Albrecht Achilles (Korvettenkapitän)

Albrecht Adolf Konrad Achilles ( born January 15, 1914 in Karlsruhe, † September 27, 1943 in the Atlantic Ocean near Salvador da Bahia at 12 ° 30 ' S, 35 ° 0' W -12.5 -35 ) was a German naval officer and commander of the submarine U 161

Life

Achilles joined the Navy in April 1934. His military training ( appointed midshipman on 26 September 1934 Midshipman on 1 July 1935), he completed on the training ship Schleswig -Holstein and the battleship Gneisenau. He was then shifted to the Naval Academy Mürwik. His military career began on 16 April 1937 with the appointment as lieutenant. Achilles was ordered in April 1940 for anti-submarine fleet. After basic training, he was transferred to January 3, 1941 on the boat U 66 under Lieutenant Commander Richard Zapp. On U 66 Achilles completed three patrols. After the third trip in the summer of 1941 Achilles (14 August 1941) was a captain lieutenant and received 161 U as a separate command. With this he operated mainly in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean near the coasts of Brazil and Africa. Among the successes, the Achilles held, with U 161, is one of the sinking of the U.S. Coast Guard ship Acacia and damage to the British light cruiser Phoebe. Total Achilles succeeded the sinking of 15 ships with 64,842 GRT, and the damage to six other ships on six patrols with U 161 On 12 March 1942, he was mentioned by name in the Wehrmacht report and on 16 January 1943 he was awarded for his services to the Knight 's Cross. When was U 161 on September 27, 1943 sunk by a flying boat, Achilles came with his entire team (53 man) killed. On 5 April 1945 he was promoted posthumously to Lieutenant Commander.

Ranks

  • Midshipman on September 26, 1934
  • Petty Officer on October 1, 1934
  • Senior Staff sailor on January 1, 1935
  • Midshipman on July 1, 1935
  • Midshipman on January 1, 1937
  • Lieutenant on April 16, 1937
  • Lieutenant on April 13, 1939
  • Lieutenant on August 14, 1941
  • Lieutenant Commander on April 5, 1945 ( posthumously )

Awards

  • Wehrmacht Long Service Award IV class on April 8, 1938
  • Iron Cross (1939 ), Second Class on August 7, 1941
  • U- boat War Badge (1939 ) on August 7, 1941
  • Iron Cross (1939 ), First Class on April 5, 1942
  • Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on January 16, 1943
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