THE SILENT SUB CHAPTER 11 - ENCOUNTER

Fischer had just started one of their drills when the sonar operator announced a contact to their north. Werner ordered the drill stopped and all hands to battle stations. He wasn't worried about going into battle but it was just another way to drill the men to perfection.

The sound of twin diesels said that it may be another submarine on the surface. It was moving west-south-west from the direction of France which could mean it was another u-boat. Werner decided to hazard a peek with the periscope.

"Bring us up to periscope depth. When we reach it, set engines to dead slow. I don't want to make too much of a feather. Planesman, engage automatic depth-keeping and maintain periscope depth." Slowing down kept the periscope from producing too much of a feather or wave disturbance which could be seen in good weather.

It took several minutes to get up to depth and Werner double checked with the sonar operator in case there was more than one surface vessel up there. Werner raised the periscope and turned around in a complete circle before settling on the contact. It was a u-boat alright. He upped the magnification to get a better look and laughed with delight.

"It's U-684! It's my old boat!" Werner wished he could surface to greet his old command but they might fire on him as soon as they see a strange submarine appear out of nowhere. Besides, he had his orders.

Werner watched for a few more seconds, more than was safe, really. He risked the lookouts on U-684 seeing the periscope but they gave no indication of having seen the optical pipe on the surface. He reluctantly ordered the periscope lowered and told the sonar operator to keep listening to the sound of the surfaced submarine. Diesels were loud things and it was easy to track them. After several minutes, the contact changed course, a safe move during wartime. It ruined the firing solution of any submarine that may be tracking them. It would take the enemy several minutes to get the torpedoes properly targeted again.

Several minutes went by and the distance between U-1215 and U-684 increased. Werner was about to order a course reversal to begin another cycle on their oval racetrack cruise when the sonar operator reported another contact.

This was also to their north but closer to them. The sound profile said it was submerged, a submarine running on its electric motors. Werner suddenly became worried. This submerged contact was moving north...toward U-684, like a lion stalking its prey.

What was it? A re-supply submarine? If U-684 had just left port, they probably didn't need a re-supply. Perhaps they were having mechanical problems and had requested a re-supply sub to help in the repair. If that was so, however, the re-supply sub should have surfaced at a farther distance. An overly cautious sub commander was a rarity in the Kiegsmarine. A British or American submarine getting into firing position?  There was no way to know what it was. The sonar operator reported that the submerged contact seemed to be at periscope depth. Werner looked at Fischer. What should we do?

His orders were explicit, avoid contact with any vessel, friend or foe. He tried to think. A submarine was targeting U-684. Seemed to be targeting, he corrected himself. Fischer could see that his commander was thinking hard. "What are you planning to do, Captain?"

Werner looked at Fischer intently for a second before answering. "We prepare tube one for firing on the submerged contact. We have no idea what it is but if they fire on U-684, we'll fire on them. Let's hope their torpedoes miss U-684." He couldn't fire on the submerged contact without knowing what it was.

It was a terrible dilemma. It was bad enough knowing that the surfaced vessel was a u-boat, with fellow Germans and service comrades. The fact that it was a vessel with people whom he knew was worse. He couldn't surface to warn them, they'd probably start firing when they see a strange vessel rising out of the water, thinking it was a new Allied submarine. Besides, surfacing would also alert the stalking submarine. He had no doubt that he could defeat a submerged submarine—the new torpedoes allowed him to target them as well as a surface ship—but he couldn't take the risk with the new boat.

They were already at battle stations and the tracking team already had a firing solution on the submerged contact. All they really had to do was to push the firing button.

HMS Grimsby
"Prepare to fire torpedoes. She's settled on her new course and won't make another turn for several minutes."

Commander James Hendley kept the scope raised and pointed at U-684. The firing computer kept the torpedoes updated on the target's movements and could be fired at any time. They had detected the surfaced u-boat several minutes ago and had waited for it to approach to firing range. Now, they were ready to sink one of ol' Adolf's boats.

"Shoot!"

The submarine shuddered as the torpedo shot out of the tube, propelled by compressed air. The weapon immediately changed course to its preset heading and sped on to an intersection point in the ocean where it was supposed to meet the u-boat.

U-1215
The torpedo controller set Tube 1 to the same bearing as relayed by the sonar operator. They had a rough range but they were going to set the torpedo so that it activated a little more than half-way to the target. Werner didn't want to risk the torpedo moving past the target and latching onto the sound of the surfaced u-boat.

"Torpedo in the water! They've fired on U-684!" 

Werner's fear had been realized. He did not hesitate.

"Fire One!"

"Enemy torpedo is running hot, straight and normal. It's heading for the u-boat. Our weapon will hit a few seconds after theirs, Captain. We're too late."

Werner and Fischer looked at each other as if asking the other their next course of action. Fischer came to a decision and shook his head. They couldn't risk being discovered. They'd have to wait and hope for the best.

The British torpedo ran true and hit U-684, lifting it partially out of the water. It was a precise shot, hitting dead center of the surfaced u-boat.

HMS Grimsby
Hendley shouted as he saw the u-boat explode, followed soon after by the sound of the explosion. The crew celebrated, laughing and punching the air in jubilation. Their celebration was short-lived, however. U-1215's torpedo hit them just after the conning tower, instantly killing the control room crew and tossing the rest about the hull of the submarine. 

U-1215
There was no celebration in U-1215, though. They had their first kill but they had lost countrymen in the process. The sonar man listened to the noise of the two submarines filling with water and breaking up as they sank to the bottom of the Atlantic.

Werner lowered his head, mourning the death of his former boat mates. Fischer didn't know what to say except to remain silent and watch his captain. The man had just lost all of his friends and comrades and there wasn't anything anyone could do about it.

Werner lifted his head, looked at Fischer, nodded and retreated to his stateroom. Fischer wondered if he should give the order to reverse course for the north-west leg of their trial cruise. It was about that time. He sighed, orders were orders and, in the absence of any instructions from the captain, he had to follow the mission orders. U-1215 turned around and settled on a heading of 317°.


The Decision

Werner entered his room and laid down on his bed. The sub was quiet, everyone whispering among themselves while performing their duties. Werner was alone with his thoughts.

Werner's thoughts were not on his former shipmates though. True, he had started out by thinking of them but was soon thinking about what he could have done to prevent it. He should have surfaced and taken the chance. The men on the U-684 would have been surprised but they would not have been able to react quickly. Their first reaction would probably be to turn towards them, unmask their 105mm deck gun and begin firing. U-1215 would have been under fire but the maneuver by U-684 would have thrown off the enemy sub's aim or cause their torpedo to miss. U-1215 would have dived then and left the scene. The unknown, of course, was whether U-1215 would be hit by one of U-684's shells. The range was close enough for a highly probable hit so that wouldn't have worked.

Should they have fired a torpedo as soon as they had detected the submerged submarine? It had certainly been acting like an enemy sub when they first detected it. No, that's only because we know that it was an enemy sub now. Any sub commander would have hesitated as he had. There was no way to identify the submerged submarine before it fired on U-684.

As Werner lay on the bed, his mind wandered towards the capabilities of U-1215. He could have sneaked into a British harbor or lay in wait just offshore and pick off the enemy vessels as they came in or out. That way, that enemy submarine would have been sunk long before he could get to U-684. For that matter, he could have ventured out into the open ocean and hit convoy after convoy, preventing important material from reaching Britain and curtailing their ability to wage war. Countless lives of Germans would be saved.

Werner began to imagine approaching an Allied convoy, firing torpedoes left and right, two for the closest escorting destroyers and four towards the convoy ships themselves. The surviving escorts would think that they were under attack by several u-boats and be forced to search in every direction. Meanwhile the convoy ships would scatter, thinking they would confuse the attacking submarines. Some would blunder towards U-1215 and he'd dispatch them easily. Then he would run at full speed, chasing ship after ship, sinking them one by one, or even two or three at a time. The searching destroyers would be picked off when the opportunity presented itself, making U-1215's job easier. He would chase down the remaining ships and destroy them.

Destroy them. Destroy them now.

Werner sat up from his bed. He had several indicators in his stateroom that showed him the status of his. The compass showed that the sub was on a north-westerly course while another instrument indicated a speed of nine knots. They were forty-five meters under the surface and maintaining that depth. They were the stealthiest submarine in the world and the only such one existing. There was only one.

Werner, jumped off the bed and opened the door. "Fischer! Come here!"

Fischer was startled but ran to the captain's stateroom. Werner had such a wild look on his face that Fischer wondered if his commander had gone crazy.

"Assemble the officers and meet me in the wardroom," Werner ordered. Fischer acknowledged the order and hurried off to gather the officers.

Werner went to the wardroom and waited for his men to enter. He was pacing the room from one end to the other greeting each man as he came in. When all were present, he ordered them all to sit down. He remained standing. He gazed at the men for a few moments before speaking, as if telling them that he was going to accept no dissenters.

"Men, we have been the unfortunate witnesses of the death of about 50 of our comrades," Werner began. Everyone lowered their heads as if in prayer. News travels fast in a submarine even though an announcement had not been made. "I have been thinking this over and have come to the conclusion that the best way for us to prevent this from happening is to have U-1215's sisters built as soon as possible. With a flotilla of U-1215s, the Allied convoys will not be able to reach British ports and Allied warships be sunk at a fast rate. The only way to prevent more losses of German lives is by winning this war.

"U-1215's future is uncertain. After we return to base, the admiral will bring the results of our trial to Donitz who will bring it to the Fuhrer for his approval. He may or may not give it. The only way he can be convinced of our submarine's effectiveness is to bring home a prize. The sinking of an Allied warship or warships."

Fischer nodded his head but Meyer's eyes widened in surprise. The long range trial cruise was a little more than a week old with less than two more weeks to go. Except for the problem with the stove and the water distillation system, there have been no serious problems thus far, but it was too early to tell. There was also that submarine they had just sunk.

"Excuse me, Captain. We already have a prize. That submarine we sank should serve the purpose satisfactorily." Meyer was just as enthusiastic to see his baby project become a reality but this was all very new technology and concepts. They just couldn't push it into combat without ironing out the imperfections.

Werner, however, was not going to be put off. "That is true, Meyer, but submarines usually stay on patrol for several weeks and it can take several weeks more before they will admit that a boat is lost. And that's assuming they ever admit it. The loss of a bigger vessel, on the other hand, is much more difficult to conceal."

Fischer suddenly sensed what Werner was planning but decided not to keep it to himself. 

"You are thinking of sinking a much larger ship, Captain? A destroyer? A cruiser, battleship, or even an aircraft carrier?"

Everyone in the room looked at the man next to him in surprise. Should they do it? The submarine had not been certified even though it had performed well in practically every trial. Each man had no doubt that they could pull off such a feat. Sailing back to base with a pennant (a small flag signifying that the submarine had sunk a vessel) was something that every submariner wants.

Meyer tried one last counter. "Captain, U-1215 has not yet been certified. He is only a prototype and will only be used as the basis for the design of the combat version. We don't know if he will perform well under real battle conditions. We've already had two malfunctions and there may be more later. Remember, also, that our men are mostly fresh from training. How they react to the stresses of battle is unknown."

Meyer fired his last salvo. "Do not forget also, Captain that this project is top secret and we cannot afford to reveal our existence to the enemy. Our orders to avoid contact is still in force."

Werner looked at Meyer as he finished what seemed to be a diatribe but was actually quite short. Meyer had not been present when the admiral had given their trial orders, indeed, Werner was the only one present. He had informed them that they were to sail up and down the continental shelf for three weeks but that was all. It is fortunate, he thought, that I didn't tell them about the order to avoid combat.

"That is where you are wrong, Commander," Werner said. "You were not present during the pre-trial briefing. The admiral ordered us to avoid being detected by the enemy. That usually means that we are to move away from them. He, however, also said that we can use our torpedoes as I see fit." It was a slight lie, to be sure, but with a grain of truth. Enough that he sounded convincing.

Meyer's eyes opened wider. "The admiral told me no such thing!"

"As I said, Commander, the admiral kept everyone else out of the briefing except me. He had his reasons, I suppose, but he did say it. The decision to take this boat into combat is at my discretion and I intend to use it. Why else would he authorize the loading of live torpedoes?"

Meyer still wanted to argue the point but he could see that the other officers were itching to go with the captain. He was the only senior officer without combat experience and the thought of going into a fight terrified him. On the other hand, a pennant would make the admiral's case more convincing to the Fuhrer. He wanted this project to succeed just as much as Werner did. He lowered his head as he waged an internal battle with his thoughts. 

When he looked up, he found Fischer, Schneider, and Schmitt looking at him. Their gaze was intent, waiting for him to...what? Give in? Suddenly, Meyer felt he was alone.

"It goes against my better judgement, Captain. I can see that your mind is made up and I did promise, when we first met, that I will follow your orders whatever the circumstances."

Werner was magnanimous in victory. He didn't smile or react to Meyer's statement of support. He merely nodded his head and addressed the assembled officers.

"We will sail for the area around Madeira off the western coast of Morocco. Allied activity there have increased substantially since they landed at Sicily. The environment will be rich with targets, I'm sure. Fischer, order the boat turned around and sail towards the Madeira Archipelago. Gentlemen, return to your stations. Meyer, please stay awhile."

When the room had emptied and the door closed, Werner began speaking. "Meyer, I know you think this is a bad idea but believe me, it's the best way to ensure that U-1215 goes beyond just being a prototype. Be assured that I will take full responsibility as this submarine's commander. I just want to be sure that I have your cooperation for this mission. Your expertise is going to be crucial."

Meyer had all sorts of things he wanted to say but made an effort to keep a level head. If he disagreed and Werner went ahead anyway, he'll find himself isolated with no real way of changing anyone's mind. He had to pretend to go along. Maybe he'd be able to convince Werner later.

"I already said that I will support you, Captain. You have my word."

Werner smiled and clapped Meyer on the shoulder. "Thank you, Meyer. We'll sail back into base with a pennant, maybe several, if we get lucky. U-1215 is the best submarine in the world for the job. Come, I will need to address the crew."

Werner led Meyer out and they both headed for the control room. By then, the boat's course had already been changed and their heading was now westward. Rumors were also spreading through the boat rapidly. Some of the officers had talked and the crew's reaction was divided nearly evenly with half reacting in fear and the other half with excitement.
Werner took the microphone and switched on the ship wide public address system.

"Attention all hands, this is the Captain speaking. I am informing you of a change in our mission. Effective immediately, we will sail for the West-African coast to wage war against Allied shipping in the area. I know most of you have never seen combat. Be assured, however, your officers are experienced and can guide you in what to do. Just remember your training and everything will be all right. You have been a good crew thus far. I am sure you will perform well. The result of this mission is crucial to ensure that more U-1215's will be built and we can start turning the Battle of the Atlantic back in our favor. That is all."

Karl Gunther looked at his shift mate in surprise. "No one told us that we'd be going into battle! This isn't what I signed up for."

"Fool," his friend said, "we are in a submarine loaded with torpedoes. What do you think they intend to do with them? Sink a whale?"

"Shooting at a whale is one thing, sinking a ship that can fight back is another," Gunther reasoned. "Look at how we performed against the Heimlich. If they hadn't made a mistake, we'd have lost that exercise and everyone on this boat would look like a fool, not just me!"

"Ah, Karl, you worry too much. The captain is an old hand and so is Fischer and the others. They know what to do."

Gunther grumbled and returned to his duties. Great, just great.

GO TO CHAPTER 12

THE SILENT SUB CHAPTER 10 - PROBLEMS

One day, Werner was passing by the officer's mess' kitchen when he encountered Schneider talking to the cook. Near their feet was one of the electricians working on one of the stoves.

"Problems, gentlemen," he asked.

"Just a little trouble with one of the stoves, Captain," said the cook, "I can't get it to work." Schneider snorted.

"You probably spilled some soup on the controls." He turned to Werner. "One of the fuses for this compartment popped, Captain. Bachmeyer here is checking out the stove." Schneider turned to the electrician.

"Find anything, Johann?"

Bachmeyer looked up from his work. "I think there's a short on the cable that's supplying power to the stove, sir. The wire goes into the wall space so I'll have to open the panel to get to it. I'll have to remove the stoves though."

"You do that and the cook will have to use the main kitchen to prepare the officer's meals. That means you and your mates will have delayed meals until you fix it. How do you think will the other men like that?" Schneider growled at the hapless electrician. The man just shrugged, leaving the decision up to the officers.

"The other stoves are still working, correct?" Werner asked.

"Yes they are, Captain," the cook answered. "One stove won't matter much. I'll just have to cook earlier."

"There you go, Schneider. Leave the repair for when we return to base. That way, Bachmeyer won't have to face his fellow crewmates for delaying their breakfast, lunch, and dinner." Werner smiled at Bachmeyer who smiled back.

As Werner turned to leave, he almost bumped into Meyer who was standing behind him.

"Problems, gentlemen," he repeated Werner's words of just a minute ago. Werner answered for the others.

"One of the stoves seems to have suffered a problem with its power cable. It's not a serious problem, though. We'll repair it when we get back to base."

Meyer looked at the others as if he was going to ask more questions but thought better of it. He made way for Werner to pass and headed in the opposite direction. Schneider gave Bachmeyer a soft kick.

"You heard the man, Johann, get out of there!"

Submarines are busy places. If they just cruised around and only responded when there was a threat, they wouldn't live very long. Survival depended on every crewman knowing what to do in the event of an attack, whether they were doing the attacking or someone was attacking them. This was done by conducting drills at random times of the day and can be done any number of times. The duration of these drills depended on the results and the whims of the First Officer, Fischer. Right now, Fischer was having the men simulate a crash dive. In the other, smaller, submarines, a crash dive usually required every available hand to rush pell-mell toward the forward torpedo room to make the vessel bow-heavy and enable them to make a steeper, faster dive. Due to the size of the U-1215, however, this was no longer practical. Besides, the controls of the new submarine were more responsive and easier to operate.

"Dive! Make your depth 100 meters, fifteen degrees down angle on the planes," Fischer ordered. As the sub's bow dipped forward, the men held on to whatever they could reach. A few items crashed to the deck but everyone ignored them. If an item wasn't dangerous, rolling about on the floor, it would stay there until they could pick it up.

As the sub headed for the depths, a warning light came on in the electrical room. Another fuse had popped disabling one of the water distillation units that provided water for the sub. They couldn't do anything about it for now but Schneider called the control room to report.

Meyer looked up in alarm. Another failure? There were three distillation units in the submarine though two were enough for them to continue operations without fear of running out of water. Still, the thought of another electrical problem worried him. Was the submarine coming apart from the inside?

Later, after the drill, another electrician reported that a wire for the unit's power supply had shorted causing the insulation to melt. The wire was replaced and the incident was considered closed. They continued their trips up and down the continental shelf.

"Captain," Meyer stepped into the latter's cabin and closed the door. "I'd like to talk to you about something."

"Of course, Meyer, please sit down." Werner put down a book he was reading and gestured at the only other chair in the room, a fold away seat on the wall. A loose chair would just slide or tumble about when the sub maneuvered violently. "What's on your mind?"

"Captain, I'm a little worried about the problems we've been having with the electrical system. Perhaps we should return to base to make a thorough check of the sub's wirings." Meyer's face reflected his concern about the incidents. They were minor in nature but who knows what might fail next.

Werner smiled and waved a hand in the air. "Nonsense, Meyer! Other submarines have problems and continue on their patrol in spite of them. We repair them as best we could and call for a repair sub if necessary. Sometimes we just do the repairs back at the base. Besides, this patrol is just a little more than half over. We'll be back to base before you know it."

Meyer, however, seemed a little more than just worried. When he stood up, Werner thought he seemed like someone about to run out of the sub. "I know that, Captain. But this sub is not just any other sub. It's the only one of its kind in the world and experimental at that. There are things we don't know and still need to find out. Things have gone well since we started, I know, but these failures are too close together and too similar for me to ignore. Besides, we cannot call for a repair sub like all the others do. We just can't."

Werner looked at Meyer thoughtfully for a few seconds. Then he calmly bade Meter to sit down, relax, and take a deep breath. "Meyer, are you claustrophobic?"

Meyer looked surprised. "No, I am not, Captain! Whatever gave you that idea?"

"I've known crewmen who seemed perfectly at ease when the situation was quiet. Then when things start to go wrong, like a leaking pipe or when things break down, they get all worked up. I remember once, we had a crewman who was the picture of efficiency. He was even being considered by our captain for entry into officer's school when the sub's e-motors suddenly stopped. We dropped to the bottom in less than a minute. Fortunately, we were in shallow waters so we were never really in danger. He became unglued and started trying to open the hatch, the fool. In the end, we had to tie him up and the medic gave him a sedative to calm him down. We eventually had to let him go. The last I heard he was in an infantry division fighting in the Eastern Front."

Werner leaned forward and looked Meyer in the eyes. "You're our resident expert in the workings of U-1215, Meyer. I can't afford to lose you and, much more, I can't have you spreading your uncertainties to the crewmen. That's one sure way of jeopardizing the sub, the crew, and the mission. I need you to focus and help us, not scare us. Can I get your assurance on this?"

Meyer did not speak immediately, he met his captain's gaze for some time that Werner wondered if he was going to have a staring match with him.

"I am perfectly all right, Captain, thank you for your concern. Please forgive me for being so...worried. As I said before, I will follow your orders and do my best to be an example to the crew." Meyer stood up, bowed to his captain and exited.

Werner gazed at the closed door without moving before leaning back on his chair. He took his own advice and took a deep breath before going back to his reading.

GO TO CHAPTER 11

THE SILENT SUB CHAPTER 9 - THE LAST TRIAL

The briefing for the last trial was in Werner's office. None of the other officers were present, just the admiral and Werner. The admiral came straight to the point.

"Captain, this is the last trial for your boat. If this trial is successful, I will be taking the results of all the tests to Admiral Donitz to get his approval to present it to the Fuhrer. This project, thus far, has been quite successful and I believe that the Fuhrer will be hard pressed to find a reason to disapprove it.

"You are to take U-1215 out and submerge as soon as possible and sail to the edge of the continental shelf approximately 180 kilometers away. You will then follow the shelf two hundred kilometers southeast, turn around and sail northwest two hundred kilometers. You will repeat this continually for three weeks. At the end of those three weeks, you will return to base. This trial is to test how the submarine performs on long cruises and whether the crew comforts we included in the design will improve the men's performance. Are there any questions so far?"

"Is the Heimlich going to accompany us on this trial, sir?" Heimlich had not had much success tracking U-1215. She would not be able to follow them around, much less guard them.

"No, the area is being actively patrolled by Allied aircraft. In any case, her presence will seem strange to anyone who finds her. What is a destroyer doing all alone so far from the bases? If the Allies capture her or any of her crew, they may find out about U-1215 which we cannot allow."

Werner thought about it for a few moments. Three weeks at full speed would bring them to New York and back with several days extra to sink some ships. That was wishful thinking, of course. The admiral would never allow it. Instead, they were going to sail up and down the Bay of Biscay, following the continental shelf for three weeks, submerged the whole time. This area was close enough to the mainland that Allied warships avoided it but aircraft were another matter. Their being underwater would keep them safe from detection but what if an enemy captain discovers them? "Admiral, what if we encounter enemy vessels along the way?"

"That is unlikely to happen, Captain, but in case you do encounter them, you are to avoid contact at all cost. I am confident they cannot hear you but you are still detectable if they use active sonar. Your boat is the only one of its kind so don't lose it. Furthermore, both sides of this conflict do not know about you. An Allied submarine will attack you for sure, but a u-boat may decide to attack you as well just because he doesn't recognize you as a German submarine.

"Still, one can never be 100% sure about anything so I have authorized you to carry a full load of torpedoes with active warheads. If you are discovered, you may launch your weapons at them but you will not, repeat, not initiate action against any vessel. Is that understood?"

"Clearly, Admiral."

"And that goes for u-boats as well."

Werner looked at his admiral in surprise. "Sink a u-boat? Sir that would be counter-productive!"

"It would be counter-productive if everyone knows about you before U-1215 and his brothers can become operational. My order stands. You are to destroy anything that discovers you."

"Very well, Admiral. I shall do as you say." Werner, didn't like it but he had his orders.

"Good, you will leave on May 7 and we will expect you back on May 28."

Werner suddenly thought of something. "Admiral, what if something goes wrong and we need to surface?"

The admiral looked at Werner for a few moments before he spoke. "Captain, if you can, you may sail her on the surface back to base. If you are unable to sail her, you may call for help on the radio using our codes. I will send the Heimlich to take you in tow. If, however, you are in danger of being discovered by an enemy warship, you are to scuttle her," the admiral made a short pause, "along with you and everyone else on board."

The admiral's final sentence caused Werner to look up in shock. The older man just looked at him intently. He was ordering Werner to commit suicide and to bring his men along for his last trip, if it came to that.

The admiral stood up and told Werner to follow him. They went out to the submarine where the admiral ordered everyone to get off. Once the boat was cleared of men, he led Werner inside to the captain's stateroom. He went to the bed and pulled up the reading lamp. The fixture came off and revealed a recessed space. Inside was a button.

"This, Captain, is a scuttling button. Normally, the engineering officer is in charge of scuttling the boat once all the crew have abandoned ship. This button, will enable you to blow up the submarine from here, in case you need to destroy the boat with everyone in it. Commander Meyer is the only other officer who knows about this button and he has orders to activate it in case you are unable to do so." The admiral replaced the reading lamp. It went back to being an ordinary reading lamp. Werner suppressed a shudder. He had switched that lamp on and off dozens of times in the past weeks. He wondered if he was ever going to be able to sleep in his own stateroom after this.

The admiral stood up and started walking toward the control room. There, he paused and faced Werner. "Captain, the Bay of Biscay is a very dangerous place. Allied planes patrol it regularly and British submarines occasionally lie in wait for our u-boats to pass by before sending a torpedo as a way of greeting. Since you will be underwater the whole time, you won't have to worry about aircraft. A submarine, however, is another matter. I'm confident they won't hear you but you will probably hear them unless they happen to be lying around with their motors off. If you do detect them, you are to change course to avoid. I know the temptation to fire on an unsuspecting enemy is very great but if you miss and they escape, they will return to their base and report that they encountered a silent u-boat. They may start developing something to counter that ability. We must hide that fact from them until we have a force of U-1215's brothers in operation."

Werner nodded his head as he and the admiral walked toward the ladder that went up to the conning tower, but thought that the admiral was being overly cautious. If he heard another submarine in his path, he would have no way to know if it was friend or foe unless it was on the surface. A ship, however, was another matter. If he encountered a ship, he thought he could safely fire torpedoes into it. What better way to prove U-1215's abilities?

U-boat commanders were usually given free reign since they were so far from their bases. The decision to attack or not to attack was often left up to them though no u-boat commander in his right mind would pass up an opportunity to sink an enemy vessel. Still, he was given an order and he intended to follow it...unless forced to do otherwise.

He hid behind some crates, the shadow thrown by the overhead lights concealing him perfectly. He could hear the sound of activity close by so he stayed still to avoid discovery. Soon, the sounds faded and he ventured out, sticking to the shadows and hugging the walls or the sides of crates. People seemed to have gone into one of the buildings and the pier was empty. He ran out in the open, reached the aft gangplank, and was searching for an opening when he heard a noise. Sensing danger, his search became frantic when he found the aft hatch and started down. The slippery metal ladder caused him to fall to the deck below. He was a little stunned but uninjured. He started down a corridor to find a hiding place.

Lt. Schneider took them out this time. It was two days short of the full moon so conning the sub out of the pen was not difficult but it did not make it safer. They were partially submerged again, moving out at engines ahead slow. They were to keep monitoring the depth under the keel and dive completely as soon as the depth showed 30 meters. A very shallow dive, thought Schneider. If I'm not careful, I could run the sub aground and that might spell the end of this project, not to mention my life.

The moonlight was also worrying Schneider. All four lookouts, he and one other man were watching the sky and the horizon. If a plane spotted them, they had no weapons to defend themselves since U-1215 had no deck armaments. With only the conning tower above the surface, they might mistake us for a whale, Schneider thought hopefully.

The dive point was approximately eight kilometers away. Schneider ordered engines ahead one-third and set course to 243°. His fears were unfounded. Less than an hour later, U-1215 slipped beneath the waves.

About a hundred kilometers out, they encountered their first contact. It was probably a submarine, traveling on the surface and recharging its batteries. They didn't know if it was a submarine or a surface vessel, Allied or Axis. Werner debated with himself about using the periscope to identify it but it was coming toward them and they might see the periscope's feather when it rose above the surface. Werner ordered a turn to the north to avoid it. Just for practice, the firing team plotted an attack on the unsuspecting vessel as it moved on, unaware that it was being targeted though it was never in any danger. Their orders ensured that. If it was a u-boat, Werner wondered who it was. If it was a British or American submarine, it was being daring. By being on the surface in u-boat infested waters, they could easily become the prey.

The sonar operator kept his ear on the contact, listening for any changes but there was none. The unknown sub or vessel was chugging along toward the east at about 8 knots. A u-boat perhaps, not an Allied submarine. As the range increased, the sound became fainter and fainter until it was no longer distinguishable from the other noises of the sea. Werner got them back on their previous course.

Life on board the new sub is much more comfortable compared to his previous assignments, Werner thought. With the old submarines, space was at a premium. It was almost impossible to move from compartment to compartment without encountering someone moving in the opposite direction. Most of the time, one had to jam himself against the side of the passage to let someone pass. Of course, rank had its privileges. When the captain is walking in one direction, anyone walking in the opposite direction almost always let him pass unobstructed. During drills and actual combat, however, anyone seen running had priority. Even the captain had to let him pass.

All this was almost unnecessary in U-1215. The passageways were wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side but hardly anyone did this. Everyone walked single file going in one direction and single file in the other direction. A two lane road in a submarine! The only place where the passage was a bit tight was in the crew's compartment. The crew slept in bunk beds which were in cubicles—two bunk beds per cubicle, four beds in all. Each man had a locker for his use and the bunk bed could be lifted to reveal more space underneath for other personal effects. It was possible to sit up on a bunk bed and a fold away table let the men do any writing if they wished.

There were three columns of cubicles, one on each side of the sub and another in the middle. A head and a shower were at each end of the crew's compartment. The sub actually had four heads, a luxury in a submarine. Two were near the crew's compartment, one forward of the control room, and another in officer's country. More than once, the crew who had served on smaller submarines, were heard to refer to the U-1215 as "Neptune's Hotel."

This cruise was turning out to be a boring one. 200 kilometers at 12 knots can be traversed in under 9 hours though Werner had them crawling at one-third every few hours or so. They could make about four round trips per day at the rate they were going. Other than the surface contact on the first day, nothing else was encountered for a week. All was not well with the submarine, however.

GO TO CHAPTER 10

THE SILENT SUB CHAPTER 8 - COMBAT TRIAL

Confident that the sonar department's equipment were functioning well and the crew had gotten the hang of finding targets, the admiral decided to conduct a practice attack. SS Heimlich was to sail around the exercise area and U-1215 was to find her and fire one of their practice torpedoes. These had the same propulsion system and sensors as the live ones and were tipped with a rubber head. When they hit, the target's hull would give a loud boom. Heimlich, on the other hand, had dummy hedgehog projectiles. These also made a loud booming sound when they hit. If either vessel was hit, that would signal the end of the exercise. The admiral was going to be inside the submarine to gauge U-1215's, and her crew's, performance.

It was going to be a duel between a new submarine and a seasoned hunter. It was also a duel between a mostly green crew and a crew of veterans. The only advantage that U-1215 had was her silent propulsion and silent weapons.

On 24th April, U-1215 slipped out of her sub pen and set out for the exercise area. SS Heimlich was already at sea, having left earlier.

The exercise area was far out to sea but other u-boats sometimes passed through it either on the way out to their patrol assignments or in coming back to base. To avoid complications, the admiral had a false message sent out saying that the area had been mined and that all u-boats were to avoid it. They would have to detour around that patch of sea, giving U-1215 and Heimlich the privacy they needed for their exercise.

Previously, Heimlich had been unable to detect the secret sub. She had stayed some distance away as U-1215 conducted her trials. In the last one, where U-1215 tried to track the Heimlich and a small merchant vessel, Heimlich had actually heard the submarine when he happened to turn toward it, forcing them to dive quickly. Diving causes a sub's hull to pop or generate soft booms and that is what gave them away. After that, however, nothing else was heard. That sub was certainly quiet. They were going to have to be creative.

U-1215 crept into the exercise area at engines ahead one-third. The sub hardly made any sound especially at this speed. About the noisiest equipment in the sub was the reactor coolant pump but that was mounted on rubber stands and springs which prevented any vibrations it made from reaching the hull. The only way to make a sound was for someone to drop something onto the metal grating that passed for a floor in a submarine. Their shoes had soft rubber soles that kept their footfalls quiet and everything that wasn't supposed to be moving was secured or tied down.

The Heimlich's commander was being smart. She was lying on the surface with her engines off. Her sonar was set to passive, just listening without producing any sound herself. All the crew were told to move quietly about their duties or stand still. Talking was not forbidden but a warning had been issued about shouting, something about being shot or thrown overboard. This was a matter of pride for both vessels.

Heimlich's sonar man looked like he was in a trance, his face blank and with a faraway look in his eyes. He was essentially blind during times like this. The only way to catch his attention was to talk to him. Standing or sitting in front of him wouldn't work. They usually refrained from touching him as it sometimes startled him. So intent on listening to sounds in the sea, his hearing practically took over his whole being.

The sonar operators on U-1215 went about their job in much the same way. To help them concentrate, U-1215 was rigged for silent running. It was easier to hear from underwater than from above it since water conducts sound much better than air. Werner wasn't taking chances, however. Every order or report was given sotto voce. Everyone was either sitting or standing still.

The submarine was actually about 10 kilometers from the Heimlich but both of them had not heard each other. Werner now knew the destroyer was lying to, her engines stopped and her sonar people listening intently. He didn't know where his quarry was. He was tempted to use the periscope but the point of the exercise was to see if they could detect and evade using just the sonar.

For the good part of an hour, both vessels just listened for each other. At one point, U-1215 actually passed within 500 meters of the Heimlich but neither of them heard the other. One of them was going to have to make a mistake or something happened that would give one of them away. U-1215 was more fortunate in that she was underwater. Heimlich, on the surface, was starting to feel the effects of an approaching squall.

The wind was rising and the waves were starting to slap against the destroyer's hull. They were starting to make noise that a good sonar operator could hear. Heimlich's commander knew this and was thinking of starting his engines anyway when his sonar man reported a loud crashing sound. The rolling of the ship had caused something large to drop to the ship's steel flooring. The commander didn't need the report to know about it. The noise was that loud.

Heimlich was quick to react. Her engines were started up and she began moving about. Her quarry was still undetected but he was free to use his active sonar if he saw fit.

U-1215

The U-1215's sonar man suddenly straightened up. The noise was too clear to be far away. Just as he was about to report it, he heard the destroyer's engines start up. The game was on.

"Captain, noise transient at bearing 345°. Now hearing engine and screw noises. It's the Heimlich, sir."

Werner came over to the sonar room and waited for the next report. All he knew was that the Heimlich was to his north. He didn't know how far away or whether it was coming toward or away from him. The other sonar man rotated his directional sensor and found his target.

"Heimlich is now at bearing 343°, estimate distance 1,600 meters."

Listening to his sonar men was a test of patience. They had a direction and a rough range but they didn't know what direction the target was moving. They listened intently to the sounds and made educated guesses. If the sound was growing fainter, the target was moving away. If it was getting stronger, it was moving toward them. That much was easy to do. Getting a course was much more difficult. Heimlich wasn't going to make it easier though.

"ASDIC! She's using her active sonar. Sound's faint though. She's turning around...away from us." The man's halting, short sentences was how they made their reports.

Heimlich was sending pings into the water to try and acquire U-1215. She was pointed in the wrong direction for now but she was turning slowly to sweep the sea around them. Time to do some maneuvering.

"Make your course 160°." Werner was going to move directly away from the destroyer. Also, by putting the destroyer on his tail, he reduced his profile from the destroyer's sonar. Hopefully, it would be small enough for the sonar man on Heimlich to ignore it.

SS HEIMLICH

Heimlich's sonar man listened intently for the returning pings from the active sonar. Her active sonar sent out short, directional bursts of sound into the water. The sound traveled through the water and, when it hits an object, is reflected back to the source. The time difference from the start of the sound burst and its return gave a fairly accurate range to the object that reflected it. The strength of the returning echo told the sonar man how large or hard the object was. A small echo could probably mean a large fish or dolphin. A large return that sounded muffled was probably a school of fish. A rather large and solid return might turn out to be a whale…or a submarine.

As the destroyer continued her turn, the sonar operator heard a few faint returns that were close. Fishes. A somewhat larger return occurred as the ship was pointed toward the south. It was a little too small for a submarine but the man had been working with sonar for several years and was good at it. He reported the contact to the captain.

U-1215

"Control room, he's turning back! He might have gotten a return off us." The sonar operator on U-1215 dialed in his controls. The Heimlich's engine sounds changed to a higher note as the destroyer sped up to get on top of the submarine. "He's coming toward us."

Werner knew Heimlich was faster than U-1215 even at flank speed so trying to outrun her was pointless. His advantage, however, was that Heimlich could only listen in one direction, the front. He thought fast.

Sonar estimated Heimlich was moving toward U-1215 at 15 knots. At this distance, she'd be over him in a little more than three minutes. U-1215, however, was moving away from her at 10 knots so the closure rate was actually five knots which meant Heimlich would catch up with them after about 10 minutes. He had time. "Dive! Make your depth 120 meters. Maximum dive rate."

He was going to go deep. As the submarine dived, the temperature of the surrounding water suddenly changed several degrees in a few feet. This temperature change was called a "layer" by submariners and submarine hunters. It tended to reflect sonar pulses so submarines frequently used it to hide from the searchers.

There was another advantage to going deep. It put vertical distance between the submarine and the destroyer. Depth charges took longer to sink and made timing the drops more complicated.

S.S. HEIMLICH

Heimlich was carrying weapons. Hedgehogs were mortar-like weapons that fired 24 shells in front of the ship. The shells then entered the water and sank rapidly down into the depths. Unlike depth charges, the hedgehogs were a contact-type weapon meaning, they had to actually hit the submarine before exploding. An explosion after firing the hedgehog was a sure sign that the submarine had been hit.

Of course, Heimlich would only use dumbed weapons on this target. They were on the same side after all. The hedgehogs were fitted with a dummy head and won't explode when they hit the hull of the sub.

Heimlich bore straight for the echo showing on his sonar. The pulses were changing which told the sonar man that his target was diving. The distance was great but their speed might put them above the sub before it disappeared underneath the layer. A hedgehog fusillade would be fired and when the boom of even one shell is heard, the exercise would end.

U-1215

U-1215 was canted downwards at such a steep angle that her crew held on to whatever was close by to keep from sliding down towards the bow. Werner kept his eye on the bathythermograph, a device that measured the temperature outside the submarine and plotted it on a roll of paper as a long unbroken line. He smiled as the line suddenly moved signaling that there was a rapid change in temperature. They had reached the layer.

"Slow to one-third, level out at 115 meters. Once we're level, give me fifteen degrees right rudder. Come to new course 290°."

He was turning right to confuse his pursuer. His pursuer could no longer hear him and would have to decide if the sub had turned left, right or stayed on course. One in three odds could not instill confidence but it was better than nothing.

S.S. HEIMLICH

Heimlich's captain cursed under his breath when his sonarman reported that contact had been lost. The sub could have turned anywhere but, from experience, a sub would usually either turn left or right. Rarely did they maintain course. The captain did a mental coin toss and made his decision.

"Slow to one-third. Come right to 250°."

U-1215

Both vessels had made a right turn but U-1215 had continued her turn until she was a little to the north of Heimlich who was moving west-south-west while U-1215 headed west-north-west. With U-1215 underneath the layer, both vessels couldn't hear each other and were essentially blind. Werner, thought quickly. If Heimlich had turned left, he was to his east and moving away. If he had gone straight, they were also heading away from each other. If he had changed course to the right, he was probably a little to the south or right above him. Werner's best option was to make another turn to the right. That move would either bring them further apart or maintain their distance.

"Come right, change course to 070°"

S.S. HEIMLICH

Heimlich maintained her course, his active sonar pinging away at the sea. Hunting for submarines was a waiting and guessing game. Patience was often rewarded though patience in this game was sometimes measured in hours and Heimlich's captain was a patient man.

S.S. Heimlich had a reputation among both German and Allied submarines. She had sent several British submarines to the bottom of the ocean and harried a lot of German u-boats on their approach or departure to and from their submarine bases in the Atlantic coast of France. He was good at what he did and there were few German u-boat captains who could surprise him.

That accursed submarine could be anywhere, thought Heimlich's commander. She was very quiet and his sonar operator had not heard her except for a hull pop when she changed depth. His best hope of finding her was to use his active sonar but the submarine could also hear the sound pulse and change direction to try and confuse or throw them off. Another advantage the submarine had was that they could react to the sonar pulse a bit earlier than the destroyer. This was because the sonar pulse needed to return to the destroyer before they could get direction and range data whereas the submarine could react as soon as they heard the sound. It wasn't much of an advantage, however. At this range, the echoes from the sonar pulse would be almost instantaneous.

Heimlich's captain ordered a slow turn to the left to cover all directions. U-1215 was most certainly under the layer but it would need to come up to get range data on the destroyer. He was determined to prevent that.

U-1215

Werner had posted himself near the sonar room, watched closely by the admiral. The operators were concentrating on their instruments intently but made no reports. They were too far underneath the layer to detect anything. Their course was unchanged as Werner thought it would take them a bit farther from the destroyer. After several minutes, Werner decided to take a peek above the layer to reacquire the Heimlich.

"Come up, slowly. Make your depth, 110 meters."

They had an idea of how deep the layer was but this could change based on sea conditions. If they moved up too fast, they could come out of the layer and be exposed before they could dive back into it.

Fischer reported that they were starting to come out of the layer. Sonar quickly found Heimlich.

"Contact! Engine sounds aft. Making turns for 5 knots...close...turning towards us." Werner gave a quick command.

"Back down beneath the layer! Let's hope he won't see us."

Fischer gave the order, bringing the submarine down while Werner waited for the sonar operator's report. He had not heard the active sonar but the sonar man had not mentioned it. He made a quick decision.

"Fischer, we need to get far enough away so we can fire our torpedoes. Go north, all ahead full. Stay under the layer. After 30 minutes, slow to 1/3 and turn back. Let's try to reacquire him and set up a firing solution."

S.S. HEIMLICH

As U-1215 sped north, Heimlich's captain cursed his luck, mostly the lack of it. He'd lost contact with his quarry and it was probably now getting ready to launch a torpedo at him. He didn't know what kind of torpedoes U-1215 had but he assumed it was the same as the rest of the submarine fleet. His sonar operator could hear those coming. He'd evaded torpedoes before and he had some confidence he could outmaneuver them. Acoustic torpedoes, however, were another matter. He'd never had any fired at him, mostly because the other side didn't have them, at least none that he knew of.

He knew that submarines needed several minutes to get a good firing solution and a target that constantly changes course could disrupt those calculations. The normal method of searching for submarines was to sail in a square while increasing the size of the square at every revolution. That was a good method especially if there were two or more destroyers to coordinate their movements. So he needed to run for several minutes in one direction, change course and run for several more minutes. He'd keep repeating that until he either reacquired his opponent or his opponent fired a torpedo on him. If U-1215 fired a torpedo, Heimlich would have a direction to go and continue his hunt for the elusive submarine.

U-1215

So far, the admiral had remained quiet, staying out of the way and observing the actions of the crew and their captain. Werner was learning how to use the capabilities of his new submarine. Other submarines did not have the underwater speed or the stealth of U-1215. We will catch the Heimlich by surprise.

Thirty minutes later, U-1215 slowed to one-third and turned around. They crept above the layer and immediately obtained contact.

"Target to the south, bearing 174°. Still pinging. Estimate range twelve kilometers."

Finally, thought Werner. They were going to win this.

"Make tube one ready in all respects. Open outer doors. Set torpedo course 174° and slow run up to ten kilometers. Sonar, give me target's course."

"Getting it now, sir. Target course seems to be 096°...no, wait! He's changing course."

So, Werner thought, Heimlich is using a tactic employed by most surface vessels, change their course every now and then to throw off an enemy submarine's firing solution. That might work with conventional torpedoes  but my torpedoes are anything but conventional.

"Target seems to have settled on course 010°, captain. He's heading for us."

They were too far away for the destroyer's active sonar to detect them but he was also a little too far for a sure strike. The torpedoes had enough range to reach the Heimlich but if the destroyer changed course before the torpedo acquired him, it may move out of the torpedo's acoustic range. He came to a quick decision.

"Make tube 2 ready in all respects. Set torpedo course to 164° and slow run up to 10 kilometers."

Werner waited for the series of commands to be repeated before giving another one.

"Change tube 1 course to 184° and maintain other settings."

Fischer, nodded his head. Werner was going to fire two torpedoes, one to the left of the target and another one to the right. That way, if the target changed direction either left or right, he was going to have a torpedo coming toward him. Time to end this game.

"Open outer doors on tubes 1 and 2," Werner ordered.

"Open outer doors on tubes 1 and 2." Orders are always repeated to ensure that orders were heard correctly. "Outer doors on tubes 1 and 2 are open."

"Fire one!"

Tube one fired its weapon which immediately turned to its preset course at 15 knots.

"Fire two!"

Having fired his weapons, Werner seemed to relax a bit. "Now we wait. Fischer, estimated time to target?"

"Ten minutes, thirteen seconds, Captain," Fischer replied. "The target is moving toward us at the moment."

"Very well. Helm, right fifteen degrees rudder, set course 310°."

Werner changed course to avoid getting too near the Heimlich. With her active sonar operating, she might detect the weapons though he might not know what they were. They were noiseless and Werner hoped the Heimlich sonar operator would think they were large fish like a shark or dolphin moving toward them. There was nothing else to do except to wait for the next nine minutes.

S.S. HEIMLICH

Having just made a direction change, Heimlich wasn't going to make another change for several minutes. The ASDIC operator listened to the sounds of the returning sonar pulses. He had a fair idea of the size of his target after the first contact was made so that was what he was listening for. His ears picked up two returns but these were too small to be the submarine. After two more pulses, he frowned. They were about as big as sharks but these were faster, but not as fast as torpedoes. Dolphins? Didn't dolphins swim in groups? These two were moving apart and were going to pass him some distance to the left and right of the destroyer. Perhaps they were playing a game.

The sonar operator suddenly realized that he had made an assumption. He'd already set his mind into thinking these were the swift swimming mammals of the sea. Might they be a new type of torpedo, a slow one? But a slow torpedo would not be very effective. The Heimlich had a maximum speed of 30 knots. These objects were moving at around 15 knots. At fifteen knots, they might catch a slow freighter but only if they were launched at close range. Typical torpedoes had a maximum range of only five kilometers. Long range torpedoes? Did they sacrifice speed for range? All these thoughts flashed through Heimlich's sonar operator in a split second. He decided to alert his captain.

"Two unidentified objects in the water, bearing 353° and 008°, moving at fifteen knots, Captain. They'll miss us by about 600 meters on either side."

Heimlich's captain quickly picked up the microphone. "Identify! Torpedoes?"

"They are not emitting any sounds, Captain. All I can tell you is that they are about the same size as large sharks or dolphins." A momentary pause. "Captain, these objects are running straight. They must be a new type of silent running torpedoes."

Heimlich's captain made his own realization in an instant.

"Helm, all ahead two thirds, make your course 000°! Head right in between the torpedoes. That's where he is."

That accursed submarine was directly in front of him. Not too far, for sure, and he had made an error in his firing solution. The torpedoes were going to pass him harmlessly on either side.

"Captain, sonar. The torpedoes are passing out of the ASDIC's detection angle. I'll lose them in a few seconds."

"Ignore them, they're going to miss us. Look for the submarine."

At that moment, Unit One's seeker head switched on and began listening to the sea around it. There was a loud noise to its left and it immediately turned towards it. Then, it increased its speed to 25 knots.

An acoustic torpedo had two sensors on either side of its head. A louder sound on the left meant there was a noise source in that direction. When the sound levels equalized, it meant the noise source was directly ahead. Unit One's noise source was to its left, heading in the opposite direction. As the torpedo turned, the noise source stayed to its left. No matter, the torpedo was going to continue turning until the sound from the two sensors equalized or until the sound disappeared. If the sound did disappear, the torpedo was designed to turn around to re-acquire the target or until it ran out of power.

Unit Two turned on its seeker head a few seconds after Unit One. It turned to the right and slipped behind Unit One, increasing speed to 25 knots. Both were now directly behind the Heimlich.

U-1215

"Target is heading this way, Captain. Bearing 171°, fifteen knots. They don't have us yet but they will in about four minutes."

"Increase speed to two thirds, maintain course. Sonar, listen for the torpedoes making contact." Werner didn't want to miss the sound of victory.

Fischer, shook his head. He'd have dropped beneath the layer and changed direction but, then again, he wasn't in command.

S.S. HEIMLICH

"Prepare to fire the hedgehogs!" Heimlich's captain could almost smell his quarry. The submarine couldn't move faster than five to seven knots without draining its batteries in a short time. He was sure he was now so close to his opponent that he should have already detected him. Why was it taking so long for the sonar operator to make contact? He needed to slow down and make a proper search.

"Slow to one-third."

As the Heimlich's speed dropped, the two torpedoes gained ground even faster. As that point, Heimlich's sonar operator found U-1215 and alerted his captain. With a cry of triumph, Heimlich's captain ordered a course and speed change.

"Standby to fire the hedgehog!"

Heimlich's sonar operator frowned. He was certain that the submarine had heard them approach and knew the ASDIC had found them. Why hadn't they turned to evade? Then he remembered.

"Torpedoes inbound aft!"

Heimlich's captain face blanched as the torpedo warning caused a heartburn. But the sudden grab of fear also galvanized him to action.

"Left full rudder! All ahead flank!"

Unit One sensed the target's sound shift to the left and turned accordingly but it was a little too close and missed. Unit Two, slightly behind, cut the corner and struck just forward of the screw. The resulting boom was loud enough to cause the sonar operator to quickly clap his headset off his head.

Damn it! Heimlich's captain, pounded his fist on the steel plotting table. He'd lost the fight. He was shaking from rage as much as the adrenalin rush from the torpedo warning. He ordered ahead one-third and commanded the sonar operator to try to keep tracking the stealthy submarine. The fight was finished but some pride in him caused him to try and tell that submarine commander that he was not entirely invisible.

At that point, Unit One, which had turned around and reacquired the Heimlich, struck the side of the destroyer causing everyone to jump. Heimlich's captain, now even more enraged, cursed his opponent out in the water beyond and stormed out of the bridge. The executive officer watched the empty doorway for a few seconds, shook his head and ordered half speed and return to port.

U-1215

"Sonar, what's he doing?"

"He's still at flank speed, Captain. Bearing to the south on an easterly course. He's not...wait...he's slowing down, turning away from us. Yes, he's changed course to the west and maintaining around 12 knots."

Werner heaved a sigh of relief. "We'll, I guess that's over. Engine's ahead two-thirds, set course for the base."

The admiral stood up and shook Werner's hand. "Excellent work, Captain Werner, excellent work. Congratulations to you and the crew. I think this calls for a celebration when we get back to base."

Amid the sounds of hurrahs and clapping of shoulders, the admiral beckoned Werner to his stateroom. Werner let his men celebrate for a few more seconds before giving a terse command.

"Silence! The reason why this submarine is the quietest, is not because of its design. It's because of the men who crew him. You may celebrate but do so without a sound. The enemy might be lurking somewhere out there"

The admiral waited for him by the door to the captain's stateroom. After both of them had entered and sat down, the admiral began his critique.

"Well, Captain. That was a victory no doubt. Instead of me giving my viewpoints on this exercise, I'd like to hear your own analysis of the battle."

Werner, took a deep breath before speaking. "Admiral, the beginning of the trial was not the usual way that a submarine-destroyer duel begins. Heimlich was lying in wait and that is not what destroyers normally do when they hunt submarines. If we had been allowed to use our periscope, we might have found him from farther away and fired from a safe distance. Of course, the rule of the trial was that we not use it."

"That it was, Captain. You could not hear the Heimlich so you had no idea of where she was. You could have raised your scope but without knowing where she was, you might have raised it close to the destroyer and she could have detected you sooner. It might have been more difficult for you to evade him then. Those are the fortunes of war, Captain. It is useless to dwell on them."

"As you say, Admiral. The U-1215 is certainly quiet but it is not undetectable. I knew that coming into this but I was not sure how detectable until today. This is a valuable lesson for us. As for our speed underwater, it is an advantage but only as long as the enemy doesn't know about it. Heimlich was looking for us at our last position before we made the sprint and that proved to be the opening we needed to get away and obtain a firing solution."

The admiral nodded his head and waved at Werner to continue.

"The torpedoes certainly work as designed though Heimlich seems to have detected them with ASDIC. It might be advantageous to fire the torpedoes beneath the layer so that they will remain hidden until they become active. But that's only if the enemy is using their ASDIC sonar. If they're using passive sonar, we can fire from any depth."

Again, the admiral nodded before making his own observation.

"What you say are all valid, Captain. There is one critique that I can give, however. After firing your torpedoes, you changed direction but didn't dive. And when the Heimlich obviously detected you, you continued on the same course and speed. Why is that, Captain? It's a dangerous move to bait the enemy, especially knowing Heimlich's reputation."

"Admiral, Heimlich was running straight at the time of firing. By changing direction and allowing them so see us, they would have to change direction as well and that would bring him into one of the torpedoes. I had planned to head for the layer if he got too close but I also wanted to hear the torpedo impact. I find it strange that he chose to slow down when he did. That's what sealed the victory for us. I also find it curious that he suddenly sped up. Did he detect the torpedoes behind him? I find that hard to believe."

"As do I, Captain. I will have to debrief Heimlich's captain when we get back to base. You were up against a first rate vessel, Captain. And since he'd been with you through all the trials, he probably had a good idea of your capabilities though he had been told nothing. Congratulations again, Captain. You deserve it. You and the crew."

"Thank you Admiral. Perhaps we can start building these submarines now?" It was a question, not a statement.

"We still have one trial, Captain. If it is successful, we will send the report to Donitz and he can inform the Fuhrer. Hopefully, within the year, we can start construction of the first group."

Werner smiled and received the admiral's congratulatory hand.

GO TO CHAPTER 9