Operation Haudegen

Operation Haudegen (i.e. swashbuckler) was the name of a German operation during the Second World War to establish meteorological stations on Svalbard.

In September 1944, together with the supply ship Karl J. Busch, the submarine U-307 transported the men of Operation Haudegen to Svalbard. The station was active from 9 September 1944 to 4 September 1945. It lost radio contact in May 1945, and the soldiers were capable of asking for support only in August 1945. On September 4, 1945 the soldiers were picked up by a Norwegian seal hunting vessel and surrendered to its captain. The group of men were the last German troops to surrender after the Second World War.

Select bibliography

 * Article on the "weather war" in the North Atlantic
 * Article on the history of Svalbard Island
 * "Vergessen, verloren, verwirrt" ("Forgotten, lost, confused", in German), Berliner Morgenpost, March 20, 2005.