The submarine was
laid down on 10 August 1940 at the
Howaldtswerke yard at
Hamburg,
launched on 5 June 1941. The submarine was
commissioned on 11 August 1941 under the command of
Kapitänleutnant Adolf Dumrese (13 Nov 1909 - 24 Mar 1942). Attached to
6th U-boat Flotilla based at
Kiel,
U-655 completed her training period on 1 March 1942 and was assigned to front-line service, The submarine left Kiel on 11 March reaching Helgoland on 12 March. From there the submarine departed on the 15 March on her first operational patrol to form part of the
Ziethen wolfpack consisting of U-655 plus U-209, U-376 and U-378 operating northwest of Tromso in the
Norwegian and
Barent seas against the homebound
convoy QP 9. On the evening of 24 March 1942,
U-655 was spotted on the surface about 8.25 pm by the leading gunner on the forward four-inch gun of the minesweeper beam on, about two to three cables (370 to 556 meters) away and about 10 degrees off the minesweeper's starboard bow, with no crew apparently manning the conning tower or deck. Upon being called by the officer of the watch the captain Lieutenant-Commander David Lampen immediately called for emergency full ahead and called 'Stand by to ram'.
Sharpshooter had just begun to gather speed when she struck the submarine just behind the conning tower. The submarine turned rolled over due to the impact and bumped along the minesweeper's port side sinking as it disappeared astern and sank stern first south-east of Bear Island, in approximate position 73.00N, 21.00E. No trace of the submarine or her crew of 45 was found except for two lifebuoys and what may have been a canvas dinghy. ==References==