SM UB-85

For other ships with the same name, see German submarine U-85.

UB-148 at sea, a U-boat similar to UB-85.
History
German Empire
Name:	UB-85
Ordered:	23 September 191623 September 1916
Builder:	AG Weser, Bremen
Cost:	3,341,000 German Papiermark
Yard number:	285
Laid down:	24 January 1917
Launched:	26 October 1917
Commissioned:	24 November 1917
Fate:	sunk 30 April 1918 by British warship at
General characteristics
Class & type:	German Type UB III submarine
Displacement:	516 t (508 long tons) surfaced 647 t (637 long tons) submerged
Length:	55.85 m (183 ft 3 in) (o/a)
Beam:	5.80 m (19.0 ft)
Draught:	3.72 m (12 ft 2 in)
Propulsion:	2 × propeller shaft 2 × Daimler four-stroke 6-cylinder diesel engines, 1,050 bhp (780 kW) 2 × BBC electric motors, 780 shp (580 kW)
Speed:	13.4 knots (24.8 km/h; 15.4 mph) surfaced 7.5 knots (13.9 km/h; 8.6 mph) submerged
Range:	8,180 nmi (15,150 km; 9,410 mi) at 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph) surfaced 50 nmi (93 km; 58 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth:	50 m (160 ft)
Complement:	3 officers, 31 men
Armament:	5 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes (4 bow, 1 stern) 10 torpedoes 1 × 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun
Service record
Part of:	V Flotilla 10 February – 30 April 1918
Commanders:	Kptlt. Günther Krech 24 November 1917 – 30 April 1918
Operations:	2 patrols
Victories:	None

SM UB-85 was a Type UB III U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. Ordered on 23 September 1916, the U-boat was built at the AG Weser shipyard in Bremen and commissioned on 24 November 1917, under the command of Kapitänleutnant Günther Krech.

Construction

Main article: German Type UB III submarine

She was built by AG Weser of Bremen and following just under a year of construction, launched at Bremen on 26 October 1917. UB-85 was commissioned later that same year. Like all Type UB III submarines, UB-85 carried 10 torpedoes and was armed with a 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun. UB-85 would carry a crew of up to 3 officer and 31 men and had a cruising range of 8,180 nautical miles (15,150 km; 9,410 mi). UB-85 had a displacement of 516 t (508 long tons) while surfaced and 647 t (637 long tons) when submerged. Her engines enabled her to travel at 13.4 knots (24.8 km/h; 15.4 mph) when surfaced and 7.5 knots (13.9 km/h; 8.6 mph) when submerged.

Service history

On her second patrol, she was picked up by HMS Coreopsis off the coast of Belfast, Ireland on 30 April 1918, after she was partially flooded through an semi-open hatch while trying to evade the Coreopsis. The submarine was forced to surface and was abandoned by her crew while under fire. No casualties occurred amongst the 34 crew and they were taken as prisoners of war. The captain was taken under interrogation and said that the submarine had surfaced the night before to recharge the batteries.