U-548

Type

IXC/40

Ordered

5 Jun 1941

Laid down

4 Sep 1942

Deutsche Werft AG, Hamburg (werk 369)

Launched

14 Apr 1943

Commissioned

30 Jun 1943

Oblt. Eberhard Zimmermann

Commanders

30 Jun 1943	-	8 Feb 1945	Kptlt. Eberhard Zimmermann
Aug, 1944	-	Nov, 1944	Kptlt. Günther Pfeffer
9 Feb 1945	-	19 Apr 1945	Oblt. Erich Krempl

Career
4 patrols

30 Jun 1943	-	31 Mar 1944	4. Flottille (training)
1 Apr 1944	-	30 Sep 1944	2. Flottille (active service)
1 Oct 1944	-	19 Apr 1945	33. Flottille (active service)

Successes

1 warship sunk, total tonnage 1,445 tons

Fate

Sunk on 19 April 1945 in the North Atlantic south-east of Halifax, in position 42.19N, 61.45W, by depth charges from the US destroyer escorts USS Reuben James and USS Buckley. 58 dead (all hands lost). (Axel Niestlé, January 1990).

Loss position

See the 1 ships hit by U-548 - View the 4 war patrols

Previously recorded fate

Sunk 30 April, 1945 east of Cape Hatteras, USA, in position 36.34N, 74.00W, by depth charges from the US patrol frigate USS Natchez and the destroyer escorts Coffman, Bostwick and Thomas. (Postwar assessment)
Notes. This attack probably resulted in the loss U-879.

Attacks on this boat and other events

3 May 1944
A strange incident in which a B-24 Liberator illuminated HMS Hargood (K 582) while hunting a German U-boat at night east of Conception Bay, Newfoundland. U-548, presuming they were the intended target fired at the aircraft, which wrongly assumed the destroyer escort had done so and broke off the attack. The U-boat went unnoticed by the Allies. (Sources: Blair, vol 2, page 562)

6 May 1944
Following U-548s sinking of the Canadian frigate HMS Valleyfield off St Johns Newfoundland, other Allied escorts (after finally deducing what had happened) hunted the boat, with no success. (Sources: Blair, vol 2, page 562)

2 recorded attacks on this boat.

Schnorchel-fitted U-boat

This boat was fitted with a Schnorchel underwater-breathing apparatus and sailed equipped with it in August 1944 but it was of course installed prior to that date.

Read more about the Schnorchel and see list of fitted boats.