German submarine U-185

German submarine U-185 was a Type IXC/40 U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II.

Under the command of Kapitänleutnant August Maus, she had some success against Allied aircraft in World War II.

Laid down on 1 July 1941 by AG Weser of Bremen as 'werk' 1025, she was launched on 2 March 1942 and commissioned on 13 June. She suffered no casualties until her sinking by US carrier-borne aircraft on 24 August 1943 at 27°N, -37.1°W. Twenty-nine of the crew were lost, as well as fourteen survivors from GS U-604 who were on board.

1st patrol
U-185 sailed from Kiel on 27 October 1942. On 7 December she sank the unescorted 5,476 ton British cargo ship Peter Mærsk west of the Azores. She docked at Lorient in France on 1 January 1943 after 67 days at sea.

2nd patrol
U-185 sailed from Lorient on 8 February 1943. On 10 March she attacked Convoy KG 123 in the Windward Passage (between Cuba and Hispaniola), sinking the 6,151 ton American tanker Virginia Sinclair and the 7,177 ton liberty ship James Sprunt. On 6 April U-185 attacked the four-ship convoy GTMO-83, and sank the 7,176 ton liberty ship John Sevier. She then sailed to Bordeaux on 3 May after 85 days at sea.

3rd patrol
U-185 sailed on her third and final patrol from Bordeaux on 9 June 1943. On 14 June she was attacked in the Bay of Biscay by a British Whitley bomber of 10 OTU (Operational Training Unit) based at RAF St Eval in Cornwall. GS U-564 was sunk, but U-185's flak defenses damaged the aircraft, forcing it to ditch.

On 7 July U-185, off Cape San Roque, Brazil, attacked the convoy BT-18, sinking the liberty ships James Robertson and Thomas Sinnickson, the 7,061 ton tanker William Boyce Thompson also went to the bottom. She then badly damaged the 6,840 ton tanker S.B. Hunt. On 12 July, around 90 miles off Recife, Brazil, the U-boat was attacked by a B-24 Liberator bomber of US Navy Squadron VB-107, but sustained only minor damage.

The boat sank the 8,235 ton Brazilian cargo ship Bagé, a straggler from convoy TJ-2, off the Rio Real, Brazil, on 1 August and on the 6th she torpedoed and then sank with gunfire the unescorted 7,133 ton British cargo ship Fort Halkett about 600 miles southeast of Natal, Brazil. On 3 August  U-185 was attacked by a Ventura bomber of Squadron VB-107 with depth charges, wounding one man.

Sinking
On the morning of 11 August 1943 U-185 rendezvoused with the stricken GS U-604, which had been badly damaged after two attacks by US aircraft and the destroyer USS Moffett, but which began to transfer provisions, fuel oil and spare parts to U-185. GS U-172 arrived later to assist, but the concentration of U-boats was detected by HF/DF; as a result, the surfaced boats were attacked by a United States Navy PBY-4 Liberator, of Squadron VB-107. U-172 escaped, the crew of U-185 opened fire with AA guns, shooting down the aircraft, killing the crew of three.

After U-604 was scuttled, U-185 headed for home, with 100 men crammed aboard a U-boat designed for 54. On 16 August she transferred 23 men to U-172. Short of fuel, U-185 was heading for a rendezvous with GS U-847 south-west of the Azores on the morning of 24 August. The U-boat was spotted by a TBF-1 Avenger and F4F Wildcat attack team of Squadron VC-13, flying from the escort carrier USS Core (CVE-13). The aircraft attacked with machine guns and depth charges, killing the U-boat's lookouts and AA crew and rupturing the pressure hull, allowing seawater to reach the battery cells and produce toxic chlorine gas. One diesel engine caught fire, producing more fumes, and to make matters worse all electrical systems were knocked out, plunging the vessel into darkness.

Realizing that the situation was hopeless, Maus ordered all hands to abandon ship. More than 40 men managed to reach the deck and jump into the sea as U-185 sank. Only 36 men were later rescued by the destroyer USS Barker (DD-213), the rest succumbing to wounds or chlorine poisoning. The 25 men from U-185 and the nine survivors from U-604 spent the following three years as POWs before returning to Germany.

On 21 September 1943 Kapitänleutnant August Maus was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.