The Nazi submarine U-1206 he is among the protagonists of one of the most absurd stories of the Second World War, remembered not only for his great battles but also for small events that are often forgotten. In 1945, in fact, the submarine was forced to resurface in enemy waters – where it was immediately hit by Allied forces – after the captain of the vessel he made a mistake in using the bathroom on boardending up getting arrested 46 crew members. But let’s go in order.
The toilets on board the Nazi submarine U-1206
One of the main advantages of submarines is their ability to stay submerged for large amounts of time and this, clearly, involves finding a solution to manage the physiological needs of sailors. Many vehicles (especially Allied) were equipped with special ones tanks to store the sewage during the immersion phases, and then disperse it during the emergence. The main problem with this system is that it took up a fair amount of space and, for this reason, the Nazis opted for another solution.
They usually had one direct dischargewhich allowed the sewage to be released outside at any time. This saved space but, on the other hand, could only be used in waters superficial: otherwise the external pressure would have caused sea water to enter the submarine. During deep dives it was therefore necessary to use alternative means, such as buckets… and as it is easy to imagine, in an already complicated environment like that of the submarine, this was a significant source of discomfort.
For this reason, technologically more advanced submarines were designed, such as theU-1206equipped with pressurized systems to discharge waste even in deep waters. The only drawback is that the mechanism could only be operated via a complex valve system and this required the presence of a specialized crew member, who was capable of operate them in the correct order.
This is where it comes in Karl-Adolf Schlittthe captain of the vehicle.
The day of the accident
The April 14 [1945 U-1206 was located off the coast of Cruden Bayin Scotland, for an attack patrol mission. Captain Schlitt, confident in his abilities, decided to go to the onboard toilet without notifying the operator of the pressurized system, convinced that he was able to operate it himself. Unfortunately for him, he realized that he didn’t have the necessary skills and so he was forced to call the employee, hastily explaining what he had tried to do.
There was probably a misunderstanding between the two and the operator operated a valve wrongcausing the entry of a large amount of waterfall and sewage inside the submarine. But not only that: the battery room immediately under the bathroom was also flooded, causing the dispersion of large quantities of chlorine gas.
At this point there was no other choice: U-1206 absolutely had to go back up before it was too late. The problem is that, being in enemy waters, the vehicle was immediately targeted by British planes which were patrolling the area at that time. It is estimated that three sailors lost their lives as they tried to swim to shore, while the others 46 crew members they were soon captured and made prisoners of war, putting an end to one of the most unlikely stories of the Second World War.
