Lfd. Nr.: 13812
| Seegebiet: | Westraum |
| Datum / Zeit: | 23./24.04.1944 01u00, 03u46 |
| Ort des Gefechts: | vor Cherbourg |
| Verbandsführer (S.O.): | LtCdr. Fanner / LtCdr. Bradford (Donald) |
| Angreifer: | 63rd MTB 707 721 702 701 ; 55th MTB 617 632 671 |
| Gefechtsbericht A: | LtCdr. Fanner erwartete vor Cherbourg mit seinen 4 Booten die Rückkehr von S-Booten, als gegen 01h00 drei Torpedoboote (Typ Möwe), begleitet von einem R-Boot-Verband, den Hafen verließen. Der Gegner entdeckte die MTBs auf Anhieb und im Sperrfeuer konnte Fanner nur noch das Einnebeln und den Rückzug befehlen. -- LtCdr. Bradford hatte mit seiner Gruppe das Gefecht vernommen, entdeckte aber erst gegen 03u46 die Torpedoboote auf dem Radar und entschloss sich zum Angriff. Die beiden vorderen T-Boote waren schon vorbei, das dritte war ausgemachtes Ziel, als unerwartet alle T-Boote gemeinsam auf die MTBs losgingen. MTB 671 (Lt, Toogood) erhielt Treffer in in Brücke und Maschinenraum. Da die T-Boote rasch näherkamen, konnte 617 (Bradford) nicht mehr helfen und 671 wurde brennend zurückgelassen [1] -- From Ken Forrester, If only I had known: "We were just off the coast of Alderney, when there was the sound of rushing water and the churning of screws and the high white bow waves of three German destroyers travelling at speed straight for us. Our hearts missed a few beats. We just could not believe what we were seeing. Both enemy and ourselves were unaware of each other’s presence until this precise moment. We crash started engines. The bow waves died down as they reduced speed. I suppose at first they thought we were E- boats. Then, at thirty yards range, all hell broke loose. No living man could describe what started to come our way. Before we had left harbour, it was the only time that I had been ordered to load nothing else but starshell before we sailed. I was responsible for illuminating the enemy. The order came: "Open fire". It was like looking into a blazing hell with bullets and shells whizzing past. You could hear the thrrr as they just missed you, some were hitting the water and bouncing up, others were flying harmlessly overhead, some were hitting us, there were screams and shouts. Amongst all this I had to make a show with the starshell. I don’t know how I found the courage to keep looking where I was firing with my gun going ‘Bang-Bang’ every second and the incoming projectiles coming many many times faster. We turned hard to starboard (right) to move in the opposite direction to the destroyers who were certainly living up to the name. 617 first, she got ‘pasted’ as she turned; 632, my boat, next took an even bigger hammering; and poor 671 hardly got moving before she was overwhelmed with the ferocity of the gun fire and I presume she was just blown out of the water. Out of a crew of thirty plus, I understand there were just two survivors. When we were moving away at speed, I turned round and could see the heads and shoulders of the Captain and the Coxswain, P.O. Huntley, above the bridge with tracer shells whining past them as others exploded near them. Then the wireless aerials came down over my shoulders. There was a small mast on my turret and a shell had just missed my head and severed the wire. It was all something I would never wish on anybody, we (617 and 632) finally escaped the gun fire. We stayed in the area for quite some time and when the destroyers had gone we searched the area, but there was no sign of wreckage or life: 671 had been blown out of the water." |
| erkannte Gegner: | 3 T-Boote der Möwe-Klasse |
| alliierte Erfolge: | keine |
| alliierte Verluste: | MTB 671 versenkt |
| tatsächliche Gegner: | 3 Boote der 5. T-Flottille |
| Gefechtsbericht B: | In der Nacht zum 24/4. Funkmeß-Ortung meherer Ziele 10 sm NO-wärts Kap de la Hague und nördlich Barfleur. 3 Boote der 5. T-Flottille 0015 Uhr von Cherbourg gegen diese Feindziele ausgelaufen. Um 0356 Uhr Gefecht mit 6 Feindbooten [2] - Verfolgung abgebrochen [2]. |
| Ausgewertete Quellen: | 1) Dog Boats (Pb) p. 98/100 ; 2) KTB SKL Teil A, 23.04.1944, S.507, 527 ; 3) KTB 5. T-Flottille liegt für April 1944 nicht vor ; 4) Ken Forrester: If only I had known (Link) ; |
| Letzte Änderung: | 25.11.2024 |