Photos Navies Of All Nations

U-604, badly damaged by aircraft attacks, was scuttled by her crew 11 August 1943 some 900 miles off Natal, in approximate position 05° S., 20° W. The crew then boarded U-185 which was standing by. Two days later, one half of U-604’s crew was transferred from U-185 to U-Emmermann [U-172].

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Eleven days later, 24 August, U-185 herself was sunk, by aircraft from U.S.S. Core, southwest of the Azores, in approximate position 27° N., 37° 06’ W. She was homeward bound at the time, with half of the crew of U-604 still aboard.

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Thirty-six men were rescued by U.S.S. Barker and transferred to U.S.S. Core. Nine of these were U-604 men. Of the 27 others – crew members of U-185 – 4 died at sea after rescue, of chlorine gas poisoning.

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Shortly after daybreak, 24 August, U-185 was sailing surfaced in approximate position 27° N., 37.06° W. Suddenly the bridge watch spotted two planes approaching, a fighter followed by a bomber. They gave the alarm. The fighter passed over in a strafing run from astern wounding the entire bridge watch. As Maus climbed up through the conning tower, his watch officer on the bridge attempted to tell him something but was too badly wounded to speak.

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As [commanding officer] Maus stepped onto the bridge the bomber let go its depth charges. According to survivors, one exploded under the boat aft and another hit the 105-mm. gun forward. These two spelled U-185’s doom. The tanks on the port side were crushed and the pressure hull cracked. No. 1 battery was damaged. As Maus shouted down, asking if the boat was in diving condition, the engineer officer shouted back: “Everything’s smashed…. Batteries.…chlorine!” (“Alles Kaput….Batterie….Chlor!”)

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Maus immediately ordered the crew to put on life belts and come topside. Chlorine gas formed quickly as sea water rushed into the battery compartment under the officer’s quarters, forward of the control room. As the Diesels still were running, the gas was sucked through the boat to the engine room. Several men died at their stations. All those who were able climbed to the bridge.

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Meanwhile, in the bow compartment, a strange drama was being enacted. According to survivors, Höltring [U-604's commanding officer] was in his bunk in the officers’ quarters, with his pistol, as always, close at hand when the attack began. In the bow compartment lay a member of U-185’s crew with a bullet wound in his leg, sustained in a previous action. Unable to walk, he was trapped as chlorine gas to spread. Seeing Höltring rush into the bow compartment with his pistol in hand, the youth cried to Höltring to shoot him. According to survivors accounts, Höltring shot and killed the boy, then shot himself through the head.

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On the bridge, Maus saw his boat sinking slowly by the stern. The air supply for blowing gave out and the list to port increased. Planes flew in again, strafing the men who were gathered around the bridge and conning tower. U-185 was still making way as she went under, sweeping her survivors into the sea.

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Maus did his best to keep his men about him in the water and at the same time shouted warnings to them, particularly those from U-604, about security: “We are all from the same boat. And under no circumstances say anything at all”.

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Several men died of chlorine gas poisoning as they floated in their life belts. The engineer officer, who was exposed to the gas only a brief minute in the boat, gasped to Maus that he was barely able to breath. The engineer and three others died of gas poisoning after being rescued.

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Planes continued to circle overhead. One of them signalled that help was coming. Some four hours later, U.S.S. Barker arrived and pulled 36 men from the water. They later were transferred to the carrier U.S.S. Core.

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(O.N.I. Note: A TBF-1 and F4F-4 from U.S.S. Core sighted U-185 fully surfaced and reflecting the sun, at 0537Z 24 August 1943. The planes were at 7,000 feet, 3-4 miles distance from the U-boat, which was proceeding on course 330° T at 10-12 knots.

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The planes sought cloud cover, from which they emerged to attack the U-boat from astern. The F4F-4 made a strafing run. The TBF-1 then approached from 350 astern on the starboard quarter, dropping 2 Mark 47 depth charges from 250 feet. The charges straddled the U-boat, the first exploding beneath the hull near the conning tower, the second exploding off the port bow.

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The U-boat turned 90° to port, with dense black smoke trailing low off the conning tower, and began to settle by the stern. The F4F-4 made another strafing run from the U-boat’s starboard quarter.

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U-185 made no more evasive turns and did not man her A/A guns. Three or four minutes later, another F4F and TBF from U.S.S. Core arrived and made strafing runs. When it was noted that the U-boat was in sinking condition, and that the men were in the water, bombs and machine-gun fire were withheld.

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A relief TBF, dispatched from U.S.S. Core, guided U.S.S. Barker to the scene and covered her while she picked up survivors. U.S.S. Barker arrived at 1010Z.)

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