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U-571

AMERICA CAPTURES a U-BOAT

With about ten months left to fight the War in Europe, the U.S. Navy captured U-505 off the coast of Cape Blanco (French West Africa). It was the first American capture of an enemy ship at sea since 1815.

Several U.S. ships were involved, including the "baby" aircraft carrier USS Guadalcanal and its airmen. Captain Daniel V. Gallery, commander of the Guadalcanal, had an important objective in mind: He wanted to capture a U-boat with its encoding equipment intact.

U-505 was returning to base following an 80-day spree of destruction in the Gulf of Guinea when the USS Chatelaine radioed the Guadalcanal:

Frenchy to Bluejay - I have a possible sound contact.

Immediately responding, Guadalcanal launched her planes. One of the pilots radioed:

Sighted sub - destroyers head from spot where we are shooting.

Firing "hedgehogs," a type of depth charge, the destroyers launched the attack against 505. She was badly damaged and forced to surface.