On the fourth day, after noon,
U-402 came to the area North-West of Varangerfjord – roads to the crosshairs of enemy convoys. The poles decided to take, give a break to the crew, and then start the active search.
When the night boat surfaced, the divers marveled at the dead calm that in the Barents sea is very rare. However disturbing this silence, for a good omen is not considered. In such weather, not only the enemy, but the submarine – like the palm.
Submarine U-402:
1 – antenna of hydrophones; 2 – mooring capstan; 3 – nasal se-teotwaki; 4 – antenna; 5 – rail; 6 – the Central bow gun; 7 – anti-aircraft periscope; 8 – main magnetic compass; 9 – repeater gyrocompass; 10 – commander’s periscope; 11 – the Maxim machine gun; 12 – folding bulwarks; 13-45 mm aft gun; 14 – handrail; 15 – holes for water drainage and air release; 16 – antenna stand; 17 – feed steatoda; 18 – the flagpole; 19 – the flag ship-the order bearer; 20 – lower Wakefield fire; 21 – hawse hole; 22 – anchor Hall; 23 – keel (solid ballast); 24 – deadwood; 25 – propeller shaft; 26 – the bracket of the propeller shaft; 27 – mortar bracket; 28 – the screw propeller; 29 – bracket; 30 – vertical handlebar; 31 – add-in; 32 – lifebuoy; 33 – chopping Luke; 34 – tilting strips; 35 guardrail nasal horizontal steering wheel; 36 – nasal horizontal rudders; 37 – cable; 38, 43 – flip sheet over the ventilation valves; 39 – flip sheet over the front hatch; 40 – folding grille on the batteries and the eye; 41 – nasal buoy; 42 – a folding the sheet over fenders; 44 – folding grille on the aft batteries and ring; 45 – and-over grille silencers; 46 – folding sheet; 47 – bollard; 48 – hole for water drainage and an air outlet; 49 – the protection of propellers and aft horizontal rudders; 50 – lanyard; 51 – aft horizontal rudders; 52 – signal mast; 53 – top Wake the fire; 54 – bell; 55 cover aft torpedo tubes; 56 – masthead light; 57 – Radome anti-aircraft periscope, 58 – side lights; 59 – cover bow torpedo tubes; 60 – guessto; 61 – a niche hook
Fortunately, the night passed quietly and “pike” was able to fully charge the battery, “to fill” high-pressure air and thoroughly ventilate the compartments. As soon as dawn broke, the boat submerged to periscope depth and start searching.
Lieutenant Pillars in the Central post. From time to time he raises the periscope and, clinging to the eyepiece, scans the horizon, then with a sigh, folds his arms and lowers his periscope. The coast is clear. It means that you have to wait.
When the commander once again raised the periscope, all were in the Central post noticed how tensed his hand gripping the handle. This time Posts for a long time was glued to the eyepiece, a little podrachivaya periscope to the right and left.
Finally, if feeling looking at his views, he abruptly left:
– Transports escorted by trawlers and boats. Battle alert! Torpedo attack!
And then the dead silence of the compartments announced Trilling calls.
The boat increased speed, went to the rapprochement. Posts again raises the periscope. Transport is now visible, its mass closer and closer to volley the bearing.
– Nasal devices tovs! commander captain-Lieutenant.
Tall black bow transportation creeps upon the vertical thread in the eyepiece of the periscope.
– Fire! shouted the Poles, Rubanov hand in the air.
And everyone in the boat felt a shuddered, “pike”, freed from the deadly projectiles.
– Torpedoes left! – reported from the first compartment senior Lieutenant Zakharov.
Dangerous moments. Lightweight the bow of the “pike” pulled to the surface. And look over the water and seems the nose and cockpit. But the boatswain Nikolay Dobrodumov vigilant bubble differentaite. Skillfully and vigorously acting horizontal rudders, he managed to keep the submarine at depth.
Meanwhile, arrow commander stopwatch dispassionately ran over the clock face. And it began to seem that it is time to the thunder of the explosion. People in all compartments froze, listening…
Two powerful explosions, one after the other gave in the hull “pike” ringing roar. Victory!
Posts as soon as the torpedoes rushed towards the goal, Posleslovie started maneuvering to evade prosecution. He chose to take the boat as possible to the depths, closer to shore, it is reasonable to hope that there’s a “pike” are unlikely to seek. So far his assumptions were true.
– Boatswain, surface, under periscope! -followed by a new team.
Slowly crawled up the steel pipe. Barely out of the mine seemed to lower the head of the periscope, the Pillars immediately pulled back his arm and another on the rise launched it in the direction of the explosions.
The picture Posts I saw on the surface, pleased him: a huge transport was sinking, reallywas in half.
Meanwhile, the prosecution somehow was not. However, the enemy ships dropped a few depth charges near the torpedoed transport at random. Soon acoustic reported that the noise of the propellers of enemy ships is not listening. Assistant commander Konstantin Sorokin cheerful voice commanded from the Central post:
– From on combat alert back! Free from watch to eat!
Lunch on the occasion of the torpedo attack was held with great enthusiasm, no one complained about lack of appetite. But no sooner had the galley to wash dishes, as the acoustic’ev heard a noise. Officer of the deck Zakharov called the commander in the Central office.
“Four second” turned toward the noises, and twenty minutes later the captain saw the periscope of the enemy convoy of six transports with a interface.
This torpedo attack was much shorter than the previous one. The fact that the convoy was a collision course and the big transport was the closest to the boat on a perfect course angle of attack.
Attack in tutorial, – joked the captain, glancing at the stopwatch.
As soon as the foreman of a group of torpedo reported to the Central office that the nose dvukhtochechnye volley made as there ordered: “Tovs!”. And almost immediately: “Fire!”
The torpedo pulled the trigger levers. Compressed air with a powerful hiss of the torpedo is pushed forward. And again, agonizing suspense: “got or not?!”, and elation when the boat came the muffled explosions of the torpedoes.
– Boatswain, dive to fifty meters! -ordered Posts.
Dobrodumov vigorously shifted the rudders, and then, nervously tapping his fingers on the glass of the gauge, if that the speed of the dive boat is able to grow, was to report:
– Depth of 25 meters… 30… 35…
The reports broke. The first bomb blasts rocked the hull “pike” is, when the depth gauge showed 37 meters.
And then it began! Enemy ships bitterly persecuted “four hundred and two”. From close explosions in the compartments burst the bulb, a fuse box at the substations. Ripped off the Kingston by-pass the tank and it flooded seawater. It was the most dangerous of all: now the boat could fall into the sea to such a depth where its body will not stand the pressure.
At this point, the fate of the boat and crew were completely dependent on the promptness and dedication of the bilge. Watch bilge of Vaganov lightning ducked under the floor of the Central post, somehow squeezed between the pump and air lines and slipping in the icy water, quickly eliminated the damage. The flow of sea water stopped.
The bombing occurred at times, such pauses that seemed the attempts of the Nazis to destroy the boat over. But after a while close the gaps of depth charges was resumed. From each case “pike” shuddered from the Central post after a new series of breaks came the command: “to what?”
Gradually, the explosions could be heard farther and fainter. It became clear that “four second” skillful maneuvering broke away from his pursuers.
The boat continued the search. At dawn on March 3, acoustic reported: “Starboard, course forty: the sound of propellers!”
Pillars fell to the eyepiece of the periscope. Some time later, he distinctly saw the outline of two German minesweepers working in the control trawling.
Quickly making the necessary calculations, the commander attacked one of them. Few tens of seconds released the torpedo reached the target and was followed by a loud explosion.
Barely Columns was convinced in the successful completion of the attack, as acoustic reported:
– The enemy ship turned on us. The distance decreases!
Has not passed also five minutes as rushed near the first depth charge. For her second, third, and two…
Surviving minesweeper, apparently, quite accurately found the location of the “pike”. Right next thnol explosion of such force that a boat was not kept on his feet.
Submarine U-402
Lieutenant commander realized that the usual maneuvering to get rid of prosecution is unlikely. And in this difficult moment Posts found the only way to confuse the Nazi acoustics and to break away from persecution. The essence consisted in the following. When the “four second” exploded depth charges, the commander ordered to give the full stroke. At this time up there, the acoustics still have not heard anything. But as soon as there is silence, the motors were stopped and the boat was moving by inertia. And so each time. Explosion: “Full speed ahead!” Quiet rumble of the explosions “Stop the engines!”
Finally after many hours of harassment, the bombing stopped. Enemy trawlers lost “the pike”.
By nightfall the Poles were ordered to surface and explore the ship. And then it turned out that the hull was holed in the area of fuel tanks, from which emerged almost the entire stock of diesel fuel: it was only partial recharging of the batteries. The situation was complicated by the fact that the distance from home base exceed 300 miles, and the shores occupied by the Nazis, numbered twenty.
All night “four second” drifted, and in the morning from the headquarters of the fleet radioed to the boat sent to help. Now just had to wait… Devoid of progress and opportunities to dive, Soviet submarine could be every minute discovered and attacked by ships and aircraft of the enemy. So in full combat readiness has led torpedo launchers and artillery, the crew distributed personal weapons. In any case, U-402 was prepared to explode.
In this difficult hour mechanical engineer Bolshakov with elders Stepanenko and Kukushkin did not waste any time. They decided to use a mixture of oil and kerosene of the remaining torpedoes. And diesel, a couple of times sneezing, earned this “ruff”.
All night “pike” went to his native shores. Then the light of the day in full combat readiness, “four second” dusk went on. But the fuel only lasted until midnight. The boat again went adrift… the long-Awaited came with the dawn. The military campaign ended successfully.
The share of “four second” had an exceptional destiny. During the great Patriotic war she made 16 military campaigns, sank an enemy submarine and 9 transports with a total displacement of over 50 thousand tons, several of the transports and inflicted serious damage. This submarine, the ship won the highest distinction, was the first who opened the account of the combat of North sea divers, and was the last of the dead in the Arctic. It happened on 21 September 1944.
TYPE SUBMARINE “SCH”
In the Soviet Navy during the great Patriotic war was the most numerous submarines of the type “U”. They were created in the late 1920’s-early 1930-ies and was intended for operations in coastal areas and inland seas. The first boats with a displacement of 580 – 700 tons carried six torpedoes in the apparatus (four in the bow and two aft) and four alternates. In the bow and stern of the bridge was equipped with two 45 mm anti-aircraft machine. Two diesel engines at 600 HP reported the boat surface speed to 12 KTS. Under water the boat was on two motors at 400 HP at a speed of about 8 KTS. (within one hour).
These submarines formed the basis for the creation of a number of other series submarines of “Sch”. So, in 1932, specifically for the Pacific fleet had developed boats V series that can be transported disassembled by rail. They were installed more powerful diesel engines of 800 HP, which allowed to increase the speed of surface of the ties 14. To build more advanced submarines of type “Sch” series V-bis, V-bis 2, X and X-bis. They operated on all fleets.
The submarine, which was discussed in this essay, was laid down in December 1934. 1 Oct 1936 in a solemn ceremony she was raised naval flag. From that day under the number U-14 she joined the warships of the Baltic fleet.
In may 1937, it was stripped of the mechanisms and weapons and put in the floating dock: the boat was preparing to transition in the Barents sea. In September, “pike” (now with hull number 402) arrived in the young city Polar.
It was hard for the sailors of the Baltic fleet in the sea of Barents. Meteorological conditions, and navigation conditions was fraught with many unknowns. Frequent and intense storms, snow charges and other specific polar the difficulties and hardships tempered the character and will of submariners, contributed to improving their combat skills. The first great achievement of the crew became operational diving and surfacing in the Wake of 6 points.
At that time, with such a strong wave on any other Navy divers worked on this exercise. In the winter of 1937/38 year the crew of U-402 had a chance to perform an important governmental task. Then the whole world enthusiastically followed the heroic drift on the ice field the first ever polar station “North pole”. The names of Soviet explorers of the Arctic of I. D. Papanin, p. P. Shirshov, G. K. Fedorov and E. T. Krenkel – did not descend from newspaper pages. When with the floe-Bergs as they were called, began to split up, and four brave explorers were in a dangerous situation, for their salvation in the Arctic ocean was sent to the expedition special purpose. In its composition, in addition to icebreaking ships “Taimyr” and “Murman”, was part of submarines L-3, U-404, U-402.
On February 19, SP-1 was evacuated by breakers. Submarines carried out their task, supporting reliable communication “Taimyr” and “Murman” with the radio centre of the Northern fleet.
North sea submarines farther and farther into the Arctic ocean. 16 Dec 1938 16 Jan 1939, the crew of “four second” was in the Autonomous navigation. Three-quarters of the hike proceeded in difficult conditions. And sailors honorably passed the examination for marine maturity, returning to their base without a single failure.
22 APR 1939 “four second” together with other submarines of the Northern fleet came to the execution of the government task to ensure radio communications with the aircraft of V. K. Kokkinaki, which made the flight across the Atlantic to the United States of America. The hike was very difficult for submarines, the course ran along the Norwegian coast, crossed the Norwegian sea. After their mission was completed, the boat turned around in the North sea, returned to his native shores.
During the Finnish campaign in the harsh winter 1939/40 year, “second four”, along with other ships of the Northern fleet, carried arduous patrol service. Submarine operations was hampered by the severe frost. Case frosting, boats received additional positive buoyancy, hindering emergency dive. Under the weight of the ice tore the antenna, broke the rack rail. Frosting optics of periscopes. Failed weapons – gun turned into ice blocks, the torpedoes were freezing water in the cutouts of the turntable inertial drummers, solidified grease.
During the patrol the submarine Severomorsk have had to meet the German ships-scouts appearing near the Soviet territorial waters.
Great Patriotic war became a crucial test of military skill of the crew of the North sea “pike”. For military exploits in the war years “four second” was awarded guards status and er Dan the red banner.
Painting models
Paint the model in the following colors: hull freeboard, superstructure and armament – gray-green; the underwater part of the hull and the deck in black; the tail number and the waterline white.
TACTICAL AND TECHNICAL DATA POLUTORAKRATNOE TWIN-SHAFT SUBMARINE U-402
Length the greatest,m…. . . ……….. 58,75 Maximum width, m ……………… 6,1 Draught average, m . …. . …………. 4,3 Displacement, t . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 590/707,8 Immersion depth working, m ………….. 90,0 The maximum speed of that node …………. 13,6/8,7 Cruising range, miles …………… 6500/108 Power, HP.:
diesels …………… 2Х800 electric motors ………… 2X400 Crew……………….. 40 Armament: 4 bow and 2 stern 533-mm torpedo tubes (torpedoes spare — 10); 2 – 45-mm semi-automatic guns, 2 – 7.62 mm Maxim machine gun.
P. VESELOV
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The message of the Soviet information Bureau was, as usual, short: “” N ” the submarine of the Northern fleet under the command of Lieutenant Stolbov entered in the fascist of the harbour and attacked the transport with a displacement of 6 tonnes. Torpedoman Melnikov two torpedoes blew up the enemy ship. The submarine returned safely to their base”. This is the first military success of the Northern fleet in the great Patriotic war fell to the lot of crew of the submarine U-402, which is 14 July 1941, entered Porsangerfjord and destroyed the transport ship of the enemy. The first step was made. But the “four second” had many difficult hikes, and each demanded that the crew maximum impact spiritual and physical strength, bravery, courage and resourcefulness.