German submarine U-132 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 10 August 1940 by Vegesacker Werft, Bremen-Vegesack as yard number 11, launched on 10 April 1941 and commissioned on 29 May that year under Kapitänleutnant Ernst Vogelsang.
In four patrols, U-132 sank ten ships for a total of and 2,216 tons. She was a member of three wolfpacks. The submarine was lost after an attack on Convoy SC 107 in November 1942.
Design German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-132 had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. She had a total length of , a pressure hull length of , a beam of , a height of , and a draught of . The submarine was powered by two MAN 6-cylinder 4-stroke M 6 V 40/46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of for use while surfaced, two Brown, Boveri & Cie GG UB 720/8 double-acting electric motors producing a total of for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to .
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, the boat could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . U-132 was fitted with five torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.
Service history
First patrol U-132 departed on her first patrol when she left Trondheim in Norway on 7 September 1941. Rounding the North Cape, she criss-crossed that part of the Barents Sea northwest of Murmansk before heading further east. She sank two Soviet ships, Argun and SKR-11 Ural on 18 October.
The boat docked in Kirkenes, also in Norway, on 21 October.
Second patrol Having moved from Kirkenes back to Trondheim in late October 1941, U-132 commenced her second foray on 15 January 1942. Her route took her due west through the gap between Iceland and the Faroe Islands to a point west of Reykjavík. Here she sank on the 29th.
She then moved to the port of La Pallice in occupied France, arriving on 8 February.
Third patrol The boat's third patrol began when she left La Pallice on 10 June 1942. Having crossed the Atlantic Ocean, she attacked shipping in the Gulf of St Lawrence as part of the Battle of the St. Lawrence.
On 6 July U-132 sank three ships from Convoy QS-15, Anastasios Pateras, Hainaut, and Dinaric, all southeast of Cap Chat, Quebec.Rohwer, p.149 The convoy escort, the Canadian minesweeper , retaliated with a depth charge attack, which damaged the U-boat's ballast pumps and resulted in the loss of 4 m³ of fuel.
Fourteen days later, on 20 July, the submarine attacked Frederika Lensen in convoy QS-19 near Anticosti Island. The ship was towed to Grand Valée Bay and beached, but with her back broken, she was declared a total loss.
On 29 July the U-132 sightes convoy ON 113 and the next day sank one ship from it.Rohwer, p.152
The boat returned to La Pallice on 16 August.
Fourth patrol and loss U-132 left La Pallice for the last time on 6 October 1942. Operating southeast of Cape Farewell (Greenland), she sank Hobbema and Empire Lynx, but was sunk, probably by falling debris from the ammunition ship Hatimura when that vessel exploded following an attack by U-132 and on 4 November. All 47 crew members died.
Wolfpacks U-132 took part in three wolfpacks, namely: Endrass (12 – 17 June 1942) Panther (13 – 19 October 1942) Veilchen (20 October - 3 November 1942)
Previously recorded fate U-132 had originally been recorded as sunk the next day, 5 November 1942, by British aircraft of No. 120 Squadron RAF. The 120 Squadron attack, in the same area southeast of Cape Farewell where U-132 inadvertently sank herself, had actually been on operating nearby, causing severe damage but not sinking her.
Summary of raiding history DateShip NameNationalityTonnageFatePositionDeaths18 October 1941Argun3,487SunkUnknown18 October 1941SKR-11 Ural557Sunk4029 January 19422,216Sunk326 July 1942Anastassios Pateras3,382Sunk36 July 1942Dinaric2,555Sunk46 July 1942Hainaut4,312Sunk120 July 1942Frederika Lensen4,367Total loss430 July 1942Pacific Pioneer6,734Sunk04 November 1942Empire Lynx6,379Sunk04 November 1942Hatimura*6,690Damaged284 November 1942Hobbema5,507Sunk4
*Credit for sinking this vessel belongs to U-442
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