SM U-24

SM U-24 was one of 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy in World War I. She was engaged in commerce warfare during the First Battle of the Atlantic.

In seven patrols, U-24 sank a total of 34 ships totalling 106,103 tons, damaged three more for 14,318 tons, and took one prize of 1,925 tons.

Her second kill was the most significant. The victim was HMS Formidable (1898), torpedoed 30 nmi south of Lyme Regis, at 50.13N 03.04W. She was hit in the number one boiler room on the port side. Out of a crew of approximately 711 men, 547 died as a result. This was one of the largest ships sunk by U-boats during the war.

In 1915, U-24 claimed another noted victim, the passenger steamer SS Arabic (1902), causing 44 deaths, including three Americans. Arabic sank in 10 minutes. This escalated the U-boat fear in the U.S. and caused a diplomatic incident which resulted in the suspension of torpedoing non-military ships without notice.