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Not the Wahoo by Paul Crozier As news broke on August 16, 2006, that the wreck of Wahoo had been located and dived upon, everyone familiar with the story clamored for photographs of the boat. Within days, Russian media reports began to include the photo attachment below of a sunken submarine lying on its side in the murky depths. While it was a striking image, it was not USS Wahoo (SS-238) but rather the U-352, a Type VII German U-boat.
When closely examined, the conning tower shape, periscopes, and gun mount are all shaped differently than what one would expect to find on a Gato class American fleet boat. Furthermore, the same image was incorporated into the jacket design of the book "Lost Subs" by Spencer Dunmore and published in 2002.
U-352 was sunk May 9, 1942 southwest of Cape Hatteras during an engagement with the US Coast Guard cutter USS Icarus. Damaged by depth charges from Icarus, the crew surfaced and abandoned ship while several men scuttled the boat. 15 of her crew were killed in the action but 33 managed to survive. They spent the rest of the war as POWs. Since the war, the wreck has become a favorite spot for sport divers. She rests in 100-115 feet of water and visibility is generally very good, ranging from 50 to 100+ ft. NC-WreckDiving.com reports: "The wreck is small and intact and can be circumnavigated a couple of times during a normal dive. It is sitting on its keel, with a strong (45 degree?) list to the starboard side. Most of what you see on the bottom is the remains of the pressure hull. The U-boat's outer casing has, for the most part, rusted away. For experienced NC divers, the biggest challenge of the U-352 is waiting for the boat captain to hook the wreck. It's small size and rounded edges make it the one the captains love to hate. New NC divers, however, beware. For some reason, over the years, the U-352 has claimed more that its fair share of diving accidents and fatalities." |
