Followers

Saturday, June 11, 2022

Right at the end of WWII, Argentina was surprised by the sudden appearance of two U-boats. They were U530 - a type IXC/40 commanded by Oberleutnat Otto Vermouth which surrendered on July 10, 1945, and the U-977, a type VIIC commanded by Olt. Heinz Schaffer who gave up on August 17, 1945. Both after Germany had already surrendered, and not complying with the Allies and the Kriegsmarine orders to surrender immediately at their original positions. During WWII Argentina had a lot of U-Boat sightings. Reported by newspapers these cases remain unexplained, as they were just simple sightings of what people called "periscopes". But from March 1945 the Argentine Navy took a more active part in the search for submarines, reportedly due to the presence of German submarines in the South Atlantic, trying to reach "Japanese waters". One of these submarines, the U234 surrendered to the US on 14 May 1945. Argentina could offer fleeing Germans a safe haven. According to oral traditions, many Germans disembarked from submarines in the Patagonian coast. Some of the Germans in this area have stated that they disembarked from a submarine, though this has never been proven. If it happened, it would be likely that the submarines would be scuttled along the deserted shores of Patagonia.


 

No comments:

Post a Comment