German submarine U-344

German submarine U-344 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.

She was a member of two wolfpacks.

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 submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-344 had a displacement of 769 t when at the surface and 871 t while submerged. She had a total length of 67.10 m, a pressure hull length of 50.50 m, a beam of 6.20 m, a height of 9.60 m, and a draught of 4.74 m. The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2800 to 3200 PS for use while surfaced, two AEG GU 460/8–27 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 PS for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 m.

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 kn and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 kn. When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nmi at 4 kn; when surfaced, she could travel 8500 nmi at 10 kn. U-344 was fitted with five 53.3 cm torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8 cm SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and two twin 2 cm C/30 anti-aircraft guns. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.

Service history
The submarine was laid down on 7 May 1942 at the Nordseewerke yard at Emden as yard number 216, launched on 29 January 1943 and commissioned on 26 March under the command of Kapitänleutnant Ulrich Pietsch.

U-344 served with the 8th U-boat Flotilla, for training and the 3rd flotilla for operations from 1 April 1944. She was reassigned to the 11th flotilla on 1 June 1944.

First patrol
U-344 had sailed from Kiel in Germany to Flekkefjord (west of Kristiansand) and then Bergen in 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 at Narvik on the 27th.

Second patrol
Her second foray involved criss-crossing the Norwegian Sea. At one point she passed east of Jan Mayen Island. She arrived at Bogenbucht (west of Narvik) on 8 July 1944.

Third patrol and loss
Having departed Bogenbucht on 3 August 1944, she sank the British sloop HMS Kite (U87) in the Barents Sea on the 21st. Of 226 crew, nine men survived the icy water. The next day, a British Fairey Swordfish of 825 Naval Air Squadron from HMS Vindex (D15), dropped a pattern of depth charges on the U-boat, sinking her. Fifty men died in the sinking; there were no survivors.

Previously recorded fate
U-344 was thought to have been sunk on 24 August 1944 in the Barents Sea off the North Cape by British warships: i.e. the sloops HMS Mermaid (U30) and HMS Peacock (U96), the frigate HMS Loch Dunvegan (K425) and the destroyer Keppel. GS U-354 was the victim.

Wolfpacks
U-344 took part in two wolfpacks, namely:
 * Trutz (2 June – 6 July 1944)
 * Trutz (17 – 22 August 1944)