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Wilhelm Bauer file photo [32052]

Wilhelm Bauer-class Submarine Tender

CountryGermany
Ships in Class3
BuildersHowaldtswerke Kiel: 3

Contributor:

This article refers to the entire Wilhelm Bauer-class; it is not about an individual vessel.

ww2dbaseThe Wilhelm Bauer-class ships were the largest submarine tenders in the German Navy of the WW2 era. While each ship had a standard crew of 289, each of them could also provide housing for 423 submarine crew members. Eight ships of this class were originally planned, but only three would ultimately be completed. All three of them were built at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. Lead ship Wilhelm Bauer was commissioned into service in Apr 1940, Waldemar Kophamel was commissioned into service in Oct 1940, and Otto Wünsche was commissioned in Jun 1943. Otto Wünsche was a few meters longer than the first two ships. Wilhelm Bauer was lost in action at the end of the war, as was Waldemar Kophamel but she was later raised by the Soviets, and Otto Wünsche was taken over by the Soviet Union.

ww2dbaseSource: german-navy.de

Last Major Revision: Oct 2022

Wilhelm Bauer-class Submarine Tender Interactive Map

Wilhelm Bauer-class Submarine Tender Operational Timeline

1 Jul 1936 The order for the construction of Wilhelm Bauer was issued.
12 Aug 1936 The keel of Wilhelm Bauer was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany.
1 Jan 1937 The order for the construction of Waldemar Kophamel was issued.
12 Aug 1937 The keel of Waldemar Kophamel was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany.
30 Apr 1938 Wilhelm Bauer was launched at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany.
27 Aug 1938 The order for the construction of Otto Wünsche was issued.
23 Sep 1938 The keel of Otto Wünsche was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany.
15 May 1939 Waldemar Kophamel was launched at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany.
30 Apr 1940 Wilhelm Bauer was commissioned into service.
23 May 1940 Otto Wünsche was launched at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany.
21 Oct 1940 Waldemar Kophamel was commissioned into service.
8 Nov 1943 Otto Wünsche was commissioned into service.
18 Dec 1944 Waldemar Kophamel was sunk by Allied aircraft.
9 Feb 1945 Otto Wünsche arrived in Germany and disembarked German servicemen who had been in Latvia at the end of the war.
8 Apr 1945 Wilhelm Bauer was sunk in shallow water by Allied aircraft.
14 Jun 1945 Otto Wünsche suffered an accidental ammunition explosion while in port at Flensburg, Germany. Several crew members were killed.
5 Nov 1945 Otto Wünsche was taken over by the Soviet Union.
6 Mar 1946 The former German submarine tender Otto Wünsche was commissioned into the Soviet Navy under the new name Pechora.
20 Jul 1946 Pechora arrived at the Soviet Navy base near Polyarny, Murmansk Oblast, Russia.
30 Jul 1951 The Soviet Union added Waldemar Kophamel to its Navy List.
17 Sep 1973 Soviet submarine tender Kuban was transferred to the Northern Fleet, where she was to be used as floating barrack under the new name PKZ-12.
17 Sep 1973 Pechora reclassified as a floating barracks ship and was renamed PKZ-14.
13 Apr 1977 Soviet floating barracks PKZ-14 was removed from the Navy List.
9 Feb 1978 Soviet floating barracks PKZ-12 was removed from the Navy List.




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Ships of this Class:
» Otto Wünsche
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» Wilhelm Bauer

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