U-45

Type

VIIB

 
Ordered21 Nov 1936
Laid down 23 Feb 1937 F. Krupp Germaniawerft AG, Kiel (werk 580)
Launched27 Apr 1938
Commissioned25 Jun 1938Kptlt. Alexander Gelhaar
Commanders
25 Jun 1938 - 14 Oct 1939  Kptlt. Alexander Gelhaar
Career2 patrols 25 Jun 1938 - 31 Aug 1939  7. Flottille (front boat)
1 Sep 1939 - 14 Oct 1939  7. Flottille (front boat)
Successes2 ships sunk for a total of 19,313 GRT
Fate

Sunk 14 Oct 1939 south-west of Ireland, in position 50.58N, 12.57W, by depth charges from the British destroyers HMS Inglefield, HMS Ivanhoe and HMS Intrepid. 38 dead (all hands lost).

See the 2 ships hit by U-45 - View the 2 war patrols

Men lost from U-boats

Unlike many other U-boats, which during their service lost men due to accidents and various other causes, U-45 did not suffer any casualties (we know of) until the time of her loss.



U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 2
Wynn, Kenneth


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Books dealing with this subject include:

German U-Boat Losses During World War II. Niestle, Axel, 1998.
Hitler's U-boat War. Blair, Clay, 1996.
Hitler's U-boat War, Vol II. Blair, Clay, 1998.
U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 1. Wynn, Kenneth, 1998.
U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 2. Wynn, Kenneth, 1998.


There was another U-45 in World War One
That boat was launched from its shipyard on 15 Apr 1915 and commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 9 Oct 1915. The Naval war in WWI was brought to an end with the Armistice signed on 11 Nov, 1918. Read about the U 45 during WWI.