Crash Dive: Seaplane Against Submarine

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 46, 10 March 1937, Page 12

Crash Dive: Seaplane Against Submarine

Story of German U-Boat Qfficer Turned Pastor

ARTIN Niemoller was one of the most ruthless of the - U-boat officers ip the German Navy. He was the son of a German pastor, but when war broke out joined the navy and served pn a

submarine. It is true that Martin Niemoller was a brave and intrepid enemy pf 0reat Britain in the Great War, and that he apprpved of the submarine campaign (says Public Opinion). It is also true that his work as an officer required bravery and endurance beyond the capacity of most • people, and Niemoller certainly excelled in his serviee for Germany. But when the war was over he was amongst those who "unconsciopsly fpund their true selves," and at long last he became a mhiister of the Lutheran Church. Then came the persecution by the German Government of the State ChurGh and Niemoller became the foremost leader in the Confessional Church and championed "the cause of Christianity and moderation against the excesses of neo-paganism and the interference of omeialdorn," The following account of one of his -U-boat adventures after being hit by a seaplane gives some idea of the characterof the man. Niemoller writes:— * • * JUST before noon I relieve the navigating warrant officer to allow him to take his ! noon sight, and as I Iook round I see a i black spot against the sun. A plane! i "Crash dive!" The watch tumble down ' into the conning-tower, the automatic [ vents whistle, and the water gurgles round the conning-tower: 30, 40 feet! Crash! Explosion aft. Crash! Another over the conning-tower, knocking me off my feet ; and throwing me against the side. The !. pistol trigger whizzes past me into the : control room, and a three-inch stream of ; water follows. Crash! Explosion forrard. The engine-room reports, "Water com-

ing in through E.R. hatchw&yl" Qh^y WUS wahlins! We are at 65 feet and going dowh rapidly. Thank goodnessl The E.H, reports the leak stopped. All seems to be well in the fore part of the boat. Two men aye working in the conningtower to plugs the hole left by the pistpl trigger in the deckplates. They succeed in pretty well checking the infiow of water . hito the bpat. We bob up and down between 130ft, and 90ft. The regulating tank has been pumped out, but we have now got to empty the bilges, even if it meape a tell-tale patch of oil pn the surface, as the boat is still far too heavy. What is to be done? I go into the engine-room and am told that the hatch was blown open by the first detonation, allowing a hug© YOlume of water to pour through, but that the pressure of water then jammed the hatch down so tightly that not another. drop of water came through. Not Troubled Further. rjpjjE pilot of the seaplane « appears to think that he has destroyed us with his three bombs, so he does not trouble us further.- We do not, however, know what is going on overhead, and our hyd$ophones are not to be relied upon. after these explogions, so we cannot tell whether any patrol vessels are near us. A thorough examination of the boat establishes the cause of her .excessive heaviness. The W/T lead-in pipe, a heavy steel .tube enclosing the lead-in from the W/T aerial aloft, has a leaky gland and has ffiled up with water. Fortunately the damage might have been far more serious, but, even so, it is quite bad enough! At about 4 p.m. we come up to 60 feet to take a look round. "Up periscope!' Bump, bump, bump; nothing further happens and the motor stops. "Couple up the hand gear!" But the periseope will not budge and all our efforts to move it prove useless.

"Up spare periscope!" It actually rlses! A good thing to have a spare periscope, "Rise to 30 feet!" As I look into the periscope I see nothing but a pitch-blaek darknesa. So the spare periscope is also done in. "Go down to 90 feet! Down periscope!" We now feel rather uneasy, as a submarine without a periscope ceases to be & submarine and is merely a blind cripplei There is nothing to be dorie— we must wait for nightfall to come up. , Four hours slowly pass, and as a further precaution we circle round for few hundred yards. "Stop both'.^All is quiet in t}ie boat! Listen!" All ears are laid against the bpat's sides to pick up any sound. Everything remains quiet. We repeat the procedure at 50 feet and still hear nothing. Well, then • . . "Blow all tanks! Surface!" Hardly is the conning-tower elear of the water than I tear the hatch open and scramble through. I accompany Arnoldi along the upper deck. 1k # * JflRST, we examine the E,R. hatch with the aid pf an electric torph; yes, some of the tumbler bolts for securing it have been carried away. A few fragments of metal lie around, otherwise all is well! We go forward and. look into the mine tubes. Herp also bomb fragments are scattered and the upper mine in No. l tube has its top erashed in like a childs rubber ball. It might be best not to lay these mines in case they go off prematurely. And now for the conning-tower. The insulating bush of the lead-in tube is shattered, so the W/T is dpne for, The main periscope is projecting about three feet and is jammed. We manage to extract a couple pf bomb fragments from its tube, but cannot get it to budge. There is no visible damage to the forward spare periscope, so the defect must be an optical one. As for the pistol trigger, we plug the hole by means of a blank flange, secured with bolts and nuts, as a temporary repair, it is obvious that we must now make for home.