German submarineU-344

History
Nazi Germany
Name	U-344
Ordered	20 January 1941
Builder	Nordseewerke,Emden
Yard number	216
Laid down	7 May 1942
Launched	29 January 1943
Commissioned	26 March 1943
Fate	Sunk by a British aircraft on 22 August 1944
General characteristics
Class and type	Type VIICsubmarine
Displacement	769tonnes(757long tons) surfaced; 871 t (857 long tons) submerged;
Length	67.10 m (220 ft 2 in)o/a; 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in)pressure hull;
Beam	6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a; 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull;
Height	9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Draught	4.74 m (15 ft 7 in)
Installed power	2,800–3,200 PS (2,100–2,400 kW; 2,800–3,200 bhp) (diesels); 750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp) (electric);
Propulsion	2 shafts; 2 ×diesel engines; 2 ×electric motors;
Speed	17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) surfaced; 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged;
Range	8,500nmi(15,700km;9,800mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced; 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged;
Test depth	230 m (750 ft); Crush depth:250–295 m (820–968 ft);
Complement	4 officers, 40–56 enlisted
Armament	5 × 53.3 cm (21 in)torpedo tubes(four bow, one stern); 14 ×torpedoesor26 TMAmines; 1 ×8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun(220 rounds); 2 × twin2 cm (0.79 in) C/30anti-aircraft guns;
Service record
Part of:	8th U-boat Flotilla; 26 March 1943 – 31 March 1944; 3rd U-boat Flotilla; 1 April – 31 May 1944; 11th U-boat Flotilla; 1 June – 22 August 1944;
Identification codes:	M 50 920
Commanders:	Kptlt.Ulrich Pietsch; 26 March 1943 – 22 August 1944;
Operations:	3 patrols:; 1st patrol:; 20 – 27 May 1944; 2nd patrol:; 31 May – 8 July 1944; 3rd patrol:; 3 – 22 August 1944;
Victories:	1 warship sunk; (1,350 tons)

German submarineU-344was aType VIIC U-boatofNazi Germany'sKriegsmarineduringWorld War II.

She was a member of twowolfpacks.

She was on her third patrol when she was sunk by a British aircraft on 22 August 1944.

She sank one warship.

Design

German Type VIIC submarineswere preceded by the shorterType VIIB submarines.U-344had a displacement of 769 tonnes (757 long tons) when at the surface and 871 tonnes (857 long tons) while submerged.^[4]She had a total length of 67.10 m (220 ft 2 in), apressure hulllength of 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in), abeamof 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and adraughtof 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by twoGermaniawerftF46 four-stroke, six-cylindersupercharged diesel enginesproducing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, twoAEGGU 460/8–27double-acting electric motorsproducing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft)propellers.The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).^[4]

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph).^[4]When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).U-344was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in)torpedo tubes(four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteentorpedoes,one8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun,220 rounds, and two twin2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft guns.The boat had acomplementof between forty-four and sixty.^[4]

Service history

The submarine waslaid downon 7 May 1942 at theNordseewerkeyard atEmdenas yard number 216,launchedon 29 January 1943 andcommissionedon 26 March under the command ofKapitänleutnantUlrich Pietsch.

U-344served with the8th U-boat Flotilla,for training and the3rd flotillafor operations from 1 April 1944. She was reassigned to the11th flotillaon 1 June 1944.

First patrol

U-344had sailed fromKielin Germany toFlekkefjord(west ofKristiansand) and thenBergenin Norway in April and May 1944, but her first patrol began when she departed Bergen on 20 May and followed the Norwegian coastline. She arrived atNarvikon the 27th.

Second patrol

Her second foray involved criss-crossing theNorwegian Sea.At one point she passed east ofJan MayenIsland. She arrived atBogenbucht(west of Narvik) on 8 July 1944.

Third patrol and loss

Having departed Bogenbucht on 3 August 1944, she sank the British sloopHMSKitein theBarents Seaon the 21st. Of 226 crew, nine men survived the icy water. The next day, a BritishFairey Swordfishof825 Naval Air SquadronfromHMSVindex,dropped a pattern ofdepth chargeson the U-boat, sinking her. Fifty men died in the sinking; there were no survivors.^[5]

Previously recorded fate

U-344was thought to have been sunk on 24 August 1944 in the Barents Sea off theNorth Capeby British warships: i.e. thesloops HMSMermaidandPeacock,thefrigate HMSLoch Dunveganand the destroyerKeppel.U-354was the victim.

Wolfpacks

U-344took part in twowolfpacks,namely:

Trutz (2 June – 6 July 1944)
Trutz (17 – 22 August 1944)

Summary of raiding history

Date	Ship Name	Tonnage^{[Note 1]}	Nationality	Fate^[6]
21 August 1944	HMSKite	1,350	Royal Navy	Sunk

References

Notes

^Merchant ship tonnages are ingross register tons.Military vessels are listed by tonsdisplacement.

Citations

^Kemp 1999,pp. 214–5.
^Helgason, Guðmundur."The Type VIIC boat U-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved22 August2012.
^Helgason, Guðmundur."War Patrols by German U-boat U-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved22 August2012.
^^a ^b ^c ^dGröner 1991,pp. 43–46.
^Hofmann, Markus."U 344".Deutsche U-Boote 1935–1945 – u-boot-archiv.de(in German).Retrieved26 December2014.
^Helgason, Guðmundur."Ships hit byU-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved23 January2014.

Bibliography

Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999).German U-boat commanders of World War II: a biographical dictionary.Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press.ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999).Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945[German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler.ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991).U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels.German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
Kemp, Paul (1999).U-Boats Destroyed – German Submarine Losses in the World Wars.London: Arms & Armour.ISBN 1-85409-515-3.

External links

Helgason, Guðmundur."The Type VIIC boat U-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved26 December2014.
Hofmann, Markus."U 344".Deutsche U-Boote 1935–1945 – u-boot-archiv.de(in German).Retrieved26 December2014.

74°54′N15°26′E/ 74.900°N 15.433°E/74.900; 15.433

[tonnage-6] Merchant ship tonnages are ingross register tons.Military vessels are listed by tonsdisplacement.

[FOOTNOTEKemp1999214–5-1] Kemp 1999,pp. 214–5.

[uboatnet-2] Helgason, Guðmundur."The Type VIIC boat U-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved22 August2012.

[patrols-3] Helgason, Guðmundur."War Patrols by German U-boat U-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved22 August2012.

[FOOTNOTEGröner199143–46-4] Gröner 1991,pp. 43–46.

[5] Hofmann, Markus."U 344".Deutsche U-Boote 1935–1945 – u-boot-archiv.de(in German).Retrieved26 December2014.

[7] Helgason, Guðmundur."Ships hit byU-344".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net.Retrieved23 January2014.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[Note 1]

[6]

v t e Type VII submarines
Type VIIA	U-27 U-28 U-29 U-30 U-31 U-32 U-33 U-34 U-35 U-36
Type VIIB	U-45 U-46 U-47 U-48 U-49 U-50 U-51 U-52 U-53 U-54 U-55 U-73 U-74 U-75 U-76 U-83 U-84 U-85 U-86 U-87 U-99 U-100 U-101 U-102
Type VIIC	U-69 U-70 U-71 U-72 U-77 U-78 U-79 U-80 U-81 U-82 U-88 U-89 U-90 U-91 U-92 U-93 U-94 U-95 U-96 U-97 U-98 U-132 U-133 U-134 U-135 U-136 U-201 U-202 U-203 U-204 U-205 U-206 U-207 U-208 U-209 U-210 U-211 U-212 U-221 U-222 U-223 U-224 U-225 U-226 U-227 U-228 U-229 U-230 U-231 U-232 U-235 U-236 U-237 U-238 U-239 U-240 U-241 U-242 U-243 U-244 U-245 U-246 U-247 U-248 U-249 U-250 U-251 U-252 U-253 U-254 U-255 U-256 U-257 U-258 U-259 U-260 U-261 U-262 U-263 U-264 U-265 U-266 U-267 U-268 U-269 U-270 U-271 U-272 U-273 U-274 U-275 U-276 U-277 U-278 U-279 U-280 U-281 U-282 U-283 U-284 U-285 U-286 U-287 U-288 U-289 U-290 U-291 U-301 U-302 U-303 U-304 U-305 U-306 U-307 U-308 U-309 U-310 U-311 U-312 U-313 U-314 U-315 U-316 U-331 U-332 U-333 U-334 U-335 U-336 U-337 U-338 U-339 U-340 U-341 U-342 U-343 U-344 U-345 U-346 U-347 U-348 U-349 U-350 U-351 U-352 U-353 U-354 U-355 U-356 U-357 U-358 U-359 U-360 U-361 U-362 U-363 U-364 U-365 U-366 U-367 U-368 U-369 U-370 U-371 U-372 U-373 U-374 U-375 U-376 U-377 U-378 U-379 U-380 U-381 U-382 U-383 U-384 U-385 U-386 U-387 U-388 U-389 U-390 U-391 U-392 U-393 U-394 U-396 U-397 U-398 U-399 U-400 U-401 U-402 U-403 U-404 U-405 U-406 U-407 U-408 U-409 U-410 U-411 U-412 U-413 U-414 U-415 U-416 U-417 U-418 U-419 U-420 U-421 U-422 U-423 U-424 U-425 U-426 U-427 U-428 U-429 U-430 U-431 U-432 U-433 U-434 U-435 U-436 U-437 U-438 U-439 U-440 U-441 U-442 U-443 U-444 U-445 U-446 U-447 U-448 U-449 U-450 U-451 U-452 U-453 U-454 U-455 U-456 U-457 U-458 U-465 U-466 U-467 U-468 U-469 U-470 U-471 U-472 U-473 U-475 U-476 U-477 U-478 U-479 U-480 U-481 U-482 U-483 U-484 U-485 U-486 U-551 U-552 U-553 U-554 U-555 U-556 U-557 U-558 U-559 U-560 U-561 U-562 U-563 U-564 U-565 U-566 U-567 U-568 U-569 U-570 U-571 U-572 U-573 U-574 U-575 U-576 U-577 U-578 U-579 U-580 U-581 U-582 U-583 U-584 U-585 U-586 U-587 U-588 U-589 U-590 U-591 U-592 U-593 U-594 U-595 U-596 U-597 U-598 U-599 U-600 U-601 U-602 U-603 U-604 U-605 U-606 U-607 U-608 U-609 U-610 U-611 U-612 U-613 U-614 U-615 U-616 U-617 U-618 U-619 U-620 U-621 U-622 U-623 U-624 U-625 U-626 U-627 U-628 U-629 U-630 U-631 U-632 U-633 U-634 U-635 U-636 U-637 U-638 U-639 U-640 U-641 U-642 U-643 U-644 U-645 U-646 U-647 U-648 U-649 U-650 U-651 U-652 U-653 U-654 U-655 U-656 U-657 U-658 U-659 U-660 U-661 U-662 U-663 U-664 U-665 U-666 U-667 U-668 U-669 U-670 U-671 U-672 U-673 U-674 U-675 U-676 U-677 U-678 U-679 U-680 U-681 U-682 U-683 U-701 U-702 U-703 U-704 U-705 U-706 U-707 U-708 U-709 U-710 U-711 U-712 U-713 U-714 U-715 U-716 U-717 U-718 U-719 U-720 U-721 U-722 U-731 U-732 U-733 U-734 U-735 U-736 U-737 U-738 U-739 U-740 U-741 U-742 U-743 U-744 U-745 U-746 U-747 U-748 U-749 U-750 U-751 U-752 U-753 U-754 U-755 U-756 U-757 U-758 U-759 U-760 U-761 U-762 U-763 U-764 U-765 U-766 U-767 U-768 U-771 U-772 U-773 U-774 U-775 U-776 U-777 U-778 U-779 U-821 U-822 U-825 U-826 U-901 U-903 U-904 U-905 U-907 U-921 U-922 U-923 U-924 U-925 U-926 U-927 U-928 U-951 U-952 U-953 U-954 U-955 U-956 U-957 U-958 U-959 U-960 U-961 U-962 U-963 U-964 U-965 U-966 U-967 U-968 U-969 U-970 U-971 U-972 U-973 U-974 U-975 U-976 U-977 U-978 U-979 U-980 U-981 U-982 U-983 U-984 U-985 U-986 U-987 U-988 U-989 U-990 U-991 U-992 U-993 U-994 U-1051 U-1052 U-1053 U-1054 U-1055 U-1056 U-1057 U-1058 U-1101 U-1102 U-1131 U-1132 U-1161 U-1162 U-1191 U-1192 U-1193 U-1194 U-1195 U-1196 U-1197 U-1198 U-1199 U-1200 U-1201 U-1202 U-1203 U-1204 U-1205 U-1206 U-1207 U-1208 U-1209 U-1210
Type VIIC/41	U-292 U-293 U-294 U-295 U-296 U-297 U-298 U-299 U-300 U-317 U-318 U-319 U-320 U-321 U-322 U-323 U-324 U-325 U-326 U-327 U-328 U-691 U-827 U-828 U-929 U-930 U-995 U-997 U-998 U-999 U-1000 U-1001 U-1002 U-1003 U-1004 U-1005 U-1006 U-1007 U-1008 U-1009 U-1010 U-1011 U-1013 U-1014 U-1015 U-1016 U-1017 U-1018 U-1019 U-1020 U-1021 U-1022 U-1023 U-1024 U-1025 U-1063 U-1064 U-1065 U-1103 U-1104 U-1105 U-1106 U-1107 U-1108 U-1109 U-1110 U-1163 U-1164 U-1165 U-1166 U-1167 U-1168 U-1169 U-1170 U-1171 U-1172 U-1271 U-1272 U-1273 U-1274 U-1275 U-1276 U-1277 U-1278 U-1279 U-1301 U-1302 U-1303 U-1304 U-1305 U-1306 U-1307 U-1308
Type VIID	U-213 U-214 U-215 U-216 U-217 U-218
Type VIIF	U-1059 U-1060 U-1061 U-1062
Preceded by:Type II Followed by:Type IX List of U-boats of Germany

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in August 1944
Shipwrecks	2 Aug:USSFiske 3 Aug:HMSQuorn 4 Aug:Tannenfels,Matsu 5 Aug:Mefküre,U-671 6 Aug:Empire City,Sachsenwald,Thétis,U-471,U-736,U-952,U-969,V 215Oliva 7 Aug:Amsterdam,Empire Day,Nagara 8 Aug:Conte Verde,HMCSRegina,Tama Maru No. 6,V 404Falke 9 Aug:Spichern 10 Aug:U-608 11 Aug:V 623Jupiter,U-385,U-967 12 Aug:T-114,T-118,U-198,U-981,V 410Germania 13 Aug:USSFlier,U-270,V 1101Preußsen 14 Aug:V 605Arthur Duncker,Gueydon,U-618 15 Aug:U-741 16 Aug:Trémintin 17 Aug:TA35 18 Aug:La Galissonnière,Natori,Strasbourg,Taiyō,Teia Maru,U-107,U-129,U-621,V 406 Hans Loh 19 Aug:Commandant Teste,Hayasui,Tamatsu Maru,U-123,U-466,V-6112Friese 20 Aug:Richard Montgomery,U-9,U-413,U-984,U-1229.V 409August Bösch 21 Aug:HMCSAlberni,HMSKite,HMSOrchis,U-230,V 402Dr. Adolf Spilker,Z23 22 Aug:HMSBickerton,HMSLoyalty,Matsuwa,Tsushima Maru,U-344,V 401Jan Mayen,V 405J. Hinrich Wilhelms,V 413Ferdinand Niedermeyer 23 Aug:Asakaze,U-180 24 Aug:USSHarder,NMSMihail Kogălniceanu,U-354,U-445,Z37 25 Aug:Sperrbrecher 136,U-18,U-24,U-178,U-667,UIT-21,Yūnagi,Z24 26 Aug:Samidare,U-188,V 404Baden,V 411Saarland 27 Aug:HMSBritomart,Clemenceau,HMSHussar 28 Aug:John Barry,V 407Dorum 30 Aug:De Grasse,M553 31 Aug:Shirataka Unknown date:Condorcet,Kulmerland,Marechal Petain,U-925
Other incidents	4 Aug:Maycrest 15 Aug:LST-404 16 Aug:USSS-38 18 Aug:U-1054 20 Aug:Daronia 22 Aug:HMSNabob 27 Aug:USSPollack 31 Aug:U-1000
194319441945 July 1944September 1944