In the Pale Moonlight - A Silent Hunter III AAR
PART TWENTY
13th-14th September, 1940
The enemy convoy rolled into sight again at 0630. Sonar continuously picked up the ships locations, in particular scanning for the dreaded escorts. For some reason, the
Flower corvette that protected the convoys left side (where the large cargo-ships were) was practically out to sea, whereas the other escorts remained close to the convoy.
U-45 had been forced to reverse in order to get a better firing position against her prey, which would have simply run over the submarine had she stayed in the same position. This small manoeuvre was completed in just twenty minutes, allowing
U-45 to remain perfectly still and wait for the targets simply roll into her sights. The escorts would not know she existed until the first torpedo struck the ships they were assigned to protect. However, even this knowledge as to their safety didnt keep the tension out of the cramped compartments of
U-45. The only noise came from Captain2 as he reported the sound contacts in hushed whispers, or from the periscope as Sharuminar tried to raise and lower it in time with the waves, sometimes giving Raisin Bran figures to create a firing solution. Safely hidden or not, this would be their only chance in a long while to sink two of Britains larger merchants.
By 0715, the second of the two large vessels had lumbered into the firing position, and the commander gave the order to fire tubes 3 and 4. A quick confirmation on the forward ship, and two more torpedoes were blasted into the water. Being so close to the cargo-ships, it wasnt long after firing that the torpedoes struck, both ships hit at the same time. The second of them veered off-course, threatening the vessels in the centre of the convoy, but stopped in time to return to her original position. There was the small fear that the torpedoes had had little effect, but very slowly the cargo-ship began to slope down towards her stern. Less than half an hour after being struck, both vessels were on their way to the seabed below.
The second cargo-ship sinks, up ahead her sister would follow within minutes
The crew of
U-45 did not cheer. Not yet. It was widely assumed in most U-Boat social circles that the loss of 20000 tonnes in thirty minutes would rather anger the Royal Navy, and the crew were preparing themselves for their retribution. Shockingly, just one escort - the
Flower corvette that was supposed to be protecting the left side of the convoy - appeared to search for
U-45. It did not drop any depth charges, nor were the familiar pings from the ASDIC device heard. The convoy itself, after briefly scattering out of formation, continued on regardless to their destination, and by 0806 - less than an hour after firing the torpedoes - the corvette sped off to catch up with it. The crew of
U-45 remained quiet, they couldnt believe their luck.
For the moment, Captain Sharuminar held position, preferring to let the convoy and her escorts move out of detection range. He quickly noted the targets sunk and their position, before getting a call from the sonar room. Captain2 had heard another sound contact - a merchant at close range, coming straight at them. A check through the periscope didnt just confirm this, it managed to identify the new vessel as another large cargo-ship, on a direct course for them!
The engines were started up once more and
U-45 brought hard-a-port, swinging round to present the rear torpedo bay to the unsuspecting vessel. Fearing they may already be spotted, Kan Sharuminar did not wait long to fire, launching a torpedo just 1500 metres from the ship. It slammed into the side of the vessel, a monumental spray of water, oil and metal exploding into the air. For such a large vessel this would not be enough, but the Chief torpedo man Cleric and his crew had outdone themselves. Tube 2 had already been reloaded and was ready to fire.
U-45 was swung round once more and the final torpedo fired at its maximum speed, Kan hoping to catch the vessel before it began evasive manoeuvres. It almost failed, with the torpedo only just catching the bow of the cargo-ship as it swerved left to avoid it. Water poured in through the new opening, and it was too much for the vessel to bear. A third large cargo-ship had been sunk by
U-45.
In the wrong place at the wrong time
Deciding not to trust their good fortune (or possibly the continuing incompetence of the Royal Navy), Captain Sharuminar ordered
U-45 to surface, her remaining torpedoes reloaded and a course set for the Atlantic at maximum speed. Battle stations remained on for the rest of the day, and the watchman scanned the horizon and the skies for any sign of reprisals by the British. None came, and by midnight
U-45 was back to standard patrol procedures. A status report was sent to command, the convoy had netted them over 40000 tonnes of shipping destroyed, and Kan confirmed that they would now be heading to dock in France at last. The hidden bottles of alcohol were opened, the crew were allowed to cheer at last
