German submarine U-431 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 4 January 1940 by Schichau-Werke in Danzig as yard number 1472, launched on 2 February 1941 and commissioned on 5 April 1941 under Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Dommes (Knight's Cross).
Design German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-431 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 Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of for use while surfaced, two AEG GU 460/8-276 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-431 was fitted with four torpedo tubes in the bow, 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 The boat's service began on 5 April 1941 for training as part of the 3rd U-boat Flotilla. Afterwards she transferred to the 29th flotilla operating in the Mediterranean on 1 January 1942. In 16 patrols she sank or damaged 11 ships in total.
Wolfpacks She took part in one wolfpack, namely: Brandenburg (15 September – 1 October 1941)
Fate She was sunk on 21 October 1943 in the Mediterranean off Algiers at position by depth charges dropped from an RAF Wellington bomber of 179 Squadron, operating out of Gibraltar. All hands were lost.
Summary of raiding history DateShip NameNationalityTonnageMerchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.Fate2 October 1941Hatasu3,198Sunk13 December 1941Myriel3,560Damaged29 January 1942HMS Sotra313Sunk20 May 1942Eocene4,216Sunk15 June 1942HMS LCT-119450Damaged10 November 19421,920Sunk13 November 1942HNLMS Isaac Sweers1,628Sunk23 January 1943Alexandria100Sunk25 January 1943Mouyassar47Sunk25 January 1943Omar el Kattab38Sunk26 January 1943Hassan80Sunk
See also Mediterranean U-boat Campaign (World War II) List of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients
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