U-171 1942
Marker: recorded wreck position (Second World War).
Key facts
| Name | U-171 | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Year lost | 1942 | Wikidata P793 significant event, point-in-time qualifier |
| Era | Second World War | derived from year |
| Ship type | U-boat | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Cause of loss | War action | Keyword match in English Wikipedia lead sentence |
| Nationality / flag | Nazi Germany | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Operator | Kriegsmarine | Wikidata P137 operator |
| Conflict | Battle of the Atlantic, Battle of the Caribbean | Wikidata P607 conflict |
| Sea / ocean | Bay of Biscay | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | France | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 33 km from land |
| Position | 47.3900, -3.3400 | Wikidata P793 significant event, coordinate qualifier (CC0) |
About the wreck
German submarine U-171 was a Type IXC U-boat of Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II. It was laid down on 1 December 1940 at the DeSchiMAG AG Weser yard at Bremen as yard number 1011, launched on 22 July 1941, and commissioned on 25 October 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Günther Pfeffer.
After training with the 4th U-boat Flotilla, U-171 was transferred to the 10th U-boat Flotilla for front-line service on 1 July 1942. It was sent to patrol in the Gulf of Mexico. It was sunk by a naval mine in the Bay of Biscay 115 days into its first and only patrol, whilst returning to Lorient in occupied France, with the loss of 22 of its crew of 54. For many years it was believed U-166 was sunk by an American aircraft in what was, in reality, an unsuccessful attack on U-171 in the Gulf of Mexico.
Location
- Recorded position: 47.3900, -3.3400 (Wikidata P793 significant event, coordinate qualifier (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: Bay of Biscay
- Nearest coast: France
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article German submarine U-171 (revision 1367188506), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
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Browse more: Europe wrecks · wrecks off France · Bay of Biscay · Second World War