German submarine U-410

German submarine U-410 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for the Nazi German Kriegsmarine for service during World War II, operating mainly in the Mediterranean. Her Insignia was a Sword & Shield, she did not suffer any casualties until she was sunk.

U-410 was first commanded by Kapitänleutnant Kurt Sturm during her working up/training period and on her first patrol before being commanded by Horst-Arno Fenski for her six combat patrols. U-410 sank eight merchantmen, a Landing ship, Tank (LST); and a light cruiser during the Second World War. For his successes, Fenski received the Knights Cross.

Construction and Design
U-410 was ordered by the Kriegsmarine on 30 October 1939. She was laid down at the Danziger Werft yard in Danzig, on 9 January 1941 and launched on 14 October 1941. She was formally commissioned into the Kriegsmarine, on 23 February 1942.

Like all type VIIC submarines, U-410 carried five 533 mm torpedo tubes (four located in the bow, one in the stern) and a C35 88mm/L45 deck gun with 220 rounds. Anti-Aircraft (AA) protection consisted of a twin 20-mm, on Platform I, a 37-mm, on Platform II and 2 MG 15 machine gun’s on the bridge. Two supercharged Germaniawerft 6-cylinder 4-stroke M6V 40/46 diesel engines with a total of 2800 - 3200 bhp. Her maximum rpm was 490. She was also equipped with two electric motors totaling 750 shp with a maximum rpm of 296. This power-train enabled U-380 to achieve a top speed of 17.7 kn while on the surface and 7.6 kn when submerged. She had a range of 15170 km at 10 kn when surfaced and 150 km at 4 kn when submerged. Her test depth was 230 m; her crush depth was 250 - 295 m. She carried 2 eight-man, 1 six-man and 58 one-man, rubber boats.
 * Weapons
 * Propulsion
 * Specification

Patrol history
U-410 departed Kiel on 27 August 1942 for her first patrol. The U-boat, under Kapitänleutnant Kurt Sturm, sank the British Newton Pine in mid-Atlantic. She then arrived in St. Nazaire in France on 28 October 1942, after 63 days at sea.
 * 1st and 2nd patrols

Her second outing was not so productive; after 33 days she returned to her French base empty-handed.

Her third foray was more productive and included the sinking of the British ship, the Fort Battle River on 6 March 1943. She also damaged another British vessel in the same engagement, the Fort Paskoyac. Both of these ships were attacked southwest of Portugal. The U-boat returned to St. Nazaire on 27 March 1943.
 * 3rd and 4th patrols

Her fourth sortie included transiting the heavily defended Strait of Gibraltar. She arrived in La Spezia in Italy on 13 May 1943, having left St. Nazaire on 26 April.

U-410 left La Spezia on 7 August 1943 and attacked the convoy UGS-14 off the Algerian coast. Firing three torpedoes in a 'spread', she hit and sank two American ships, theJohn Bell and the Richard Henderson on 26 August 1943. She then sailed to Toulon in France, arriving on 30 August.
 * 5th and 6th patrols

The U-boat tried to disrupt the landings at Anzio, sinking a British light cruiser and an American LST (see below).

Commanders

 * 23 February 1942 - 4 February 1943 Kapitänleutnant Kurt Sturm.
 * 5 February 1943 - 11 March 1944 Oberleutnant zur See Horst-Arno Fenski

Flotillas

 * 23 February 1942 - 31 August 1942 - 5th Flotilla (Training)
 * 1 September 1942 - 31 May 1943 - 7th Flotilla
 * 1 June 1943 - 11 March 1944 - 29th Flotilla

Wolf Packs
U-410 was part of the following "wolf packs":
 * 'Lohs' (13 Sep 1942 - 22 Sep 1942)
 * 'Blitz' (22 Sep 1942 - 26 Sep 1942)
 * 'Tiger' (26 Sep 1942 - 29 Sep 1942)
 * 'Letzte Ritter' September 29, 1942 - 1 October 1942
 * 'Wotan 8' - 8 October 1942 - 17 Oct 1942
 * 'Raufbold 11' - 20 December 1942
 * 'Robbe' 16 February 1943 - 13 March 1943

Rescue of survivors from MV Rhakotis
On 2 Jan 1943, U-410 rescued 80 survivors from the German blockade-runner MV Rhakotis after she was sunk by HMS Scylla. The survivors were returned to St. Nazaire the next day. Among the survivors were two Englishmen who received a special guard.

Sinking of Penelope
On 18 February 1944, HMS Penelope (Capt. G.D. Belben, DSO, DSC, AM, RN), was leaving Naples to return to the Anzio area when she was torpedoed at 40.55°N, 13.25°W by U-410. A torpedo struck the British cruiser in the aft engine room; sixteen minutes later, U-410 fired another torpedo that hit Penelope in her boiler room, causing her immediate sinking. 415 of the crew, including the captain, went down with the ship. There were 206 survivors. The remarkable point of the attack by U-410 was that the cruiser was making 26 kn when she was hit. As far as can be ascertained, in the history of submarine attacks during World War II, no other ship running at such speed was ever successfully attacked.

Sinking of USS LST-348
On 20 February 1944 LST-348 (Landing Ship, Tank) was returning from Sicily, supporting Operation Shingle and roughly 40 miles South of Naples when she was spotted by U-410, who fired two torpedoes at around 02:00 hrs. Both hit the vessel on her port side, she sank 20 minutes later.

Loss
On 11 March 1944, a USAAF during an air raid on the Port of Toulon, U-410 along with U-380 were so seriously damaged, they were declared no longer operational. Oberleutnant zur See Fenski and his crew transferred to U-371, which was lost around 04:00 on 4 May 1944 in a battle with Allied warships. The Engineering Officer and a control room petty officer were killed, as they scuttled their boat, but Fenski and his remaining crew survived and spent 2 years in a US POW camp.