First patrol U-98 sailed from
Kiel under the command of Robert Gysae on 12 March 1941, and out into the Atlantic south of Iceland. On 27 March she sank the
British 6,695 GRT
Koranton, a straggler from Convoy SC 25, with a single torpedo south southwest of
Reykjavík. The ship sank quickly; she was loaded with 8,769 tons of pig iron. On 4 April
U-98 joined a
wolfpack in an attack on
Convoy SC 26. She sank the
Norwegian 2,467 GRT
Helle, and the British 5,122 GRT
Wellcombe. On 9 April she sank the
Dutch 1,304 GRT
Prins Willem II, from Convoy HX 117. The U-boat then arrived at
Lorient on the French Atlantic coast on 14 April.
Second patrol Sailing from Lorient on 1 May 1941,
U-98 headed once more out into the Atlantic, this time to the waters south of
Cape Farewell, Greenland. There at 04:00 hours on 13 May, she spotted the British 10,549 GRT
armed merchant cruiser (AMC) , escorting Convoy SC 30 in fog.
U-98s first attack, with two
torpedoes missed, as did her second at 06:20. A third attack an hour later was more successful, hitting the AMC amidships and in the bow, although not preventing the ship from opening fire on the submarine, which forced the boat to dive. However, these hits brought down ''Salopian's
radio antenna and fractured a steam line, shutting down her engines. Former merchant vessels such as Salopian'', when converted for naval use, had their cargo holds filled with buoyant material such as empty barrels, so they could withstand a considerable number of torpedo hits and remain afloat. The next day
Salopians commander,
Captain Sir John Meynell Alleyne and 277 officers and ratings were picked up by the
destroyer . One officer and two ratings were lost. On 20 May 1941
U-98 sank the British 5,356 GRT
Rothermere, part of convoy HX 126, which had scattered. The next day she sank the British 7,402 GRT
Marconi, part of another dispersed convoy, OB 322.
U-98 arrived at her new homeport at St. Nazaire on 29 May 1941.
Third patrol Sailing from St. Nazaire on 23 June 1941,
U-98 attacked Convoy OB 341 northwest of the
Azores on 9 July and sank the British 5,945 GRT
Designer, she also destroyed the British 4,897 GRT
Inverness. She returned to St. Nazaire on 23 July.
Fourth patrol Departing from St. Nazaire on 31 August 1941,
U-98 patrolled the waters west of the
British Isles, and on 16 September fired four single torpedoes at Convoy SC 42 north-west of
St. Kilda, sinking the British 4,392 GRT
Jedmoor. She returned to St. Nazaire on 26 September.
Fifth patrol U-98 left St. Nazaire on 29 October 1941, and returned on 29 November, after a patrol in the Atlantic, north of the Azores, lasting 32 days, but with no results.
Sixth patrol U-98 sailed on 18 January 1942, for her last patrol under the command of Robert Gysae, and headed across the Atlantic to the east coast of Canada. There, on 15 February 1942, she torpedoed the British 5,298 GRT
Biela, originally from Convoy ON 62, sinking her about 400 miles southeast of
Cape Race (on the eastern tip of
Newfoundland). There were no survivors, even though the ship's crew had taken to the boats. The U-boat returned to St. Nazaire on 27 February.
Seventh patrol On 31 March 1942, now commanded by
Korvettenkapitän Wilhelm Schulze,
Eighth patrol U-98 next patrol began on 14 July 1942, it took her back to the Florida coast to lay
mines, one of which damaged the
American 185 tons
minesweeper on 10 August 1942. She returned home on 16 September.
Ninth and final patrol U-98s ninth and final patrol was under the command of
Oblt.z.S. Kurt Eichmann. The U-boat departed St. Nazaire on 22 October 1942, and after a voyage out to the mid-Atlantic without result was sunk on 15 November west of the
Strait of Gibraltar at , by
depth charges from the British destroyer , all 46 hands were lost.
Wolfpacks U-98 took part in six
wolfpacks, namely: •
West (8 – 27 May 1941) •
Seewolf (3 – 15 September 1941) • Störtebecker (5 – 19 November 1941) • Gödecke (19 – 22 November 1941) • Natter (30 October – 8 November 1942) • Westwall (8 – 15 November 1942) ==Summary of raiding history==