German submarine U-539
1942 Type IX submarine
German submarine U-539 was a Type IXC/40 U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 8 May 1942 at the Deutsche Werft yard in Hamburg as yard number 360, launched on 4 December 1942, and commissioned on 24 February 1943 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Jürgen Lauterbach-Emden. After training with the 4th U-boat Flotilla in the Baltic Sea, the boat was transferred to the 10th U-boat Flotilla for front-line service on 1 July 1943. She carried out three war patrols, sinking one ship and damaged two more. Transferred to the 33rd U-boat Flotilla on 1 October 1944, she sailed on no further patrols, and surrendered to Allied forces on 9 May 1945. Transferred from Bergen, Norway, to Loch Ryan, Scotland, she foundered on 4 December 1945 while being towed to the scuttling grounds as part of "Operation Deadlight".
Design
German Type IXC/40 submarines were slightly larger than the original Type IXCs. U-539 had a displacement of 1,144 tonnes (1,126 long tons) when at the surface and 1,257 tonnes (1,237 long tons) while submerged. The U-boat had a total length of 76.76 m (251 ft 10 in), a pressure hull length of 58.75 m (192 ft 9 in), a beam of 6.86 m (22 ft 6 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a draught of 4.67 m (15 ft 4 in). The submarine was powered by two MAN M 9 V 40/46 supercharged four-stroke, nine-cylinder diesel engines producing a total of 4,400 metric horsepower (3,240 kW; 4,340 shp) for use while surfaced, two Siemens-Schuckert 2 GU 345/34 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 1,000 shaft horsepower (1,010 PS; 750 kW) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.92 m (6 ft) propellers.
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