GERMAN SUBMARINE U-1105 BLACK PANTHER

Now in its final resting place at the bottom of the Potomac River in Maryland, the U-boat U-1105 is unique among German World War Two submarines. Technologically innovative, it was the only U-boat to conduct a wartime patrol while equipped with the snorkel, GHG Balkon passive sonar, and a rubberised coating known as Alberich designed to reduce its acoustic signature and hide from Allied sonar. Known as the Black Panther, one key development was the airmast (snorkel), allowing it to regain air and charge its batteries without ever having to surface. After the end of the war, it was the single most tested U-boat by the Western Allies and the last U-boat to sail across the North Atlantic under its own power during the winter of 1945-46. Highly illustrated with many new and previously unpublished pictures, this complete history includes its 'rediscovery' in the 1980s, technical detail on each of its late-war innovations, and a full colour underwater guide to all the key features of the wreck site. Each is individually captioned whether it is the top of the sky periscope mount with fishing line caught on it, or the gun mounts. Colour and black and white, 136pp, 24.7 x 26.2cm.