German submarine U-138 was a Type IID U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine in World War II. Her keel was laid down on 16 November 1939 by Deutsche Werke in Kiel as yard number 267. She was launched on 18 May 1940 and commissioned on 27 June 1940 with Oberleutnant zur See Wolfgang Lüth in command.

U-138 conducted five patrols, sinking six ships totalling and damaged one vessel of .

She was scuttled on 18 June 1941 after being damaged by British warships west of Cádiz in Spain. There were no casualties from her crew of 28.

Design German Type IID submarines were enlarged versions of the original Type IIs. U-138 had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was , however. The U-boat had a total length of , a pressure hull length of , a beam of , a height of , and a draught of . The submarine was powered by two MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder diesel engines of for cruising, two Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36 double-acting electric motors producing a total of for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to .

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, the boat could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . U-138 was fitted with three torpedo tubes at the bow, five torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of 25.

Operational career

First patrol U-138 departed Kiel on her first patrol on 10 September 1940. Her route took her through the Kattegat and Skagerrak before entering the North Sea. She then reached her area of operations off western Scotland and northern Northern Ireland after negotiating the gap between the Faroe and Shetland Islands.

Her first victim was New Sevilla, quickly followed by Boka and City of Simla. The three ships all went down north-west of Rathlin Island on 20 September. The following day, she hit Empire Adventure. The ship sank while under tow by .

The boat docked in Lorient on the French Atlantic coast on 26 September.

Second patrol For her second foray, U-138 sank Bonheur and damaged British Glory on 15 October 1940 northwest of the Butt of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. British Glory was repaired and returned to service in January 1942.

Third patrol Patrol number three involved another passage west of the British Isles so that the submarine could safely dock in Kiel, but she did not add to her score.

Fourth patrol The boat returned to Lorient on 27 May 1941, having sunk Javanese Prince on the 20th.

Fifth patrol U-138 was attacked by the British destroyers , , , and west of Cádiz, Spain, on 18 June 1941. The resulting damage forced the crew to abandon ship and scuttle the U-boat. There were no casualties amongst her crew of 28, who were taken prisoner-of-war and brought to Gibraltar.

Summary of raiding history Date Ship Name Nationality Tonnage (GRT) Fate20 September 1940Boka5,560Sunk20 September 1940City of Simla10,138Sunk20 September 1940New Sevilla13,801Sunk21 September 19405,145Sunk15 October 1940Bonheuer5,327Sunk15 October 1940British Glory6,993Damaged15 May 1941Javanese Prince8,593Sunk

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