German submarine U-390

German submarine U-390 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine during World War II.

She carried out three patrols before being sunk by British warships in July 1944 in the English Channel.

She was a member of four wolfpacks.

She sank one auxilary warship of 545 GRT and damaged a merchant ship of 7,934 GRT.

Service history
The submarine was laid down on 6 December 1941 at the Howaldtswerke yard at Kiel as 'werk' 21, launched on 23 January 1943 and commissioned on 13 March under the command of Oberleutnant Heinz Geissler.

1st patrol
The boat's first patrol was divided into two parts; the first part was brief. It started in Kiel and terminated in Bergen. Part two began in Bergen on 7 December 1942 and took in the 'gap' between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. The submarine then docked at St. Nazaire in occupied France on 13 February 1944.

2nd patrol
U-390's second foray was relatively uneventful; starting from St. Nazaire but finishing further north, at Brest.

3rd patrol and loss
The U-boat's third and final sortie began three weeks after the Normandy landings. She attacked and sank the British anti-submarine trawler HMS Ganilly. She also damaged the Sea Porpoise about 10 mi off Utah beach; both on 5 July 1944. On the same day, she was sunk by depth charges dropped by two other British ships: the destroyer HMS Wanderer and the frigate HMS Tavy.

Forty-eight men died in U-390; there was one survivor.