U-boat Aces (Fortunes of War)

By the end of 1942 Britain had lost many large ships at sea. Ark Royal, Barham, Courageous, Duchess of Atholl, Eagle, Empress of Britain, Orcades, Strathallan, Viceroy of India and Warwick Castle had all been torpedoed and sunk. In every case the U-boat commander returned to base to tell the tale. In most cases the victim was well protected by escorts and the odds against the U-boat's subsequent escape had been heavy. After careful research on both the German and British sides, the author has discovered fascinating new insights into these dramatic events. When, for example, the Ark Royal was finally sunk after many false alarms, the signals officer of U-81 relates that the U-boat was actually firing at a different target. Included also is the story of the loss of the auxiliary aircraft carrier HMS Avenger, which was sunk with heavy loss of life. The U-boat commander, however, did not know of his success until some years after the war had ended. The story of these sinkings has been taken from contemporary first hand accounts, combined with modern research, and reveals the courage, cool-headedness and occasional compassion on the part of the seamen involved on both sides. The author also investigates the careers of the commanders. What else did they sink, and what was their eventual fate and that of their boats? Each of the stories in this book is different in character, each has a dramatic tale to tell.