History
German Empire
NameU-102
Ordered15 September 1915
BuilderAG Weser, Bremen
Yard number253
Laid down12 August 1916
Launched12 May 1917
Commissioned18 June 1917
FateSunk by mine, 30 September 1918
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeGerman Type U 57 submarine
Displacement
  • 750 t (740 long tons) surfaced
  • 952 t (937 long tons) submerged
Length
Beam
  • 6.32 m (20 ft 9 in) (o/a)
  • 4.05 m (13 ft 3 in) (pressure hull)
Height8.25 m (27 ft 1 in)
Draught3.65 m (12 ft)
Installed power
  • 2 × 2,400 PS (1,765 kW; 2,367 shp) surfaced
  • 2 × 1,200 PS (883 kW; 1,184 shp) submerged
Propulsion2 shafts, 2 × 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) propellers
Speed
  • 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph) surfaced
  • 8.8 knots (16.3 km/h; 10.1 mph) submerged
Range
  • 10,100 nmi (18,700 km; 11,600 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) surfaced
  • 56 nmi (104 km; 64 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged
Test depth50 m (164 ft 1 in)
Complement4 officers, 32 enlisted
Armament
Service record
Part of:
  • II Flotilla
  • 5 August 1917 – 30 September 1918
Commanders:
  • Kptlt. Ernst Killmann
  • 5 August 1917 – 25 November 1917
  • Kptlt. Curt Beitzen
  • 26 November 1917 – 27 September 1918
Operations: 7 patrols
Victories:
  • 5 merchant ships sunk
    (9,340 GRT)
  • 1 auxiliary warship damaged
    (10,757 GRT)

SM U-102 or SM Unterseeboot 102 was a German Type U 57 submarine used by the Imperial German Navy in World War I. U-102 was launched on 12 May 1917. She was commissioned to the Imperial Navy on 18 June 1917.[2]

Service history

Serving with II Flotilla the U-boat carried out seven war patrols and sank four ships for a total of 9,340 gross register tons (GRT), and damaged another of 10,757 GRT tons (HMS Virginian).[2]

About 28 to 30 September 1918 U-102 struck a mine in the North Sea Mine Barrage, east of the Orkney Islands while on her way to home. All of her 42 crew members' lives were claimed by the U-boat's sinking. The wreck of U-102 was located by a sonar sweep in 2006. Information to confirm the identification was obtained by divers in 2007.[2]

Summary of raiding history

Date Name Nationality Tonnage[Note 1] Fate[3]
21 August 1917 HMS Virginian  Royal Navy 10,757 Damaged
8 December 1917 Lucien  France 200 Sunk
13 December 1917 Noviembre  Spain 3,500 Sunk
21 February 1918 Cheviot Range  United Kingdom 3,691 Sunk
3 March 1918 Romeo  United Kingdom 1,730 Sunk
24 June 1918 Caroline  Denmark 219 Sunk

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Merchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.

Citations

  1. ↑ Gröner 1991, pp. 12–14.
  2. 1 2 3 Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: U 102". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 25 January 2010.
  3. ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U 102". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 26 January 2015.

Bibliography

  • Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
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