German submarine U-535

German submarine U-535 was a Type IXC/40 U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 6 March 1942 at the Deutsche Werft yard at Hamburg, launched on 8 October 1942, and commissioned on 23 December 1942 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Helmut Ellmenreich. After training with 4th U-boat Flotilla in the Baltic Sea, U-535 was transferred to 10th U-boat Flotilla for front-line service. U-535 completed one patrol, but did not sink any ships.

Service history
U-535 sailed from Kiel on 25 May 1943 on her first and only war patrol in the north Atlantic.

On 8 June at about 14:00, the U-boat was attacked with depth charges by a Hudson light bomber from No. 269 Squadron RAF, close to Convoy SC-132. A follow-up attack by another Hudson from the same squadron was aborted when the depth charges failed to release in two attack runs. The aircraft was damaged by the U-boat's flak, and the pilot warned an arriving United States Navy Catalina patrol bomber of Squadron VP-84 that the boat would stay up and fight, so the flying boat shadowed U-535 until it escaped at dusk.

Sinking
At 16:55 on 5 July 1943, a group of three inbound U-boats; GS U-170, U-535 and GS U-536 were attacked by a British Liberator maritime reconnaissance aircraft of No. 53 Squadron RAF, north-east of Cape Finisterre, Spain. The U-boats evaded the first attack, and U-536 was strafed in the second. U-536 gave the signal to crash-dive, but for unknown reasons U-535 remained on the surface. Despite hitting the aircraft with her AA guns, the U-boat was straddled by eight depth charges and sank with all hands in position 43.63333°N, -9.21667°W. Damaged and with one crewman wounded, the aircraft immediately left the area and returned to base.