The first use of the 14 January 1941 it entered service submarine in March 1941 in the Bay of Biscay, where the two returning from the Company Berlin German battleship Scharnhorst and Gneisenau e should be intercepted. But the German capital ships were able to break through the British siege unscathed. After the unsuccessful operation, the submarine was ordered to Gibraltar.
After further patrols in the Mediterranean, Torbay met on 13 May 1941 in Alexandria, where she was assigned to the First Submarine Flotilla.
First Use Before The Dardanelles
On 28 May 1941, the submarine left the Egyptian port city. The use of lead in front of the Dardanelles. Through this, strategic water supply lines of the Axis powers of the Romanian oil ports went on the Black Sea to southern Europe and North Africa.
On 1 June 1941 the Torbay sank in the Aegean a Greek under German control caique with gunfire, reaching their first combat success. The small motor sailing ship exploded after the fifth shot, which suggests that it was loaded with explosives or ammunition. Two days later, another caique was sunk.
After the U-boat was commanded in the sector before the Dardanelles, the application presented very high technical demands. The changing currents require high navigational skill. More problems were occurring in this area: water layers with different salinity and temperatures the balancing of the ballast tanks from the difficulty and appearance, which is why Commander Miers had never dive deeper than 25 meters. In addition, Miers was of the view that the pressure hull of submarines a water bomb at shallower depths, ie at lower water pressure, could better withstand than at greater depths, since the external pressure in the event of an attack, the sum of the hydrostatic pressure and the detonation wave of explosive s represents.
Another advantage of Miers’ view was that you can go much faster, of course, back to periscope depth and continue the attack or even start a counterattack. Miers’ unconventional tactics were ultimately successful, as the different layers of the water broke and the reflected sound, so that the acoustic locators of the Italian and German U-hunters could also think of shallow-diving submarines are very inaccurate.
The Torbay had to let a lot of neutral ships in the heavily traveled waterway until 6 am June, the Vichy French tanker Alberta-sighted and heavily damaged by torpedoes. The NUC abandoned by the crew ship was boarded in the following night but could not be sunk. On the morning of the 10th of June the same tanker, a rescue vehicle in tow this time, rediscovered and again attacked with torpedoes and grenades.
But the British submarine broke off the attack because it had to dodge an Italian destroyer. On the same morning, a small Italian convoy was attacked several times. The tanker Giuseppina Ghirardi was sunk. The British code breakers at Bletchley Park had recently broken the key of the Italian Navy, which is perhaps one of the reasons that Miers's commander was informed about the course of the convoy. After the successful attack Miers had to return home trip, during which another caique and a schooner were sunk.
War against Caiques
The next war patrol in the Mediterranean began on 27 June 1941 and again led in the Aegean Sea. Two command soldiers of the recently newly formed Special Boat Section were on board. On 2 July, Torbay discovered a small Italian convoy and sank a freighter.
Two days later, a caique and a schooner were sunk with on-board artillery. Both ships went sailing under the German flag and loaded with troops. After the artillery attack, Commander Miers shot with the two Lewis machine guns at the survivors floating in the water until he was sure that no one lives. Commander Miers noted in the logbook: “The one or Type of gunfire destroyed everyone and everything.”
Within the four days following, an Italian submarine and another schooner was sunk.
In the early morning hours of 9 July 1941, I saw the submarine north of Antikythera in the bright moonlight, a small vessel propelled on a northerly course group. The convoy consisted of four caiques and schooners. The unarmed motor glider was loaded with gasoline, ammunition, and food. In addition, German mountain troops, who were on their way home in the furlough, were on board.
The Torbay surfaced and sank with gunfire in the shortest time a caique, and the entire crew was killed.
As the submarine turned to the next sailing ship whose captain jumped, Ehlebrecht with part of the crew of the ship, while the rest raised his hands and shouted, “Captain is a Greek!We surrender! ”
Since now the ammunition was running low, let Commander Miers board the sailing ship. The boarding party was led by Corporal George Bremner, one of the two command soldiers. Bremner shot and killed a German who tried to throw a hand grenade. Another German soldier was killed when he raised his rifle.
Bremner disarmed seven survivors and took them captive. When he tried to lead them to the submarine, Commander Miers snapped at him angrily: “U-boats never take prisoners!” As a result of the commander’s statement, Bremner tried to find a life raft for prisoners of war.
Since he found none on deck, he continued his search below deck. As Bremner reappeared on deck, the prisoners were gone. In his demand was reported to him that she had been shot in the water. Since the statements of witnesses and other parties disagree with each other, the future course of events is not entirely clear.
While driving in the water in sight Ehlebrecht's German captain later reported that the men had been grown in a dinghy and then shot; two were killed and three others were seriously wounded. According to the testimony of other crew members of the Torbay men were pushed overboard. Miers would have ordered them to shoot then. Two British soldiers had refused the command.
The commander would be able to enforce its order to kill only when he threatened another British sailor with immediate execution. According to Ehlebrechts statement, the submarine circled in the water. Drifting twice, they were bombarded with a machine gun, but then left on the castaways to pursue the other carriers. Ehlebrecht and other German survivors managed to cling to floating debris and were later rescued.
After these operations, the Torbay sank two more motor sailers of the convoy. A transport ship was able to escape. After the sinking of an Italian tanker, the submarine returned to Egypt.
Miers looked right and had no reason to cover up the killing of prisoners of war, which is why he wrote in the logbook: “Submarine detached and shot with the Lewis machine gun on the soldiers in the boat to prevent them keep their ship. ” The Commander in Chief of the British Mediterranean Fleet, Admiral Cunningham, remarked: “A distinguished conducted patrol. Lieutenant Commander Miers is an outstanding commanding officer. ” For now, no one seemed to violate the Hague Convention and the tradition in the British Navy since Horatio Nelson's generosity in victory is disturbing.
Admiral hoarding in London did not ignore the offense and said: “As far as I know, the enemy has not been shot, usually on in the water or on rafts people, even if they belonged to the armed forces. After the events mentioned in the Torbay report, he might feel entitled to it. ” Horten was in the First World War one of the most experienced and successful British submarine commanders. As a result of the hoarding objection ordered, the Admiralty Miers to refrain from such actions in the future.
Operation Flipper
On 10 November 1941 left the Torbay and her sister boat, Talisman Alexandria. Aboard the two submarines were located 59 commands. Dubbed Operation Flipper specialist company was to capture the commander of the German Africa Corps, General Erwin Rommel. The secret company was designated as the direct preparation of the British counter-offensive Operation Crusader in November / December 1941.
The Command Squad was deposed on the coast of Cyrenaica. The lossy attack on the night of 17-18. November 1941 on the supposed enemy headquarters in Beda Littoria failed. Due to a storm the commandos reached the U-boats not again and went largely into German captivity. Only two men could penetrate through the desert to the British lines.
Another Operation In The Mediterranean
By the summer of 1942, the boat was operating in the Mediterranean and reached more sinkings of transport ships of the Axis. In March 1942, Miers was followed by an enemy convoy to enter the port of Corfu and sank several ships. For this operation, Commander Miers received the Victoria Cross.
In the summer, the Torbay went back to the UK for an overhaul. In February 1943, the submarine returned under the new commander Clutterbuck in the Mediterranean war zone, where it was used until the beginning of 1944 and could reach more sinkings.
Asian Theater Of War
In May 1945, the Torbay reached under the new commander Lt.. Norman, the Asian theater of war, where they still sank two Japanese sailing vessels and a coaster until the end of the war.
Whereabouts
The Torbay was made after the war and decommissioned on 19 December 1945, Sold for scrap. The submarine was scrapped in March 1947 in Briton Ferry (Wales).