German submarine U-62 (1939)

German submarine U-62 was a Type IIC, U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine that served in World War II built by Deutsche Werke AG, Kiel and commissioned on 21 December 1939.

U-62 was initially assigned to the 5th U-boat Flotilla during her training period, until 1 January 1940, when she was reassigned to the 1st flotilla for a front-line combat role.

U-62 carried out five war patrols, sinking one warship in May 1940 and one merchant ship in July.

The U-boat was scuttled in Wilhelmshaven on 5 May 1945.

Design
German Type IIC submarines were enlarged versions of the original Type IIs. U-62 had a displacement of 291 t when at the surface and 341 t while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was 250 LT, however. The U-boat had a total length of 43.90 m, a pressure hull length of 29.60 m, a beam of 4.08 m, a height of 8.40 m, and a draught of 3.82 m. The submarine was powered by two MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder diesel engines of 700 PS for cruising, two Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 410 PS for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 0.85 m propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 80 - 150 m.

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 12 kn and a maximum submerged speed of 7 kn. When submerged, the boat could operate for 35 - 42 nmi at 4 kn; when surfaced, she could travel 3800 nmi at 8 kn. U-62 was fitted with three 53.3 cm torpedo tubes at the bow, five torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a 2 cm anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of 25.

First and second patrols
U-62's first patrol began with her departure from the German island of Helgoland (also known as 'Heligoland'), on 13 February 1940. She crossed the North Sea to the Orkney and Shetland Islands. The return journey terminated in Wilhelmshaven on 6 March.

Her second sortie was also through the North Sea but stayed closer to Norway, beginning in Wilhelmshaven and ending in Kiel.

Third patrol
The boat was attacked by an unidentified submarine on 24 May 1940, but U-62 evaded the torpedoes. She went on to sink the destroyer HMS Grafton (H89) off the Kwinte Buoy northwest of Ostend in Belgium on 29 May. The British warship had been employed on Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). As a result, many of the dead included soldiers.

Fourth and fifth patrols
Her fourth foray was through the gap between the Faroe and Shetland Islands as far as Northern Ireland, but finished in Bergen in Norway on 7 July 1940.

U-62's final patrol was marked by the sinking of the Pearlmoor 62 nmi on 19 July 1940 west of Malin Head, (the most northerly point on the Irish mainland). Disaster almost struck on the return leg to Bergen when she was attacked by the British submarine HMS Sealion (72S) on the 29th. She avoided the attack and entered Bergen with just 27 minutes of battery life remaining.

Training and Fate
U-62 was assigned to the 21st U-boat Flotilla as a training boat on 1 October, and was briefly commanded by Waldemar Mehl between 5 and 19 November 1941.

She was scuttled in Wilhelmshaven on 5 May 1945, shortly before the German surrender.