The steel U-57 type submarine U-102 was laid down on 12th August 1916 and launched from the Bremen yard of A G Weser (Yard No 253) on 12th May 1917. She measured 221.8′ x 20.7′ x 12.0′ and her tonnage was 750 surface displacement tons, 952 submerged displacement tons. She was powered by 2 x 6 cylinder MAN 4 stroke diesel engines delivering 2367 shaft horse power on the surface and 2 x 883 KW electric motors delivering 1184 shaft horse power when she was submerged. These engines gave her a top speed of 16.5 knots on the surface and 8.5 knots submerged. Built for the German Imperial Navy she was armed with 4 x 50 cm torpedo tubes (2 bow 2 stern 12 torpedoes), 1 x SK L/30 8.8cm deck gun and 1 x SK l/45 (stern) gun. She was commissioned for service on 18th June 1917.
U-102 on surface
In 1917 U-102 sank two allied vessels and in 1918 she succeeded in sinking three more including SS Romeo in the Northern Irish Sea. Her final sortie, under the command of Kapitanlieutnant Curt Beitzen with a crew of forty one men, took her to the North Sea east of Orkney. She disappeared with the loss of all hands in September 1918 on her voyage returning from patrol. Her wartime loss was recorded simply as ‘mined in the Northern Barrage east of Orkney while homebound 28th – 30th September. All hands lost.’
Kapitanlieutnant Curt Beitzen
The exact whereabouts of the loss remained unknown until, in 2006, a mark suspected to be a U-boat and at the western end of the area known to have been protected by a British minefield laid in early September 1918, was dived by a group of technical divers. This dive and subsequent additional dives revealed a U-boat with a layout consistent with U-102. Her identity was confirmed when her unique deck gun configuration provided the definitive proof that this was indeed U-102. The wreck lies upright in 59° 09.334’N, 001° 58.162’W oriented 163/343 degrees. She lies in 79 metres with a least depth clearance of 72 metres.
U-102 Memorial plaque
We would like to acknowledge the assistance of the website – Lost in Waters Deep – in the preparation of this article. Link to website – www.lostinwatersdeep.co.uk
