German submarine U-617 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 31 May 1941 by Blohm & Voss in Hamburg as yard number 593, launched on 14 February 1942 and commissioned on 9 April under Kapitänleutnant Albrecht Brandi.
The boat's service began on 9 April 1942 with training as part of the 5th U-boat Flotilla. She was transferred to the 7th flotilla on 1 September 1942 and moved on to the 29th flotilla on 1 December 1942.
Design German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-617 had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. She 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 Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of for use while surfaced, two Brown, Boveri & Cie GG UB 720/8 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-617 was fitted with five torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.
Service history In seven patrols she sank eight ships for a total of , plus two warships and one auxiliary warship.
Wolfpacks In addition she took part in five wolfpacks, namely: Pfeil (12 – 22 September 1942) Blitz (22 – 26 September 1942) Tiger (26 – 30 September 1942) Delphin (4 – 10 November 1942) Wal (10 – 15 November 1942)
Fate She ran aground on 12 September 1943 at position near Melilla after a sustained air attack by Leigh light-equipped RAF Wellington bombers from 179 Squadron.
All crew members were able to evacuate the stricken sub and subsequently interned by the Spanish authorities. They were later repatriated to Germany.
The abandoned submarine was then finished off with combined RAF Hudson and FAA Swordfish aircraft from Gibraltar and gunfire from and .
Summary of raiding history DateShip NameNationalityTonnageMerchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.Fate7 September 1942Tor II292Sunk23 September 1942Athelsultan8,882Sunk23 September 1942Tennessee2,342Sunk24 September 1942Roumanie3,563Sunk28 December 1942HMS St Issey810Sunk15 January 1943Annitsa4,324Sunk15 January 1943Harboe Jensen1,862Sunk1 February 19432,650Sunk5 February 1943Corona3,264Sunk5 February 1943Henrik1,350Sunk6 September 19431,050Sunk
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