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S-Boats in the Kriegsmarine
Letter-Code of the 7. SFltl
The letter-code of the 7. SFltl was using the first letter of the first name or the nickname of the commanding officer.
The letter-code was changed when there was a change in command but not because of just a short replacement. Before the lettercode was introduced to alle boats, single boats had their own coat of arms, so e.g. WS 158" with a crossbow on the side under the bridge.
"S 158" with the Crossbow before the letters were introduced - Picture: Archives H. Kloetzke
"S 156" during torpedo-replenishment in an Adria-harbour - Picture: Archives Kloetzke
On September 15th 1942 the boats were commanded as follows:
| Boat | Commanding Officer | Code |
| S 151 | Obtlt.z.S. Hermann Holzapfel | H |
| S 152 | ObFhnr.z.S. Friedrich-Wilhelm Heye | F |
| S 153 | Lt.z.S. Sven Rautenberg | S |
| S 154 | ObFhnr.z.S. Gunnar Kelm | G |
| S 155 | Kptlt. Wolf Dietrich Babbel | W |
| S 156 | Oblt.z.S. Klaus Thomsen | K |
| S 157 | Oblt.z.S. Karlheinz Merkel | ? |
| S 158 | Oblt.z.S. Günther Erdmann | ? |
On May 31st 1943 the boats were commandes as follows:
| Boat | Commanding Officer | Code |
| S 151 | Kptlt. Hermann Holzapfel | H |
| S 152 | Lt.z.S. Friedrich-Wilhelm Heye | F |
| S 153 | Lt.z.S. Sven Rautenberg | S |
| S 154 | Lt.z.S. Gunnar Kelm | G |
| S 155 | Lt.z.S. d.Res. Harald Marxen | ? |
| S 156 | Oblt.z.S. Klaus Thomsen | K |
| S 157 | Lt.z.S. Hans-Wulf Heckel | ? |
| S 158 | Oblt.z.S. Claus Schulze-Jena | C |
Some
sources say the letter-code for "S
158" is „H“
Of the boat "S 153" (code "S") we unfortunately do not have pictures.
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| S 151 - Code "H" - Picture: Archives Förderverein |
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| S 152 - Code "F" - Picture: Archives 7. SGschw |
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| S 153 - Code "S" - Picture: Archives Erling Skjold |
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| S 154 - Code "G" - Picture: Archives Ola Erlandsson |
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| S 155 - Code "W" - Picture: Archives Eric-Jan Bakker |
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| S 156 - Code "K" - Picture: Archives Kloetzke |
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| S 157 - Code "E" - Picture: Archives Kloetzke |
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| S 158 - Code "C" inthe rear S 151 - Picture: Archives Förderverein |
On May 03rd 1945 the boats "S 151", "S 152", "S 155" and "S 156" of the former 7. SFltl together with the boats "S 30", "S 36" and "S 61" of the former 3. SFltl were still berthed at Pola..
The boats of the former 7. SFltl were commanded as follows:
| Boat | Commanding Officer | Code |
| S 151 | Lt.z.S.d.Res.
Hellmuth Greiner |
H |
| S 152 | OBStm.
Erich Mensch |
? |
| S 155 | OBStm Erwin Schipke | D |
| S 156 | Lt.z.S.
Harald Marxen |
K |
Boats 7. SFltl - S 156 (K), in Front of Krane S 155 (D) - Picture: Archives Kloetzke
Boats of the 1. SBoots-Division (3. and 7. SFltl) in Ancona, Italy - Picture: Archives Kloetzke
The boats were surrendered to the British on May 3rd 1945 at Ancona. FRom there they were brought to La Valetta/Malta. They were sunk by the British in the coastal waters of Malta.
The pictures taken in La Valetta show a boat with code "K" and another with code "D". It is assumed, that code "K" is a leftover of Oblt.z.S. Klaus Thomsen. It is not known which of the boats had code "D".
"S 156" with code "K" and a boat witht code "D" in the rear in La Valetta harbour 1945 - Picture: Archives Gowing