As previously recounted, Leutnant zur See Kurt Muller and U-33 have survived their first two patrols - seventy-two days at sea spanning early August to early November 1939 and sinking four ships.

It's now the early evening of 24 November 1939 and we're off on our third feindfahrt. The bridge watch and the off-watch crew on deck are enjoying their last few minutes of comparative relaxation...



...as the band plays, the sailors wave and the nurses throw flowers from the Wilhelmshaven quayside.



We rattle out of harbour past the familiar wharves as the inevitable seagulls squawk and wheel overhead.



Out towards the German Bight we go, close behind our by-now-familiar minesweeper escort. The inbound traffic includes a neutral Dutch tanker.



The Obersteurmann plots a course out to our assigned patrol area, Marine Quadrat AM39 in what the Tommies call the Western Approaches, just south of the Rockall Banks.



We don't know it yet, but our first encounter will come long before we get there.

...to be continued!

The morning of 27 November finds U-33 north-east of the Shetlands in stormy, wet weather, visibility very poor. Suddenly, a ship appears out of the murk, coming at us from just off our port bow!



It's a British-flagged freighter and she illuminates us with a searchlight as we turn away to starboard. Thankfully, she doesn't appear to be armed. I order the UZO sight to be brought up to the bridge...



...so we can give her a stern shot before she disappears back into the murk.



The range is just opening out beyond 400 metres as we line her up in the UZO. I remember to reduce the depth setting on the torpedo, which seems to help in heavy seas.



Rohr funf, los! Surely we can't miss at this range? Then it's down to the fuse on the eel, functioning properly.



Torpedo treffe! Debris flies and the target burns after a hit amidships.



U-33 comes around in a wide arc, in case another torpedo will be needed. In these seas, deck guns are out of the question.



If it weren't for the fires and the searchlights, we would barely be able see her.



If she's sinking, she's taking her time, though she's slowed to a near halt. So we attack again. Rohr eins, los!



This time, a miss! U-33 swings to port to avoid ramming her.



Seen from closer to, I reckon the freighter is slowly sinking.



Yes, she's settling in the water, slightly down by the bow.



So we increase speed and leave her to her fate...



...before turning back onto course for our assigned patrol area. I'd rather not think of the chances of the survivors in this weather. They've had plenty of time to get their boats away, but in these seas...



One thing SH3 unfortunately doesn't directly simulate is that U-boat radio operators would invariably listen in to the shipping frequencies during an attack and hear the resulting distress calls; usually thereby being able to look up the ship and establish her name and tonnage. But we can confirm some basic details on the patrol results screen, seeing that we've sunk a merchantman of nearly 6,000 tons.



Especially in such foul weather, it's a decent start to our patrol!

...to be continued!

On the early evening of 30 November 1939, just to the east of our patrol zone, we receive reports of two ships. The furthest is a warship steaming away from us. The other is of a ship closer to us and coming our way. An interception course is soon plotted.



U-33 hammers towards the enemy, as the sun sets in the west.



Just over two hours later - there he is, off the port bow! The UZO is already on the bridge.



Through the sight, I plot the approach of the steamer.



Carefully, I manoeuvre U-33 towards a position that'll be close enough for us to run in for a submerged attack. Then, down we go. The hydrophone operator tracks the target while I adjust speed and heading to get to a good firing point - under 100 metres, minimum gyro angle and close to 90 degrees impact.



The target is an unusual vessel, clearly enemy and unaware of our presence. She's apparently unarmed but the seas are too rough for a deck gun attack. So a submerged torpedo attack it is.



Hit amidships!



The explosion has left a gaping hole and started a fire.



The vessel comes to a halt and sweeps for us with a searchlight, but is she sinking?



She wallows in the swell for what seems a long time before finally going down. As she slips below the surface, we come up.



I have the radio operator report our success....



...then down we go again so that the empty tube can be reloaded, which can't be done on or just below the surface in heavy seas. Meanwhile, the hydrophone operator sweeps for any shipping, with negative results.



I stay down for a couple of hours, to rest the men on the diesels and the bridge.



By early next morning, U-33 has still some distance to go, to reach her patrol area...



...but the bridge watch, as always, is intently scanning sea and sky. They'd be happier if only the weather would improve!



...to be continued!

Daybreak finds U-33 in clearer conditions, although the sea is still rough...



...and the bridge watch is still in sou'westers and oilskins.



Fortunately, things have settled by the time we arrive in AM39.



We spend several days criss-crossing our patrol area...



... but shipping, there is none.



On the radio, I request a fresh patrol grid and am assigned AM41, nearby. That draws a blank too so I expand our search pattern to the north and west, the better to catch traffic heading for the North Channel.



This pays off quickly when, in AM19 in the late afternoon of 5 December, we spot another solitary ship off the port bow, on a slowly converging course.



U-33 picks up speed and races to get ahead of her.



...to be continued!

By the time she's coming up on our port beam, we can see that she's a nondescript tramp steamer.



I can't see any armament, so decide to go for her with the deck gun, before darkness falls. Rounds are zoom zipping after her.



The gun crew keeps up a steady rate of fire...



...and although most are misses initially...



...we're soon hitting her regularly.



Suddenly, as the range winds down, tracers fly as the ship lets fly at us with multiple automatic weapons!



I crash dive but come back up to periscope depth. I should probably have surfaced again after getting back out of her range and carried on with the deck gun. But she's slow enough such that we can get into position for a torpedo attack. We let fly with a single eel from 400 metres as the light begins to wane.



The torpedo runs straight and true...



...and the resultant explosion breaks the target's back. What's left is disappearing beneath the surface by the time we come back up.



No doubt about that one! Apparently she was a 'repair ship' of only 2,000 tons, but they all count.



So far, so good! Off we go in search of more victims.



...to be continued!

U-33 motors to the east-north-east, where I hope the traffic for British ports will converge, giving us targets for our remaining eels while we still have sufficient fuel.



Just after mid-day on 9th December 1939, west of the Hebrides, we set course to intercept a ship reported to our south-east, steaming westwards.



A swell is running in high winds but visibility is good as we turn onto a reciprocal course towards the target.



Just after three in the afternoon, and there she is, almost dead ahead! A perfect interception!



I watch her draw closer through the binos. We're in a good position, off her port bows, fine but not too fine. My plan is to submerge before she spots us, let her come nearly abeam and then turn towards her for a low gryo angle attack close to a 90 degree angle off her port bow.



She looks like a bit of a rust bucket, albeit a decent-sized one with lots of deck cargo and presumably also, full holds.



No armament can be seen from my distance but after last time, I'm not inclined to take chances! All the time, the freighter steams on, quite oblivious to us.



We submerge and then comes the usual adjustments of speed and course, to get into position at close range. Occasional observations through the attack periscope are supplemented by regular updates from the hydrophone operator, whom I have instructed to keep reporting the target's bearing.



Not long now! I select Tube 2 and order its outer door opened. We won't be quite at the ideal perpendicular angle off his bows before it gets too close to shoot but never mind!



Got her!



Now, is one eel going to be enough?

...to be continued!

The steamer loses way, wallowing in the swell with quite a large hole torn in her side. I end up having to crash dive underneath her to avoid a collision...



...and am rather lucky she doesn't fall on our heads, after she suddenly capsizes!



We turn and come to the surface...



...by which time, all that's left is an oil slick and some floating debris...



...amidst which is a life raft with a few sad survivors.



It's broad daylight and we're well within range of enemy air patrols, which is good news for the survivors but bad news for us. We diesel away from the scene...



...and resume our course to the north east, reporting our success to BdU as we go.



We're credited this time with a 5,000-plus ton freighter.



By now, we're low on torpedoes and fuel, so I order a course plotted for home. If we encounter any more shipping on the way, all the better!

...to be continued!

During the last spell of calm weather I was able to bring the two reload eels stored under the deck casing into the boat - in darkness to minimise the risk of being caught unable to submerge. This gave me six torpedoes, two aft and four forward. So I decide to belay, or at least defer, the order to return to base and instead, to linger in this area a while longer.

On the morning of 14 December 1939, five days after our last sinking, we receive a report of a convoy not far to our south-west. I have the obersteurmann plot an interception course. As online sources show, there are tools and ways to calculate and plot more direct interceptions, but this method, though more extravagant in fuel, usually works fine for me - first leg, a fast run to intersect their track ahead of them; second leg, slow down as you come onto the reciprocal course.



It's late afternoon by the time we make a sighting.



But it's no-where near where the convoy should be. Instead, we've run into another single ship, sailing independently.



Still on the surface, U-33 swings around to get onto an interception course. The sea state rules our the deck guns, so this is going to be a torpedo attack. Submerged if I can get close enough undetected on the surface first - so that I'm not shooting at a target taking evasive action, and don't have to worry about any defensive armament.



When I judge that we're close enough to make the final approach submerged, down we go to periscope depth.



Up periscope! This is developing nicely. By now it's dusk and the sun is setting.



We get to within 600 metres undetected, then cut loose with a single eel.



All we have left for the bow tubes are steam-powered G7a types and the victim evidently spots the bubble trail at the last moment; or less likely, our periscope. Searchights come on and sweep the surface...



...but it doesn't do any good. Torpedo treffe!



...to be continued!

The freighter refuses to go down, so a further attack is necessary. The first torpedo misses or fails to explode, so we have to make yet another run.



No doubt about it, this time!



The ship is unarmed and probably sinking anyway so I order the boat surfaced.



We begin to circle slowly around the stopped freighter, waiting for the end...



...which comes quickly, heralded by a series of secondary explosions.



U-33 quits the scene of the sinking, which we report by radio.



By now we've only three eels left and the fuel situation dictates we return to Wilhemlshaven. The only hazard we faced was an sH3 bug - reloading a save soon after the sinking, the mission started with the boat plunging uncontrollably to the seabed! I managed to exit and 'auto-return' to base before we were crushed; if that hadn't saved the day I would have edited the 'Windspeed' value in the three campaign files from 0 to 4 which apparently enables the saved mission to load without the death plunge bug.

This resulted in the patrol ending without allowing for the trip home, a day or two early. Otherwise, our third patrol has been easily U-33's most successful of the war. Here's the log from SH3 Commander, which with the relevant option enabled allocates real names to the ships sunk and provides details of their cargoes and the fate of their crews.



The next patrol will start in 1940, so U-33 and her crew have survived 1939! Ample excuse to head down to the best of the local establishments...



...and unwind, before we go out again!