9th December 1940
12:39am 9th December 1940 - It had been 5 days since our last contact and almost a week patrolling grid BF11 without much success at locating a convoy. I was still somewhat annoyed about losing track of the last convoy contact report and had not received a report update. I had just told the radio man to send a message home requesting a patrol area reassignment when a single merchant contact report was received. At last, some action, this should serve to boost morale on the boat or relieve the boredom at the very least.
The report came through at 9:50pm on the 9th, a single merchant travelling SSW at slow speed and it was only 36km NW of our position. So we began the chase without delay. It was a very dark night, the merchant was travelling dark which made it difficult to identify the ship and nationality. After some discussion and bringing the boat as close as possible without alerting the merchant we determined it to be a British Large Merchant.
Again I wanted to save our remaining 8 torpedo's for a convoy attack so decided to sink the target using the deck gun. It wasn't until the deck gun opened fire that we were surprised to discover the merchant was in fact, well armed. During the exchange of fire, U-707 took several hits, causing extensive but repairable damage throughout all compartments. I was also injured by shrapnel while manning the AA gun. The Merchant was sent to the bottom after sustaining 77 Shell hits. Leaving us with 46HE 8.8 Shells remaining aboard.
9th December 1940 @ 12:08am
SS Clan MacArthur (Large Merchant), 10616 tons. Cargo: Coffee. Crew: 108. Crew lost: 105
SS Clan MacArthur (Large Merchant), 10616 tons. Cargo: Coffee. Crew: 108. Crew lost: 105
Damage control teams and crew all across the boat performed their duties with speed and efficiency, I am very proud to serve on a boat with these men. However, U-707 sustained several punctures to the pressure hull and I am not sure if the welded patches will hold if we have to go deep to evade being depth charged. We will only know the full extent of the damage once we have returned home and U-707 is put in dry dock. I will wait until daylight to see what kind of shape the hull is in before deciding whether to continue the patrol or return to St. Nazaire for repairs.
Damage Report for 9th December 1940, U-707.
Aft and Fore Batteries.
Port and Starboard Diesel Engines.
Bow Torpedo Tube (2).
Fuel Tank.
Main Pump.
Observation Periscope.
Radio Antenna.
Port Propeller.
Pressure Hull puncture of all compartments.All damaged internal equipment and systems have been repaired at sea.
9:00am 9th December 1940 - Damage control teams have completed their assessment of the external damage U-707 sustained during the previous firefight. Although much of the deck, tower and structure above and below the waterline was a mass of twisted and dented metal, the report was optimistic that we could temporarily repair much of the damage above the waterline. My main concern was that the damage may act like a brake and reduce our submerged speed.Repairs are now underway and will take approximately 4 hours to complete, during that time the boat will need to remain stationary. The sea washing over the deck is making the task much more difficult and time consuming.I am officially recommending that Stabsbootsman Heinrich Stracke be awarded a commendation for his volunteering to inspect the port propeller damage. The sea is quite rough today and such an inspection could prove dangerous, or even fatal if anything goes wrong.
When we have repaired all we can, we will take U-707 down on a test dive to test the integrity of the pressure hull. We will need to be able to reach at least 80 metres depth if we are to continue our patrol effectively. Continuing the patrol or returning to base depends entirely on this factor.
When we have repaired all we can, we will take U-707 down on a test dive to test the integrity of the pressure hull. We will need to be able to reach at least 80 metres depth if we are to continue our patrol effectively. Continuing the patrol or returning to base depends entirely on this factor.
1:24pm 9th December 1940 - All external patches and repairs complete, preparing for test dive. We have sent a radio message home informing them of our situation.
2:55pm 9th December 1940 - Test dive complete, U-707 went to 80 metres depth without any problems. To be absolutely sure we were in good enough shape if things got rough, I ordered the boat deeper, U-707 held together nicely without a single leak in any of the pressure hull repairs. We remained at a depth of 122 metres for a little over 1 hour.We have returned to the surface and will resume our patrol.
2:55pm 9th December 1940 - Test dive complete, U-707 went to 80 metres depth without any problems. To be absolutely sure we were in good enough shape if things got rough, I ordered the boat deeper, U-707 held together nicely without a single leak in any of the pressure hull repairs. We remained at a depth of 122 metres for a little over 1 hour.We have returned to the surface and will resume our patrol.
