What Salvage Divers Found Inside Sunken Nazi Germany Submarine Will Leave You Speechless
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In the cold, dark waters off the coast of Norway, a ghost story lingered for decades—a tale of a vanished Nazi submarine, its mission lost to time. This was the story of U864, a submarine that held secrets so dangerous that their discovery would lead to an international crisis and a decades-long environmental dilemma.
The year was 1944, and Nazi Germany was in retreat. The Allies were closing in from all sides, and Berlin was desperate for any advantage. In a last-ditch effort to bolster its ally, Japan, with crucial technology and materials, Germany converted U864 into a covert cargo vessel. This formidable Type IXD2 cruiser was designed for endurance and range, capable of crossing oceans. Command of the submarine fell to Korvettenkapitän Ralph Wulfr, a seasoned officer tasked with a secret mission known as Operation Caesar.
As U864 set sail, her hull was packed with advanced technical components, including parts for jet engines and guidance systems. Most alarmingly, she carried 1,857 steel flasks containing nearly 67 tons of metallic mercury—critical for Japan’s munitions factories, which were in dire need of mercury fulminate for primers and detonators. This cargo transformed the submarine from a weapon into a lifeline for an ally on the brink of collapse.
However, the voyage was fraught with misfortune. U864 suffered damage during transit, forcing her into Norwegian ports for repairs. These delays attracted the attention of Allied intelligence, and British submarines were dispatched to intercept her. On February 9, 1945, U864 met her fate. While both submarines were submerged, HMS Venturer, under the command of Lieutenant James S. Londers, executed a remarkable attack. Using hydrophone bearings and a calculated firing solution, Londers fired four torpedoes. U864 evaded the first three but tragically maneuvered into the path of the fourth, which struck her and sent the submarine to the seabed, taking all 73 souls aboard with her.
For decades, the wreck lay undisturbed on the ocean floor, its secrets hidden beneath layers of water and time. It wasn’t until 2003 that the Royal Norwegian Navy made a shocking discovery: U864, broken in two and lying 150 meters below the surface, was real. But the wreck was not merely a historical relic; it was an environmental time bomb.
The investigation revealed that U864 was carrying not just advanced technology but also a catastrophic ecological threat. Scattered around the wreck were the steel flasks containing mercury, a toxic substance that would soon begin to leak into the marine environment. The Norwegian authorities quickly imposed a fishing ban around the site, but the danger was real. Tests confirmed that the flasks, once robust, had corroded over the decades, and mercury was seeping into the seabed. The contamination was staggering, with mercury levels near the wreck soaring to 24,000 mg per kilogram—an ecological disaster unfolding in slow motion.
As the Norwegian government grappled with this dire situation, they faced a daunting dilemma: what to do with the unstable wreck? The options were stark. They could either encase the wreck in sand and gravel, sealing the watery grave of 73 men, or attempt a full salvage operation to remove the dangerous cargo. The weight of history loomed over this decision, especially for the families of those lost aboard U864.
Among the crew was 18-year-old Willie Transier, a young man in love who had just proposed to his sweetheart, Edith Wetszler, before embarking on this perilous mission. The thought of sealing his fate beneath the ocean weighed heavily on his family and community, as they mourned not just the loss of a sailor but the dreams and hopes tied to his life.
In November 2008, Norway chose to pursue a salvage operation, awarding a contract to Mammoet Salvage BV, the team that had successfully raised the Russian submarine Kursk years earlier. Their plan involved using deep-sea robots to navigate the treacherous wreckage, carefully handling the fragile flasks of mercury. It was an ambitious and risky endeavor, but as the project progressed, the challenges became overwhelming. The unstable seabed and the threat of disturbing the mercury flasks posed significant dangers.
Ultimately, the salvage plan was abandoned, and the decision was made to encase the wreck. A thick layer of sand and gravel was placed over U864, topped with rocks and concrete to prevent erosion. This solution, while practical, was somber. It sealed the submarine’s secrets and the souls of 73 men beneath a protective shield, leaving the community to grapple with the loss.
The human cargo aboard U864 was not merely the physical materials; it included the expertise of four technicians who were essential to the mission. Among them were two Messerschmitt engineers, Ralph von Klinganberg and Ricklef Shmerus, who were not just delivering blueprints but were the architects of the technology that could have changed the course of the war. Their knowledge was invaluable, holding the keys to turning German jet engine designs into operational realities for Japan.
Also aboard were Japanese specialists, including torpedo expert Tadaw Yamoto and fuel specialist Toshio Nakai, who represented a two-way exchange of knowledge between the Axis powers. Their mission was a desperate attempt to bridge the technological gap, but the abrupt end of U864’s journey erased any hope for collaboration. The tragedy of their loss was profound, as it not only represented a tactical blow but also a significant intellectual loss for both nations.
Rumors swirled around U864, particularly the persistent myth that it carried uranium oxide for Japan’s atomic bomb project. However, investigations revealed no evidence to support this claim. Instead, the wreck held the far more dangerous cargo of mercury and advanced technical components that would have devastating consequences for both the environment and human health.
As the years passed, the story of U864 became a poignant reminder of the intersection of war, technology, and human tragedy. The submarine, once a symbol of hope for its mission, transformed into a ghostly reminder of what could have been. The loss of life, the secrets buried beneath the waves, and the ongoing environmental crisis served as a sobering testament to the costs of war.
In the end, the legacy of U864 is not just one of lost technology or environmental disaster; it is a story of lives intertwined with history, of dreams dashed beneath the waves, and of the haunting reminder that the ghosts of the past can linger long after the battles have ended. The tale of U864 is a complex tapestry of ambition, tragedy, and the enduring impact of choices made in the throes of war, echoing through time as a cautionary tale for future generations.
