Unterseeboot 656, also U-656, was a German World War II Type VIIC submarine. Her creation was ordered on 9 October 1939, and the keel was laid on 4 September 1940. Construction on U-656 was carried out by Hamburg company Howaldtswerke AG in Yard 805. She was launched on 8 July 1941 and commissioned on 17 September 1941. Type VII U-boats were the workhorses of the German World War II U-boot-waffe, and appeared in several sub-types. ... October 9 is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... July 8 is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 176 days remaining. ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years). ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... Hamburg from above Hamburgs motto: May the posterity endeavour with dignity to conserve the freedom, which the forefathers acquired. ... January 15 is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... February 4 is the 35th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... August is the eighth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian... Type VII U-boats were the workhorses of the German World War II U-boot-waffe, and appeared in several sub-types. ... German UC-1 class World War I submarine A model of Günther Priens Unterseeboot 47 (U-47), German WWII Type VII diesel-electric hunter-killer (SSK) submarine Inside of the Argonaute, showing the typical obstructed, tiny space of a post-WWII diesel attack submarine. ... October 9 is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... September 4 is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years). ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... Hamburg from above Hamburgs motto: May the posterity endeavour with dignity to conserve the freedom, which the forefathers acquired. ... July 8 is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 176 days remaining. ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years). ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ...

U-656 went into service initially with 5. Unterseebootflottille (U-Boat Flotilla) for training from September 1941 until December 1941. She moved into operational service with 1. Unterseebootflottille on 1 January 1942, and was commanded by Ernst Kröning. January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ...

U-656 made two patrols, but did not sink any ships. Her first patrol lasted almost two weeks: after departing Kiel on 15 January 1942, she put in at Brest, France on 28 January. The submarine departed Brest on 4 February 1942, but never completed her second patrol. On 1 March 1942, while in the North Atlantic Ocean south of Cape Race, Newfoundland, Canada, she was sunk with all hands by depth charges dropped by a United States Navy Lockheed Hudson of patrol squadron VP-82, making U-656 the first U-boat to be sunk by the U.S. Navy in World War II. Kiel ( ) is a city in northern Germany and the capital of the Bundesland Schleswig-Holstein. ... January 15 is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... Brest is a city in Brittany, or the Bretagne région, north-west France, sous-préfecture of the Finistère département. ... January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... February 4 is the 35th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... Cape Race, Newfoundland Cape Race (46° 39′ 35″ N, 53° 04′ 20″ W NST) is a point of land located at the southeastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland, Canada. ... Newfoundland —   (stress on final syllable; for mispronunciations, see Newfoundland travel guide from Wikitravel)— (French: , Irish: ) is a large island off the east coast of North America, and the most populous part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. ... Depth Charge used by U.S. Navy later in World War II The depth charge is the oldest anti-submarine weapon. ... USN redirects here. ... Lockheed Hudson Mk V The Lockheed Hudson was a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of World War II. The Hudson was the first significant aircraft construction contract for the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation—the initial RAF order for 200...

References

• Bishop, C. Kriegsmarine U-Boats, 1939-45. Amber Books, 2006.
• ubootwaffe.net: Kriegsmarine and U-Boat history. ubootwaffe.net. Retrieved on 2007-01-18.