German submarine U-181 was a Type IXD2 U-boat of Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 15 March 1941 at the DeSchiMAG AG Weser yard at Bremen as yard number 1021. She was launched on 30 December 1941 and commissioned on 9 May 1942 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Wolfgang Lüth. After training with the 4th U-boat Flotilla at Stettin, U-181 was attached to the 10th flotilla for front-line service on 1 October 1942, then transferred to the 12th flotilla on 1 November.

Design German Type IXD2 submarines were considerably larger than the original Type IXs. U-181 had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. The U-boat 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 M 9 V 40/46 supercharged four-stroke, nine-cylinder diesel engines plus two MWM RS34.5S six-cylinder four-stroke diesel engines for cruising, producing a total of for use while surfaced, two Siemens-Schuckert 2 GU 345/34 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-181 was fitted with six torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and two at the stern), 24 torpedoes, one SK C/32 naval gun, 150 rounds, and a SK C/30 with 2575 rounds as well as two C/30 anti-aircraft guns with 8100 rounds. The boat had a complement of fifty-five.

Operational history Under Lüth's command she sailed on two long combat patrols in late 1942 and 1943, patrolling the waters off South Africa and Mozambique. On 15 November 1942, HMS Jasmine, along with HMS Inconstant and HMS Nigella engaged the submarine with depth charges forcing the submarine to a depth of 570ft but failed to destroy her. During the patrol between 1942 and 1943, the submarine was responsible for sinking 22 ships for a total of 103,712 GRT, earning him a promotion to Korvettenkapitän and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. He went on to command the 22nd U-boat Flotilla.

On 1 November 1943 under the command of Fregattenkapitän Kurt Freiwald and part of the 12th U-boat Flotilla. U-181 sailed from her base in Bordeaux, France to Penang, Malaya (now Malaysia) in mid–1944, sinking four ships totalling 24,869 GRT. They carried a Bachstelze and a Naxos radar detector on this trip.Giese, O., 1994, Shooting the War, Annapolis: United States Naval Institute, On 1 October 1944 the U-boat was transferred to the 33rd U-boat Flotilla. She carried out only one additional patrol in the Indian Ocean, in 1944–1945, on their journey home with 130 tons of tin, 20 tons of molybdenum, 80-100 tons of raw rubber, and the latest radar-detection equipment FUMB26 TUNIS. They ended up sinking a single ship of 10,198 GRT. Because of their cargo, they only had room for two torpedoes, which they used in this sinking. The trip home was aborted when the main bearings started to wear out, prompting a return to Batavia on 6 January 1945, but transferring their fuel to near the Cocos Islands on the way.

On the 12th, they were ordered to Penang, but only made it as far as Singapore. There they worked on repairing the engines and fitting a Schnorchel, before attempting a renewed trip home starting on 10 May.

Wolfpacks U-181 took part in one wolfpack from 27 to 30 March 1943.

Fate On 6 May, Otto Giese dropped the two code-key machines into the Singapore harbor, and later that day, the boat was "taken" by the Japanese Captain Marujama. Admiral Paul Wenneker sent the message on 8 May, that Lubeck was in place, "an early agreement between Germany and Japan, if one nation lost and the other continued fighting, the former would render its war material to the latter." The crew was taken to Batu Pahat.

After Germany's surrender in May 1945 the U-boat was taken over by Japan at Singapore and commissioned as I-501 on 15 July 1945. She surrendered to Allied forces there in August 1945, and was sunk on 12 February 1946 in the Strait of Malacca, in position , by the British frigates and .

Summary of raiding history

Date Ship Nationality Tonnage(GRT) Fate 1st patrol3 November 19428,159Sunk8 November 1942Plaudit5,060Sunk10 November 1942K.G. Meldahl3,799Sunk13 November 1942Excello4,969Sunk19 November 1942Gunda2,241Sunk20 November 1942Corinthiakos3,562Sunk22 November 1942Alcoa Pathfinder6,797Sunk 24 November 1942Dorington Court5,281SunkMount Helmos6,481Sunk28 November 1942Evanthia3,551Sunk30 November 1942Cleanthis4,153Sunk2 December 1942Amarylis4,328Sunk 2nd patrol11 April 1943Empire Whimbrel5,983Sunk11 May 1943Tinhow5,232Sunk27 May 1943Sicilia1,633Sunk7 June 1943Harrier193Sunk2 July 19432,798Sunk15 July 1943Empire Lake2,852Sunk16 July 1943Fort Franklin7,135Sunk4 August 1943Dalfram4,558Sunk7 August 1943Umvuma4,419Sunk12 August 1943Clan Macarthur10,528Sunk 3rd patrol1 May 1944Janeta5,312Sunk19 June 1944Garoet7,118Sunk15 July 1944Tanda7,174Sunk19 July 1944King Frederick5,265Sunk 4th patrol2 November 194410,198Sunk

References

Bibliography

External links Submarine I-501: Tabular Record of Movement