1942: U-boat Menace Off North Carolina Coast-- Part 1: "Every Victory Was An Invitation to be Sunk"

From the September 4, 2012, Wilmington (NC) Star-News "Author describes U-Boat menace from German perspective" by Coln D. Heaton.

The North Carolina coast during World War II is a largely forgotten battlefield.  Seventy Allied ships were sunk offshore by German U-boats, most in the first months of the U.S. entry in the war, 1942.

Serious danger to Allied shipping, but equally dangerous for the Germans as well.

Peter Erich Cremer commanded the U-333 and was awarded a Knight's Cross.  He considered North Carolina's coastal waters as being extremely dangerous, "The target rich environment was alluring, yet the very shallow waters, tidal variances and strong currents also created danger for the U-Boats."

One of his kills was the British freighter Clan Skene which he sank May 10, 1942 at 9:05 a.m. with two torpedoes.  Three days later, his submarine was limping back to France after having been seriously damaged by depth charges.  He described his return "a balm after those terrible depth charges."

"The shallow waters and strong current made escape difficult.  Every victory was an invitation to be sunk right afterward."

--GreGen