civil Air Patrol and Pearl Harbor

[Alex Clark]

In 1938, Gill Wilson was the aviation editor of the New York Herald Tribune. After a trip the Nazi Germany he was worried about he saw brewing.
He and the Governor of New Jersey worked out a plan to use the civil aviation of that State to support the U.S. in what appeared to be an impending war. The New Jersey Civil Air Defense Services. Around the same time the AOPA started looking into creating another aviation based home guard type unit.

In May 1941, the Office of Civilian Defense was created with former New York Mayor La Guardia, as it's chief. The New Jersey Air Defense folks and others submitted a plan for a national organization.

On Monday, December 1, 1941 with the assistance of General Hap Arnold, Director La Guardia signed the order that officially created the Civil Air Patrol.

The following Sunday the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and the Philippines.

The next day, Monday December 8, 1941, Director La Guardia published administrative order #9 detailing the organization of the C.A.P. and they were in business.

Three months later (march 1942) the C.A.P. was giving 90 days to prove their worth in a desperate experiment called the COASTAL PATROL. The original mission to be confined to searching the US coastline for U-boats and ships in distress.

Within two months of beginning the experimental patrols, a CAP plane was able to locate a surfaced U-boat, which became grounded while trying to escape observation from the un-armed light civilian plane.

When regular military planes arrived on scene to late to sink the U-boat, the CAP Coastal Patrol pilots and crews decided to arm themselves.
Somehow or another they managed to attach various small bombs and depth charges to their assorted aircraft and then go patrolling over the open ocean far out of gliding distance to shore.

The first "supposedly verified" kill of a U-boat was giving to the crew of a Grumman Widgeon who were armed with two depth charges. They were guided to a U-boat by another CAP plane, which was low on fuel. After following the shadow of the submerged sub for over 3 hours, the U-boat captain made the fatal mistake of coming up to periscope depth.
The CAP amphip made a drop run from 100 feet by following the periscope's wake. Two depth charges later, there was nothing but debris floating on the surface.

The CAP coastal patrol operated for 18 months during WWII before the job was handed off to the regular military. During that time they sighted U-boats on 173 occasions. They also made 57 armed attacks against some U-boats and assisted the crews of ships that had become victims of torpedoing.

While this was going on, other CAP units were doing primary pilot training and screening for the armed services, as well as:
target tug duties,
boarder patrol,
search & rescue,
as well as moving 1600 metric tons of cargo for the various military services.
Oh, they also transported military personnel and acted as couriers for classified documents.

Although over 30 of these VOLUNTEERS died while serving their country during WWII. They never received veteran’s status or recognition as did members of the WASP (who were paid positions) and the Merchant Mariners.

There are very few of those original volunteers left now.

Alex Clark

 

[Chuck-Fairfax]

Alex,
Thanks for the reminder of this interesting and generally unknown phase of the CAP history.

Most likely, if I don't bring it up, I will hear no mention tomorrow, and will see nothing in the paper, about what day it is. I wasn't very old that day, but my father voluntered to enter the Army as a Chaplain right after that, and it sure took our lives on a strange and wonderfull path.

 

[Alex Clark]

He one of the many who saved the world during those few years.
He has my thanks, every day.

Alex

 

[Alex Clark]

An interesting note about the AOPA back then.
Talk about a team effort.....

War was obviously on the way, so in 1940 AOPA formed the "AOPA Air Guard" to introduce civilian pilots to military rules and procedures, and form a manpower base from which the air forces could draw additional pilots. Some 5,000 pilots participated that year, taking three courses of instruction required by the military.

On December 7, 1941, America's entry into World War II brought a drastic change in civil flying. The government sought to ban all civilian flying, but AOPA helped in establishing an identification program that persuaded the CAA and the military to allow properly registered pilots to fly in all airspace, except for border areas now called Air Defense Identification Zones. AOPA offices moved to New York, then — in 1942 — to the Washington, D.C. area.


Alex

 

[OldCuby]

Thanks for the history reminder on this day, Dec. 7th.
Over Thanksgiving weekend, my wife and I drove to Rehobeth Beach, Del. in unusually warm weather and walked the beach. We viewed again the monuments there commemorating the Rehobeth Beach CAP Squadron which flew patrols over the Atlantic coast.
I've attended several of their reunions and had the good fortune to meet and shake hands with "Eddy" Edwards, the first CAP pilot to receive an Air Medal and directly from President Roosevelt. He was a crew member on a Sikorski S-39 single engine flying boat that flew out to rescue 2 other CAP pilots who ditched in the ocean. They landed and rescued the pilots but busted a pontoon and had to water taxi back to land. Eddy Edwards crawled out onto the wing to stabilize the plane so that they could control their taxi miles back to land.
A local pilot, Bart Rogers, restored a Stinson 10 that was used at Rehobeth Beach. He attends the annual reunions at Rehobeth Beach and said Eddy Edwards was there this last September! The little grass strip at Rehobeth Beach unfortunately is now a housing development....

 

[CloudDancer]

When caught by Mama CloudDancer (sneaky gal she was sometimes) :-? going through her dresser one day in my 7th year or so; I sought to divert her quite justified anger by grabbing an old black and white Kodak photo I had found amongst her private treasures. The small black print in the white frame edging said "FEB 42".

It showed a young vivacious long and dark haired very young girl. She was leaning back against a Harley Hog and wearing a black leather biker jacket. Behind the girl and the Harley was quite visible over her left shoulder the prop and front end of a....Cub....parked in a tin shed T-hangar.

Waving the photograh in her face I screamed "Hey!! Who's THIS ANYway??!!"

Taking the photo from my grubby little paw...she stared at it and her eyes began to glaze over somewhat as she left the room spiritually for a couple of moments. Laughing, she said "Who do you THINK it is you ninny....it's your MOTHER!!" 8)

Then I heard the story of the Civil Air Patrol for the first time.

Having survied the Depression with her younger sister weraing clothes made of potato sacks and selling apples for pennies on the streets of New York City to help her mother and father feed the family....she SWORE she would never be poor again.

The 19 year old "babe" in the photo OWNED BOTH the Harley AND the Cub in the picture. Okay. Okay!! So Mama CloudDancer wore BIKER BOOTS!! You wanna' make sumthin' OF it!!

Oh yeah. She notched a U-Boat "sighted, subsequently sunk" (by the Coast Guard) credit herself.

On my 13th birthday I quit the Boy Scouts (they didn't have the Air Explorer Scouts back then) and joined the Civil Air Patrol.

After battling Mama CloudDancer for ten days (never known to be a SMART move) Papa CD finally caved under ther relentless badgering (and a GREAT deal of whining and pleading from yours truly) and signed the parental consent form allowing me to fly in Civil Air Patrol airplanes.

I took my first flying lesson...in a J-3....the following weekend....and the rest, as they say, is history.

Papa CD told me on his death bed many years later in one of his last lucid hours he had only ONE regret after 53 years of marriage to my mother and I asked him what it was.

Upon returning from the war, having married my mother at St. Patrick's Catherdral in NYC while home on leave, he issued an edict that she quit flying immediately as "....the mother of MY children shall NOT be engaged in such a perilous pastime."

One time.....and one time only that I am aware of.....did she EVER except any MAN telling HER what she COULD or COULD NOT do. I consider myself quite fortunate that she caved...THIS one time.

She forgave him.....eventually.

CloudDancer

Oh yeah. I DID get a whoopin' for messing around in her stuff that day so long ago. But the old gal just didn't seem to really have her heart in it that day.

Not that I MENtioned it to her o'course. I'm DUMB sometimes....but I AIN'T !!

 

[Christina Young]

Re: 65 years ago this week, Civil Air Patrol and Pearl Harbo

The first "verified" kill of a U-boat was giving to the crew of a Grumman Widgeon who were armed with two depth charges. They were guided to a U-boat by another CAP plane, which was low on fuel. After following the shadow of the submerged sub for over 3 hours, the U-boat captain made the fatal mistake of coming up to periscope depth.
The CAP amphip made a drop run from 100 feet by following the periscope's wake. Two depth charges later, there was nothing but debris floating on the surface.

I sure would like to know which u-boat CAP claimed to sink and what the date was. The article (also on Wiki) is very vague on the details. It claims that CAP sank 2 u-boats during WWII.

Well, color me a skeptic. For years they were saying that a CAP Stinson sank one off of New Jersey, and when the U-869 was discovered claimed that was the one (it's the only u-boat sunk off of NJ). In researching the identity of the newly discovered u-boat, and then subsequently how it sunk, the CAP scenario was the first one that was analyzed. It was thoroughly disproven by my friends Richie Kohler and Harold Moyers in two separate investigations.

I have also done a lot of u-boat research down in College Park (mostly to find ships sunk by them), and have NEVER encountered any u-boat kills due to CAP aircraft. If you can come up with an approximate date of the claimed kill (unlike CAP), then I will look in the Eastern Sea Frontier war diary to see if it's true. I don't believe they sank ANY u-boats.

Here's another resource: www.uboat.net. These guys have done a lot of homework, and the disposition of every u-boat is there in the database. They don't list any kills by Grumman Widgeons. I'm sure CAP could get that fixed if they had a u-boat and a date so it could be verified.

 

[dpearce]

Thanks for the reminder Alex. Don't hear this talked about near enough. Since this year is expected to be the last meeting of the Pearl Harbor Survivors at Pearl today this website http://www.pearlharborsurvivorsonline.org/ and it's contents/stories etc. is worth a repeat reading.

 

[Christina Young]

Yes, thanks for the reminder, remember Pearl Harbor! Was at the Arizona Memorial a few years ago, couldn't hold back my tears for the brave men entombed below where I was standing.

I didn't mean for my CAP u-boat commentary above to detract from the real meaning of this thread!

 

[Alex Clark]

Christina:

I am sure you know that many war-time kill claims are incorrect.
Just look at how many time certain US carriers were supposedly sunk,
how many people claimed to have shot down the Red Baron and so forth.

The CAP also claims to have accidentially blown the heck out of a whale.

I know they flew out of Florida and also up by your place. Probably a couple other stations as well.

Who knows, maybe the pilots went back and told the Coast Guard (or Navy)
"well we thought we saw this shape and dropped the bombs."....
"You guys see anything else?"
"I guess there was a bunch of brown junk , maybe oil, maybe mud. Oh we think we saw a shirt floating around.""
"Ok, I'll call it a kill. Now go away."

Maybe they blew up an old (or new) wreck. Maybe nothing. Maybe they damaged a U-boat and it limped away to sink elsewhere. Maybe it made it back to the Bay of Biscay. Maybe it had nothing to do with new Jersey..



The whole point was to remember the times and people who did something about them.

 

[Christina Young]

The whole point was to remember the times and people who did something about them.

Agreed, but the best way to do that isn't to post misinformation and exagerated claims about them. It only takes away from their credibility in people's minds.

Just say what they did that was true. It was valiant enough.

 

[dpearce]

Christina,

The date in question as best I can figure is July 1942, The location is just off the Jersey coastal town of Absecon. The aviators to whom the attack is attributed are: Major Wynant Farr and Captain Johnny Haggin. I've seen references to it being attacked and pieces with oil slick being observed so it was presumed sunk. It appears that Cpt Haggin owned a Stinson and there are paintings of a Stinson attacking a submarine but the actual attack was done in the Grumman.

Not sure, but one other case of CAP involvement in a sub sinking was Sept. 19, 1942 off the NY coast. Several CAP planes were involved along with the Coast Guard, CG Reserve and regular Navy ships and planes.

Even if they didn't sink a sub, what they did in off-shore rescue of torpedoed sailors etc. is remarkable in it's own right. Amazing folks and efforts really.

 

[Grant]

Christina,
I too could not help but shed a tear at the Arizona Memorial. Everything was so unreal, gazing over the side of the memorial at the oil on the water and looking at the faces of the others there with me. It was the look of solem astonioshment. My thoughts were "they sacrificed everything for us and what are we doing to uphold thier sacrifice" But the tear did not come until I walked to the far end and started reading the names. I found my last name in common with one on the wall and the tear fell. Not because I was related to him but because it was the straw that broke the camel's back. I consider my self pretty emotionally tough but its not possible to walk away from there with a dry eye. Thank God they were all willing to sacrifice so much for us and our children, both the military men and the civilians of that era. Don't wait till they are all gone to say thanks. My grandfather served in the NAVY during the war in the Philippines. I wish I'd been old enough to understand what he did before he died. I once was almost fired from a job for speaking with a WWII Veteran for too long (The guy was at Bastone). I told the supervisor that this guy spent his best years protecting this country....... I went on a rant so I don't recall my exact words but it was to the effect that he should lay off and go "blank" himself.

 

[Anne]

Just a couple of notes:

1. The WASP were paid, but not very much. When one of them died in action (37 in all), the others had to take up a collection in order to bury her. They did not receive military benefits until recently.

2. There's a CAP Stinson in a hangar at Lantana Airport in W. Palm Beach FL. I don't know the story behind it, but I was told it still had its armament attached.

Anne.

 

[Alex Clark]

There is a Grumman amphip here in town that is in a hanger belonging to a local contractor / developer. Supposedly it has re-enforcement polates from jerry-rigged depth charge racks. But I have not seen the evidence for myself.

 

[Alex Clark]

Here is an intersting article about a "Grumman Widgeon kill" by the USCG against the U-166 that stood for years until disproved in 2001. It looks like they may have attacked the U-171.

http://www.pastfoundation.org/U166/WhiteandBoggs.htm

 

[Alex Clark]

Though deeply disappointed, he turned like thousands of other airmen who couldn't qualify for active duty to the newly formed CAP. When the green light was given by the Army Air Corps to set up three experimental bases for CAP's antisubmarine patrol, Haggin volunteered and was assigned to Patrol Force 1 in Atlantic City, N.J.

Haggin and his step father arrived in Atlantic City on March 26, 1942, shortly after operations out of the base had begun. Not only did their arrival bring two more desperately needed pilots, but also the addition of a rare amphibious aircraft Bill Zelcer's Grumman Widgeon, tail number N28674.


Zelcer remained until the end of May and then returned home to run his business. Haggin remained with the Widgeon which was left in his care. He quickly became operations officer and was second in command of the base.

In all, Haggin was credited with 613 hours of pilot time and 75 hours of observer time on often monotonous, but very dangerous overwater flights. On one particular day, because “only two ships were available for patrol,” according to his log books, Haggin flew three separate patrols for a total of 10 hours and 20 minutes.

His fame in CAP history is for his flight with Maj. Wynant Farr, the base commander, on July 11, 1942. A patrol plane out of Atlantic City spotted a submarine cruising near the surface about 25 miles east of Absecon. The plane was running out of fuel and had to return. Farr grabbed Haggin, and the two took off in the Widgeon.

Upon arriving at the site, a line of oil globs was spotted rising to the surface and then the long dark shape became visible gliding below. Because the U-boat was below periscope depth, Haggin and Farr decided to trail it; hoping she would rise closer to the surface and give them a better shot.

For more than four hours they trailed it, circling and zigzagging; patiently waiting. Just as they were running low on fuel and would have to turn back, the U-boat came up toward periscope depth for a look around. It would prove a fatal mistake.

Haggin swooped the yellow twin-engine amphibian behind the enemy and Farr let loose the first of two 325-pound aerial depth charges; splashing into the water just a few feet off the submarine's bow.



The resulting explosion rocked the CAP fliers in the air and boiled the sea. Amidst a geyser of water and oil, Farr thought he saw, for a fleeting moment, the nose of the U-boat break the surface and slide back below. Dropping their second and final charge in the growing oil slick, Haggin and Farr observed shattered deck planking rising to the surface in the bubbling oil.

Because of tight security, the story of his heroic achievement did not become public knowledge until almost after the war. many of the personnel at the patrol base itself were unaware until as much as two years later that they had been responsible for the death of one of the steel gray monsters they had loathed so much. By the time the story got out, Haggin had already left CAP.

Going into the summer of 1943, it was growing apparent that the U-boat activity on the East Coat was almost nonexistent and CAP coastal patrols would soon become obsolete. Many of the younger flyers, Haggin among them, sought transfer to the Air Transport Service or other branches. With the relaxing of certain entrance requirements, Haggin was appointed as a service pilot in Air Transport Command and received a commission as a 1st lieutenant in July 1943.

NOTE: I cannot find a record of a U-boat sinking that matches this yet.
There were other sinking near that time along the US coast. There are also 5 U-boats which went missing and were never found while either along the US coast or enroute.

 

[Alex Clark]

CAP Widgeons based out of New Jersey Coastal Patrol Base One
There were 21 Coastal Patrol Bases for the CAP (working for the Army Air Force) until late 1943, when the Navy was able to pick up the job full time.

A Mississippi CAP Ground Crew gives teeth to a voluteer civilian Pilot and his plane.

Aerial Depth Charge photo from the Atlantic City Squadron of the CAP.

[/url]

Nobody will remember what you did anyway!!! Much less believe it...

[/url]


xxx

 

[CloudDancer]

What a great post. Thanks Alex

CD

 

[Christina Young]

Just a couple of notes:

1. The WASP were paid, but not very much. When one of them died in action (37 in all), the others had to take up a collection in order to bury her. They did not receive military benefits until recently.

Anne, I just had the good fortune of meeting a couple of WASP veterans on Wednesday night at the 99's annual Christmas Party (my Alaska 2006 presentation was the main event).

One interesting thing is that someone brought a vintage copy of Life Magazine from the 1940s to the party, and it had an article about the WASPs, and a picture of one of the WASP veterans who was there was in it!

 

[Christina Young]

His fame in CAP history is for his flight with Maj. Wynant Farr, the base commander, on July 11, 1942. A patrol plane out of Atlantic City spotted a submarine cruising near the surface about 25 miles east of Absecon. The plane was running out of fuel and had to return. Farr grabbed Haggin, and the two took off in the Widgeon.

Upon arriving at the site, a line of oil globs was spotted rising to the surface and then the long dark shape became visible gliding below. Because the U-boat was below periscope depth, Haggin and Farr decided to trail it; hoping she would rise closer to the surface and give them a better shot.

For more than four hours they trailed it, circling and zigzagging; patiently waiting. Just as they were running low on fuel and would have to turn back, the U-boat came up toward periscope depth for a look around. It would prove a fatal mistake.

Haggin swooped the yellow twin-engine amphibian behind the enemy and Farr let loose the first of two 325-pound aerial depth charges; splashing into the water just a few feet off the submarine's bow.



The resulting explosion rocked the CAP fliers in the air and boiled the sea. Amidst a geyser of water and oil, Farr thought he saw, for a fleeting moment, the nose of the U-boat break the surface and slide back below. Dropping their second and final charge in the growing oil slick, Haggin and Farr observed shattered deck planking rising to the surface in the bubbling oil.

Because of tight security, the story of his heroic achievement did not become public knowledge until almost after the war. many of the personnel at the patrol base itself were unaware until as much as two years later that they had been responsible for the death of one of the steel gray monsters they had loathed so much. By the time the story got out, Haggin had already left CAP.

Going into the summer of 1943, it was growing apparent that the U-boat activity on the East Coat was almost nonexistent and CAP coastal patrols would soon become obsolete. Many of the younger flyers, Haggin among them, sought transfer to the Air Transport Service or other branches. With the relaxing of certain entrance requirements, Haggin was appointed as a service pilot in Air Transport Command and received a commission as a 1st lieutenant in July 1943.

NOTE: I cannot find a record of a U-boat sinking that matches this yet.
There were other sinking near that time along the US coast. There are also 5 U-boats which went missing and were never found while either along the US coast or enroute.

Alex, this was the specific case that was proven false in the search for the identity of the U-869. In July 1942 there were more than a few U-boats patroling off the U.S. east coast, and all of them returned home to Germany except two. Those two were the U-157 and the U-158.

The U-157 was sunk by the U.S. Navy off of Havana, Cuba, and was confirmed.

The U-158 was sunk off of Bermuda by the U.S. Navy. My friend Richie Kohler did a considerable amount of research regarding the theory that perhaps it somehow limped back towards the U.S. east coast and maybe finished off by CAP, but his research ultimately showed this to be not the case.

You can read about this in the NY Times best seller Shadow Divers by Rob Kurson. They are making it into a movie now. Yes, I'm the same Christina Young that's mentioned in the book (Crash asked me that question on this forum quite a while back after he read the book).

As for u-boats that went missing and never to be found, there is a list and you can check out each one of them on www.uboat.net. Most went missing off of Europe, and I believe that those off North America were mostly in 1945 (after CAP had ceased to do this patrol).

BTW, I'm planning to go to Archives II in College Park to research some other stuff in January, I'll look in the ESF war diary for July 1942 too... just interested to see what it says about this.

 

[Alex Clark]

That was just a quote out of a common referenced text. As I said I cannot link that particular date to a known U-boat sinking. Although that date may be wrong. All in all, they (the CAP Coastal Patrol) were originally credited with two sinkings during WWII, so I am sure they scared the hell out of somebody.

Americans tended to win things back then, spending less time second guessing and sweating the small stuff.


That is why, I also noted the USCG Widgeons kill claim against the U-166. Which was believed to have been true for 50 years until the UA-166 wreckage was discovered elsewhere. It turns out they probably attacked the U-171 which managed to make it back to home base. Although they (the U-171) got theirs later.

It took years to comb through the available U-boat logs that we and the other allies did not blow to smitherines.
Considering the fact that some U-boat commanders were accused of treason for minor infractions like removing the photo of Crazy Adolf from their mini Captains quarters, it makes you wonder how they may have had to "pad" their log books. My German in-laws who lived through those times still have a very different view of history than some of the rest of the planet.

I have a request into the CAP historians to see if they can provide any hard dates for the two or three occasions they think they may have done more than a little damage. The records appear to be pretty hazy.

Accounting for bad memory and lost book keeping, I wonder if they may have attacked (possibly damaged,but not really sank) either the U-352 or the U-701. The U-576 would also be a good bet as she was reported attacked and sunk on July 15 42 along North Carolina.
Both of which were finally sank further down the coast, during the spring of 1942. As was the U-85 a couple mnths earlier. Of course the U-160 and 572 were also operating along the Coast during the early spring of 1942, but returned home.


I am familiar with the book and your part in it.


If some body wanted to make a movie about those times, A good movie about the WASPs is a long time overdue....



xx

 

[Christina Young]

Alex,
Richie and I were doing research on the U-166 before it was found, and I found out that one of the pilots of the Grumman Widgeon was still alive and living in Biloxi, as I remember. We were going to contact him, and I was compiling lists of hangs off of Louisiana to check on a future trip (hardly anyone dives the large number of WWII wrecks down there). I remember I was driving up to Cortland, NY to see a Stinson that I later ended up purchasing, and along the way heard on the radio that the U-166 had been found offshore in very deep water while exploring for oil. I excitedly called Richie on the cell phone, and we breathed a collective sigh of disapointment!!! We wanted to be the ones that found it! Unfortunately too deep to dive also except in a submersible... Richie then later on went on to do a Deep Sea Detectives episode about it.

Regarding u-boat logs, I copied quite a few and I don't believe I've seen any that are "padded". They pretty much stick to where they went, what they saw, and any encounters they had. They don't use lat / longs like the WWI u-boats did, but a rather interesting coordinate system that requires translation. They are valuable to finding shipwrecks because when they sank ships they were not under duress, unlike their prey (whose logs, passenger & crew accounts, etc I've found to be extremely inaccurate for the most part). Just to give an example, there's a passenger freighter that was sunk off of NJ that everyone's been trying to find for decades. No one bother checking the logs of the u-boat that sank it (not even some big name wreck hunters who I really respect). I did, and found that where the German captain said he sank it was 50+ miles away from where the Coast Guard, passengers, crew, rescuers, etc said it was sunk! It's in pretty deep water and I have some unchecked, unknown hang numbers there. When I get a chance I'd like to go check it out.

What would be interesting is to cross check the u-boat logs with CAP records of attacks (even though we don't believe that CAP sank any, it probably attacked some). That certainly would be time intensive though, and it would require 3 things: the list of CAP attack dates (monthly could probably do, you could get the exact dates from the ESF war diary), the list of u-boats operating off the east coast for those dates (probably in the German u-boat command records somewhere, would have to ask), then go look up those dates in those u-boat's logbooks. I bet that no one has ever done that!

 

[Alex Clark]

If and that is a BIG IF, the CAP Widgeon sighting and attack was really on July 11th 1942, I have one wild assed possibility.

The U-576.

The U-576 was sank in a battle with convoy KS-520 off of Cape Hatteras on July 15 1942.

IF, the Widgeon pilots saw and attacked her on July 11th, that would give Captain Heinicke 4 days to head south in order to intercept the convoy which was heading south from Norfolk.

The rough distance is 280 nautical miles. If the U-576 cruised at 10 knots during the hours of darkness and then ran submerged at 2 to 3 knots during daylight (all about right for a pre-snorkel type 7C U-Boat),, Then she could have made it to the Cape Hatteras area with almost a day to spare.

Capt. Heinicke had previously finished three long patrols in U-576. A four week, a five and half week and finally a seven week patrol that had ended in mid May 42.
They were about 30 days out of port during their last battle.

On July 15 the U-576 made a fairly bold attack on three ships. For some unexplained reason the captain then surfaced and exposed the U-boat to gun fire from an old armed supply ship the USS Unicoi. The U-576 was also attacked by a Kingfisher aircraft with depth charges. It was reported as sunk in that location.

I always wondered if the water was shallow where the U-576 attacked the convoy and that required surfacing. Or was she already suffering some sort of damage to her periscope gear. Say from an attack by a couple of old guys in an armed Widgeon a few days before.


Notes from Sea Wave History July 1945:
1942 - Between 2020 & 2025, U-576 fired four torpedoes at Convoy KS-520, the first damaged the Chilore, the second damaged the JA Mowinckel, the third sank the Bluefields and the fourth missed the second ship. U-576 sunk near Cape Hatteras, USA, in position 34.51N, 75.22W, by depth charges from two USN VC-9 Kingfishers & ramming by US MV Unicoi. 45 dead (all hands lost). The both damaged ships later run into a US defensive minefield. The Chilore sank and the JA Mowinckel was further damaged, but later repaired


xx

 

[ROOTER]

WW 2 the big one. ie Archie Bunker

Alex,

A great post.
My Dad was WWII guy also. 3rd Marines Infantry Guam and Iwo Jima campaign survivor as he puts it.


Jim