Not so long ago, perhaps the most unpleasant secret of the Great Patriotic War, which all these years tormented all military sailors and historians, began to be solved. In 1942 submarine L-24 " Kalininets"did not return from the military campaign. Her death in a given square was not confirmed and after a long search, the version was accepted that the team committed treason and went over to the side of the Germans. It was unacceptable to talk about this, but today we can accurately answer the question of what really happened?
Submarine « Kalininets"This is one of the Soviet submarines of the project" Leninist" They became the first minelayers to be developed entirely in the Soviet Union. Previous minelayers were developed and built in the UK.
Submarines like " Leninist"were Soviet diesel-electric minelayer submarines from the Second World War. A total of 25 submarines of this type were built according to four different projects: series II, XI, XIII and XIII-bis, which were part of the Baltic, Northern, Black Sea and Pacific fleets of the USSR.
Submarine L-24 " Kalininets"belonged to series XIII-bis. A total of six of the same type were built, which were considered the most advanced submarines of the Lenin project. The length of the submarine hull was reduced by 2 meters to prevent torpedoes from hitting the breakwater shields when firing. Thanks to the use of rubber shock absorbers, noise submarines series XIII bis decreased markedly. Replacement of the power plant with diesel engines of type 1-D with a power of 2000 hp. pp., made it possible to increase the surface speed to 18 knots.
Submarine L-24 " Kalininets"was laid down at plant No. 198 on October 20, 1938, launched on December 17, 1940, and entered the Soviet fleet on April 29, 1942.
During the Great Patriotic War submarine L-24 became the main minelayer of the Black Sea Fleet. Its task was to mine the waters off the enemy’s coast. But in December 1942, during the next combat campaign, the submarine stopped communicating. For almost 70 years, the fate remained unknown, and only recently did Russian researchers answer the question of what happened to the main minelayer of the Black Sea Fleet.
7 kilometers from the Bulgarian Cape Shabla there is a mass grave of Soviet submarines times of the Great Patriotic War. Five sank in the area in 1942 and 1943. After 60 years, researchers were able to examine four submarines. The latest and greatest discovery was the submarine " Kalininets" Frame submarines so well preserved that even during an external examination, the divers were sure that they had found the L-24. And what the expedition members saw later dispelled the last doubts. Scientists have found the serial number of the B-2 type bow gun. Combat fire control devices with corresponding markings and numbers were also found.
Submarine lies at a depth of 60 meters on the keel. The bow and stern of the L-24 rise approximately 1 meter above the bottom surface. After examining the skeleton submarines, members of the expedition reconstructed the picture of the death of the submarine.
The guns on the deck are covered, the hatches are battened down. This means that the submarine was under water at the time of its death. Moreover, the researchers managed to establish the last maneuver that the submarine made to escape. The readings on the instruments were frozen: “left stop” and “right small forward.” Most likely submarine hooked the minerep (the cable that attaches the mine to the anchor). The commander gave the order to avoid this cable, but at some point the submarine touched a mine and an explosion occurred.
On December 6, 1942, the minelayer L-24 left the port of Poti with the task of laying 20 mines along the Bulgarian coast. It was along this route that Adolf Hitler’s troops transported equipment from Romania to capture Stalingrad. To the combat duty area submarine was supposed to arrive on December 15th. Three days earlier, the Black Sea Fleet command received a radiogram from the captain of the submarine L-24, which asked the submariners to prepare beacons for the return of the submarine. The crew is in their home port submarines We were waiting for December 31st, New Year's Eve. But not on the appointed date, nor a few days later, the Soviet submarine L-24 did not return. The captain of the submarine did not respond to radiograms from the fleet leadership.
33 days after the start of the campaign submarines, On January 9, 1943, the sinking of the submarine was officially announced. Based on archival documents, historians determined the approximate date of the tragedy as December 12-14, 1942. The main version of the disaster submarines L-24 " Kalininets“It is believed that a mine explosion occurred, and members of the Russian underwater expedition confirmed this version. The explosion occurred on the left side in the area of the 3rd compartment. But the most shocking thing was the discovery that the submariners had no chance of salvation. Rechargeable batteries submarines released a large amount of hydrogen. After the mine exploded, a fireball of accumulated hydrogen formed inside the submarine, which swept along the entire length of the submarine's hull. Researchers saw melted metal on the components and assemblies of the sunken submarine, concluding that the fire was very strong and rapid.
Unfortunately, members of the expedition were unable to find the logbook, so the details of the death submarines will remain a mystery to historians. But one thing can be said with confidence - there was no betrayal. The sailors died as heroes, and there is no longer any reason for offensive versions. Eternal memory and eternal glory to all the fallen submariners.
Technical characteristics of the underwater minelayer "Kalininets" series XIII-bis:
Surface displacement - 1025 tons;
Underwater displacement - 1312 tons;
Length - 78 m;
Width - 7.2 m;
Draft - 3.9 m;
Power plant - two diesel engines of 1100 liters each. With. and two electric motors of 600 hp each. With.;
Surface speed - 14.5 knots;
Underwater speed - 8.3 knots;
Immersion depth - 75 m;
Autonomy - 28 days;
Crew - 54 people;
Armament:
B-2 102 mm gun - 1;
533 mm torpedo tubes - 6 (ammunition load 12 torpedoes);
Stern mine tubes - 2 (ammunition capacity 20 min);
underwater minelayer II series
The submarine "L-3" was laid down on September 6, 1929 at plant No. 189 (Baltic Shipyard) in Leningrad under construction number 197 as "Frunzovets". On August 8, 1931, the ship was launched, on November 5, 1933, it entered service and on November 9, 1933, under the command of Pyshnov Alexander Alekseevich became part of the Baltic Sea Naval Forces.
On August 15, 1934, when the submarine was at the base, a fire occurred in the third group of L-3 batteries, caused by the shorting of the elements by the yoke of the low-lying pipeline of the ventilation system. Only the timely and correct actions of the ship's commander Pyshnov and mechanical engineer V.V. Matveev prevented serious consequences.
In November 1939, “L-3” stood up at plant No. 196 in Leningrad for major repairs and modernization. In December 1940, the submarine, taking factory workers on board, moved to Kronstadt, and on December 15 to Libau, where it underwent sea trials until mid-January 1941. On February 24, 1941, the L-3 entered service again.
“Frunzovets” met the beginning of the Great Patriotic War as part of the 3rd division of the 1st brigade of the Red Ban Baltic Fleet submarine in Libau. The submarine was commanded by captain 3rd rank (later captain 2nd rank) Grishchenko Petr Denisovich .
The submarine "Frunzovets" is being completed. 1933
Command staff of the submarine "L-3". From left to right: foreman of the group of bilge operators M.V. Valtsev, foreman of the torpedo group S.I. Sidorov, (?), boatswain K.E. Nastyukhin, submarine commander P.D. Grishchenko, commander of BC-5 M.A. Krastelev, foreman of the electricians group N.I. Shevyakov, senior assistant V.K. Konovalov, commander of BC-2-3 I.A. Dubinsky, (?), (?). July 1942
On the evening of June 22, the submarine left Libau to carry out close base patrol at the Akmenrags lighthouse. Divisional mechanic M.F. went on board the submarine. Weinstein. When the L-3 surfaced to charge, it was clearly visible how the city and port were burning.
Finally, on June 26, the submarine received an order to lay mines in the Memel area. On June 27, “L-3” installed a barrier in the indicated area consisting of 4 mine cans of 5 mines each, which ultimately ended up away from the shipping fairway. Despite the fact that various sources name at least six ships as victims of the first L-3 mines, the launch had no result. The former Latvian transport "Kaia" (244 GRT) and the Swedish tanker "Uno" (430 GRT), which perished near Memel on October 1 and November 22, 1941, as well as the German motor ship "Egerau" (1142 GRT), which perished on November 26, 1941, became victims of German mines. The transport "Gunther" (1337 brt) died on German mines east of the island of Gotland on October 8, 1941, and the transport "Pollux" (518 brt) died on a British bottom mine near Rostock on November 23. The ship "Henny" (764 GRT) that went missing on November 19, 1941 near Memel also has nothing to do with the Frunzovets mines.
Having completed the task, “L-3” left the staging area. On the night of June 28, Frunzovets almost became a victim of its own submarine S-4. Fortunately, the commander of the "eski" D.S. Abrosimov identified “L-3” in time and abandoned the attack. On the same day, the horizontal rudders on the submarine failed. (According to Grishchenko, while laying mines, “L-3” was damaged by explosions of depth charges from boats conducting preventive bombing). We had to surface and repair the damage near the shore, already occupied by the enemy.
The Germans were already in Libau, so the L-3 returned from the campaign to Tallinn, where the submarine arrived on July 5. (According to the memoirs of Grishchenko on July 9).
At noon on July 15, the L-3, paired with the S-8, with three torpedo boats in tow, left Tallinn and, escorted by minesweepers, headed for the Baltic Sea. In the area of Cape Ristna, the submarine sailed on its own. The goal of the L-3’s second voyage was Danzig Bay, where the submarine was supposed to lay a minefield.
On the morning of July 19, north of Cape Brewsterort, the submarine placed 20 minutes, according to the submarine commander, directly into the wake of the German minesweepers. In the evening of the same day, a strong explosion was heard in the direction of the minefield on L-3, and 40 minutes later, explosions of depth charges. Since the Finnish transport Cisil (1847 brt), mentioned as a mine success for the L-3, was killed on August 23, 1941 by a German mine, the submarine’s mines had no effect. The Germans regularly carried out control trawling of the fairway; three L-3 mines were discovered at the end of November, after which the field was finally discharged. Continuing to remain in the Bay of Danzig, “L-3” began to search for objects for a torpedo attack, but none were found, but the submarine itself became the target of a hunt, on July 24 it was subjected to an unsuccessful attack by an enemy aircraft.
On July 27, “L-3” received an order to return to base. In the evening of the same day, the submarine was discovered by German minesweepers from the 31st flotilla, who pursued the submarine all night. Due to the explosions of depth charges on the L-3, the seams of the fuel tank came apart, the alignment of the batteries was disrupted, and the battery pit began to be filled with diesel fuel. Breaking away from pursuit, on the afternoon of July 30, “L-3” in the area of Cape Ristna was met by Soviet minesweepers and, under their escort, escorted to Trigi. During the transition, the submarine ran aground and damaged its rudders. On July 31, “L-3” arrived in Tallinn, from where, accompanied by minesweepers and the minelayer “Marti,” it moved to Kronstadt.
After minor repairs in September, the L-3 began to prepare for a breakthrough to the North through the Danish Straits, but, fortunately, the operation was cancelled. Fearing a breakthrough by German ships to Leningrad, the Soviet command allocated some submarines to guard the approaches to Kronstadt. At the end of September, “L-3” came into the possession of the commander of the Vanguard Detachment of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet and moved to the island of Gogland, where on the evening of October 1 it was unsuccessfully attacked by the Finnish torpedo boats “Sisu” and “Vuoli” in the roadstead in Suurkylä Bay. The boats broke through thanks to the negligence of the commandant of the island region. Fortunately, the torpedoes they fired did not hit the target and exploded 15 meters from the submarine. "L-3" returned fire. According to P.D. Grishchenko, one of the shells fired from the boat hit the engine room of a torpedo of one of the boats, killing its commander. The Finns, in turn, announced the sinking of two Soviet minesweepers by their torpedo boats in the Gogland area. On October 16, during a storm, the L-3 suffered damage to its fuel and ballast tanks from impacts on board the Shch-310 and returned to Kronstadt two days later.
In November, the L-3 underwent dry-docking, then underwent repairs, and spent the entire first blockade winter in Leningrad on board the Irtysh floating base.
Since the spring of 1942, the submarine was ready for a combat campaign, but the exit was first delayed due to the lack of support ships, then the L-3 was delayed until the second echelon submarines were deployed.
On August 10, 1942, the submarine moved to Lavensari, and on August 12 it reached the area west of Bornholm Island (position No. 1). On board the submarine was the famous marine painter Alexander Ilyich Zonin. On the evening of August 14, “L-3” crossed the Gulf of Finland, but stayed for a day in the area of Bogsher Island, conducting personnel training.
On August 18, at Cape Elands Norraudde (northern tip of Eland), “L-3” launched its first torpedo attack on transport from the convoy. Apparently, the training was not in vain, and both fired torpedoes hit the target, sending the Swedish transport K.F. to the bottom. Liljevalsh" (5513 brt), heading to Germany with a cargo of iron ore, which Grishchenko identified as a tanker of 15,000 tons. 33 people died on the ship, including captain Ernst I.F. Bramford and pilot. Seven of his crew were rescued by a lifeboat launched from another ship. After the torpedoes were fired, the boat was thrown to the surface, and the Swedish destroyers Nordenskiöld and Norrköping guarding the convoy counterattacked the submarine, dropping 42 depth charges on it, from the explosions of which the L-3 received minor damage.
After the attack, the submarine went to Gotland, where on August 21-22 it searched for ships along its eastern coast, but nothing other than Swedish fishing schooners was found. “L-3” almost collided with one of them. After inspecting the ship, the Swedes were released.
On the afternoon of August 23, a submarine was discovered by a Swedish destroyer in the Karlskrona area. In order to break away from pursuit, the L-3 did not start the pump that made a lot of noise, and to save battery power, they did not cook hot food.
On August 24, the submarine arrived in the mine laying area. Having carefully scouted the fairways, “L-3” placed 6 mines in the Trelleborg area on August 25. The anchor of the seventh mine did not come out of the pipe, and for half an hour the mine was towed by a submarine. Nevertheless, “L-3” managed to complete the mine laying, placing two more mine banks (4 and 9 minutes each). The result of this barrage was the death on August 28 of the German motor-sailing schooner "Walter" (177 GRT) with five sailors. The German submarines U-416 and U-446, mentioned as the mine success of the L-3, have nothing to do with the Frunzovets mines. "U-416" was blown up 50 miles east of the L-3 minefield off the island of Bornholm, on a British aircraft bottom mine on March 30, 1943. The submarine did not sink, but was brought to Stettin and, after repairs, put back into service as a training submarine. "U-446" died on a British aircraft bottom mine on September 21, 1942 in the Bay of Danzig near Kolberg.
Preparation for a military campaign.
crew members of the submarine "L-3". July 1942.
Return of “L-3” to Kronstadt. September 10, 1942 From left to right: submarine commander P.D. Grishchenko, Commissioner M.F. Dolmatov, First Officer V.K. Konovalov, foreman of the group of bilge operators M.V. Valtsev.
Torpedomen “L-3”: Red Navy man V.I. Molochkov, com. dept. P.I. Mishin and Red Navy soldier P.G. Eremenko.
Return from a military campaign. Gala lunch. Third from left is Petty Officer 2nd Article Nikolai Fedorovich Mironov.
At the end of August 26, “L-3” discovered a convoy and attacked two transports from it with four torpedoes. From the submarine we observed hits on both vehicles and fires on them, but there is no data from the enemy confirming the success of the L-3.
On August 27, the submarine moved to an area south of the island of Öland, where the burst cover of the right diesel engine was replaced. On the evening of September 1, southeast of the Eland-Sedra-Udde lighthouse, “L-3” was attacked by a Falke-class destroyer, which was escorting a large convoy, and although an explosion was heard on the boat, at this time Germany did not lose ships of this class. 20 minutes later, “L-3” attacks again, this time torpedoes were fired at the unguarded transports. Soon the submarine commander observed through the periscope that one ship was sinking and the second was standing still, but there was no foreign data on the results of this attack.
On the morning of September 3, “L-3” began returning to base and on the night of September 5 began crossing the Gulf of Finland. The return was not easy. Explosions of enemy mines thundered over the boat four times, causing minor damage to the ship's hull and mechanisms. Having happily overcome the enemy’s anti-submarine barrage, on the night of September 9, “L-3” arrived at Lavensari, from where it moved to Kronstadt.
The command highly appreciated the results of the last campaign of “L-3”. Her entire crew was awarded government awards. During the short period between voyages, the ship was visited by writers Alexander Fadeev, Vsevolod Vishnevsky, and poetess Olga Berggolts.
Already on October 27, 1942, “L-3” went to sea again. On October 29, the ship began to overcome the enemy's anti-submarine line. In the evening of the next day, while crossing the Yuminda barrier, the submarine hit a mine. Fortunately, the explosion, which occurred 30 meters above the boat, did not cause significant damage to it, only a dent formed in the hull in the area of the 15th frame. On the evening of November 1, “L-3” left the Gulf of Finland. The next day, 6 miles south of the Utö lighthouse, a submarine laid a mine bank of 10 mines, on which on November 17 the Hindenburg transport (7888 brt) was blown up, transporting 1000 (according to other sources 2000) Soviet prisoners of war from Danzig to Finland. In addition to them, there were 191 guards, 36 vehicles and other military equipment on board the ship. The explosion killed 15 people, including 6 prisoners. Another 13 prisoners were wounded during the suppression of the riot that broke out after the ship was blown up. The Hindenburg remained afloat, but attempts to salvage the ship were unsuccessful and it sank between Corpo and Nagu Islands on November 19. 
Commander of the submarine “L-3” P.D. Grishchenko.
Group of commanders "L-3". In the center of P.D. Grishchenko.
Navigator "L-3" captain-lieutenant Petrov A.I.
Boatswain “L-3” midshipman K.E. Nastyukhin.
Electrician of the submarine "L-3" senior Red Navy man Burdyuk A.D., 1942.
Another can of 7 mines was placed by “L-3” on November 5, 14 miles northwest of the Nidden lighthouse near Memel. Probably, on December 9, the ship “Edith Bosselman” (952 brt) was blown up here and lost with its entire crew. Most likely, the transports “Tristan” (1766 GRT), which left for Memel on February 5, 1943, “Grundsee” (866 GRT), which left on February 6, 1943 for Libau, and “Dirschau”, departing from Danzig and missing in action, found their end here. (762 GRT) released on November 29, 1942 in Riga. All that remained of the latter was an empty boat, found on December 3, 1942 in the area of Schwartzort (now Juodkrante, Lithuania). This mine laying has nothing to do with the death of the German steamer Maria Ferdinand (1757 GRT), which ran ashore after being hit by a mine near Libau on January 14, 1943.
On the night of November 6, southwest of Memel, the Frunzovets launched an attack on the enemy destroyer, but the torpedoes missed the target. On the night of November 10, the submarine moved to Libau, where, when attempting to attack the L-3 convoy on November 13, it was rammed by a transport and lost its periscopes. Fortunately, the submarine did not receive any further damage.
On the same day, having placed the remaining 3 mines 11 miles southwest of Cape Akmenrags, the submarine left the position and began returning to base.
Having crossed the Seeigel barrier, L-3 moored in Kronstadt on November 18 and soon began repairs.
On March 1, 1943, the L-3 submarine was awarded the rank of Guards, and on March 9, a lieutenant captain (later captain of the 3rd rank) became the commander of the submarine. Konovalov Vladimir Konstantinovich, who was previously the assistant commander of Frunzovets.
“L-3” entered its next, fifth, combat campaign almost two years after the last entry into position. By this time, a truce had been concluded between the USSR and Finland. On October 1, 1944, “L-3” left Kronstadt. Having passed the Finnish skerry fairway into the Baltic Sea, on the evening of October 5, the submarine headed for the island of Bornholm (position No. 8), where it arrived on the morning of October 9.
On the evening of October 11, north of Cape Arkona, “L-3” laid out a minefield (20 minutes with one can). The mines were placed at the Kriegsmarine combat training area; More than a month passed before they found their victims. On November 14, the training ship Albert Leo Schlagetter (1634 GRT) was damaged, on which 15 people died in the explosion. Following this, on the morning of November 20, an explosion occurred at the side of the T-34 destroyer, which had just entered service. The ship lost its stern end, capsized and sank, taking with it 55 crew members and 24 officers and gunnery school cadets.
On October 12, “L-3” moved to Ystad, where on the night of October 15, 10 miles southeast of the Smygehoek lighthouse, the submarine attacked a single transport. A torpedo hit and the death of the ship were observed from the submarine, but there is no foreign data about this L-3 attack.
On October 21, “L-3” received an order to operate in the Libau area (sector No. 3). On the morning of October 25, she was off Memel, where on the same day a submarine attacked a convoy. After the salvo, the submarine was thrown to the surface. Having spotted the submarine, the target easily dodged the torpedoes. The next day, “L-3” launched an attack on a patrol ship from the convoy. A minute after the release of the torpedoes, an explosion was heard on the submarine, and when observing the convoy, the attacked ship was not detected, which gave reason to consider it sunk. According to the enemy, this L-3 attack is ineffective; The minesweeper accompanying the convoy observed the torpedo's trail, after which the enemy ships dropped several depth charges on the submarine.
After a new change of position, the submarine on November 2 had short-term contact with enemy anti-aircraft forces, after which the right diesel engine had to be repaired on the L-3. On November 11, the submarine commander reported returning to base, and on November 16, the submarine arrived at Hanko. The next day, “L-3” moved to Turku, where it stood for repairs. 
Commander “L-3” Hero of the Soviet Union V.K. Konovalov near his ship. Summer 1945
Group of L-3 crew members. Standing (from left to right): senior torpedoist, senior Red Navy man V.D. Shumsky, Kh, Kh; sitting: guard foreman 2 articles I.A. Sinitsyn, Kh., guard midshipman K.E. Nastyukhin and guard foreman 2 articles M.Ya. Burenkov. Summer 1945
Swedish ship “K.F. Liljevalsh", sunk by L-3 torpedoes on August 18, 1942.
Transport "Goya" sunk by "L-3" torpedoes on April 17, 1945
The 1945 L-3 campaign began on January 23. Two days later, the submarine occupied the indicated area (position No. 5-n), where on January 26 it laid mines 4-4.5 miles from the Vindava outport. (10 mines were set from the right mine tube. The remaining 10 mines could not be set due to a malfunction of the mine device motor and the formation of ice in the left mine tube). In all likelihood, on January 29, 1945, the German transport Henry Lutgens (1141.brt) was blown up and sank by mines laid by L-3, which killed 9 people, although it is impossible not to take into account the laying of mines in this area Soviet Air Force. The transport Jersbeck (2804 GRT) and the icebreaker Pollux (4191 GRT), often mentioned in Soviet literature as the mine successes of the L-3, were lost to mines in the Libau region on March 28 and February 7, 1945, respectively; The minesweeper "M-3138" (formerly "KFK-182", 112 brt) died on March 23, 1945 in the Libau region on mines, most likely laid by Soviet aircraft.
On January 31, “L-3” launched a torpedo attack on transport from the convoy. The submarine observed an explosion in the bow of one of the ships. The enemy did not pursue the attacking submarine and does not comment on the result of this attack. According to A.V. Platonov’s victim of the Frunzovets attack was the transport “Henry Lützow” (1411 GRT), but according to the list of ships of the German merchant and fishing fleet, a vessel with that name did not exist. On the same day, the L-3 went on a combat course two more times, but all the fired torpedoes missed the target.
On the night of February 2, “L-3” moved to the Brewsterort lighthouse, where ships from the 2nd battle group supported the defense of the coastal flank of the German army with their fire. Due to the shallow depths, the submarine was unable to attack them, but it placed 2 mines on the ships’ escape routes. Since the mine-release device was faulty, the remaining eight mines could not be laid.
On February 4, "L-3" unsuccessfully attacked the destroyer "T-36" from the escort of the pocket battleship "Admiral Scheer", in response, the destroyer "T-28" dropped 28 depth charges on the submarine. The next day, "L-3" left the position and headed to the base. Three days later she was in Turku.
The submarine set off on its last voyage in the Great Patriotic War, which brought fame and glory to the L-3 commander Konovalov, on the morning of March 23, 1945. The submarine had to operate within position No. 3 in Danzig Bay. By the morning of March 26, the submarine arrived in the area of the Hel Spit, where, having scouted out the fairways, on the evening of March 28, it laid two mine banks. The choice of place for laying mines was hampered by thick fog, and it was impossible to determine, since the submarine had no observation from the moment it left the base. As a result, the mines were placed at a great distance from the coastal fairway. The patrol ship Vs-112, often mentioned as the one that died here, sank on April 10, 1945 in Kiel Bay. Having completed the task of laying a minefield, the submarine tried to determine its location by moving to the Hoborg lighthouse on the coast of Gotland, but due to the fog it was unable to do this. In addition, the submarine’s hydroacoustic station and then the gyrocompass failed, which required some time to repair them.
Victims of submarine mines "L-3":
Transport "Henry Lutgens", killed by the "L-3" mine on January 29, 1945.
The transport Hindenburg hit a mine on November 18, 1942 and sank the next day.
The steamship "Edith Bosselman", died on December 9, 1942 at 55.27 north latitude. 20.41 East on the L-3 mine.
The Portuguese "Sagres", the former "Albert Leo Schlageter" is still in service. Photo 1984
Additionally: Notes from submarine navigator I.G. Pavlov relating to the final stage of the submarine’s last combat campaign in April 1945.
Tactical and technical characteristics of the submarine "L-3" (1944).
Returning to the position, on the night of April 1, “L-3” received an order to penetrate Danzig Bay and attack large surface ships firing at the advancing Soviet troops, but a fairly strong enemy ship patrol did not allow this to be done. On the night of April 4, the submarine, having again retreated to Hoborg, was finally able to make up its mind, after which it repeated its attempt to break into Danzig Bay, which again was unsuccessful, after which the submarine commander decided to look for the enemy northeast of the Riksheft lighthouse.
The first two attempts to attack failed due to unfavorable initial conditions for target detection. Finally, on the night of April 17, north of the Riksgaft lighthouse, L-3 launched an attack on transport from the convoy. The torpedoes were launched from the surface position. After 70 seconds, two strong explosions were recorded on the submarine, and the top watch watched as the ship broke in two, its stern lifted up and began to quickly sink. The target of “L-3” was the German motor ship “Goya” (5230 GRT), on board of which, according to various estimates, there were more than 7 thousand people (1500 soldiers of the 4th Panzer Division of the Wehrmacht, 385 wounded military personnel, the rest were civilian refugees) . The ship sank, taking with it, according to various estimates, about 7 thousand lives; Of those on board, only 175 people survived. The death of the Goya transport, in terms of the number of victims, ranks first among maritime disasters in the entire history of navigation, ahead of the famous Titanic and Wilhelm Gustlow. While rescuing people, the convoy security ships were able to drop only 5 depth charges at a safe distance from the submarine. “L-3” continued to remain in this area, and two days later it again entered the combat course. The first attack was unsuccessful. After 6 minutes, the torpedoes were fired again. A hit from the submarine was observed “with strong repeated explosions, multi-colored upward paths and large flames,” thanks to which the submarine was discovered and fired upon. The emergency dive stopped observing the outcome of the attack; the enemy did not pursue. According to various post-war data, the heavy floating battery SAT-5 (Robert Muller-6) is often said to be a victim of the L-3 torpedoes, but this ship was sunk by Soviet aircraft on April 18, 1945 near Pillau. A possible victim of the L-3 torpedo was one of the minesweeper boats of the MRS-11 floating base. 
"L-3" in fine arts:
Submarine "L-3". drawing
Torpedoing the Goya transport. Artist I. Rodionov. Postcard.
After an unsuccessful attack on a German convoy on April 21, “L-3” headed to the base, where it safely arrived 4 days later.
The end of the war saw the Red Banner submarine "L-3" undergoing repairs. Taking into account the ship's recent successes, its commander, Captain 3rd Rank V.K. Konovalov, was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on July 6, 1945.
On June 9, 1949, the submarine received the designation “B-3”. On August 17, 1953, she was withdrawn from combat service and retrained as a training submarine, and on May 21, 1956, she was disarmed and reorganized into the UTS-28 survivability training station.
Logging "L-3" in Liepaja and Victory Park on Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow. Memorial plaque with the names of the crew members of the submarine "L-3". Victory Park, Moscow. Photo by Evg. Chirwa. September 2008
On February 15, 1971, the station was expelled from the USSR Navy and handed over for dismantling. The submarine's cabin was installed at the headquarters of the submarine brigade in Liepaja. After the collapse of the USSR and the departure of the Russian Army from the Baltic states, the L-3 cabin was evacuated and in 1995 it was installed at the memorial on Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow.
7 military campaigns.
22.06.1941 – 05.07.1941
15.07.1941 – 31.07.1941
09.08.1942 – 10.09.1942
27.10.1942 – 18.11.1942
01.10.1944 – 16.11.1944
23.01.1945 – 08.02.1945
23.03.1945 – 25.04.1945
16 torpedo attacks, with the release of 46 torpedoes. 3 ships reliably sunk (10,793 GRT)
08/18/42 TR "K.F. Liljevalch" (5513 GRT)
04/17/45 TR "Goya" (5230 GRT)
04/18/45 motorboat (approx. 50 GRT)
11 mine laying events (122 mines laid), in which 7 ships (13544 GRT) and 1 ship may have been lost; 1 ship damaged (1634 GRT).
08/28/42 PMSh "Walter" (177 brt)
11/19/42 TR “Hinderburg” (7880 GRT)
11/29/1942 TR "Dirschau" (762 GRT)
09.12.42 TR “Edith Bosselman” (952 GRT)
02/05/1943 TR "Tristan" (1766 GRT)
02/06/1943 TR "Grundsee" (866 GRT)
11/14/44 USS “Albert Leo Schlagetter” (1634 GRT) – damaged.
20.11.44 MC “T-34” (1754 tons)
01/29/45 TR "Henry Lutgens" (1141 GRT)
In total, 10 ships (24337 GRT) and 1 ship were sunk, 1 ship was damaged.
On L-type submarines, the problem associated with the placement of batteries was not immediately resolved. At first, in order to improve the size of living quarters, batteries were installed in open pits, covered on top with removable wooden panels, which also served as the floor of living quarters. Battery ventilation was adopted as general pit ventilation. This design solution turned out to be unsuccessful, since it did not provide effective ventilation for the electric batteries; hydrogen accumulated in the compartments to dangerous concentrations. As a result, several explosions occurred on submarines. The battery pits on Series II submarines were converted to insulated batteries with enhanced ventilation, and later a catalytic hydrogen oxidation device developed by engineers M. M. Chetvertakov and E. N. Gurfein was installed. The device prevented the hydrogen concentration in the compartments from increasing to dangerous levels. The disadvantages of “L” type boats include the length of the dive and ascent time. The transition from surface to submerged while simultaneously filling all the ballast took about three minutes. The blowing time for the middle tank was one minute ten seconds. Submarines of the II series took part in the Great Patriotic War. The L-3 submarine was awarded the title of Guards, and its commander V.K. Konovalov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. L-4 was awarded the Order of the Red Banner, its boatswain, midshipman I. S. Petrov, was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
| Displacement - normal surface - 1025 tons, normal underwater - 1312 tons |
| Maximum length - 78 m |
| Maximum width - 7.2 m |
| Average draft - 3.96 m |
| Power point - 2 diesel engines with a total power of 2200 hp. and 2 electric motors with a total power of 1300 hp. |
| Fuel reserve - normal - 38 tons, total - 106 tons; 3 groups of rechargeable batteries with 112 LS batteries per group. |
| Speed - highest surface - 14.2 knots; underwater - 8.5 knots |
| Cruising range - on the surface - 3600 miles at 14.2 knots, - 7400 miles at 9 knots; submerged - 12.7 miles at 8.5 knots, - 154 miles at 2.5 knots. |
| Immersion depth - working - 75 meters, maximum - 90 meters |
| Dive time - 80 seconds |
| Armament - 6 533 mm torpedo tubes; 12 533 mm torpedoes; 20 minutes; 1 - 100/51 artillery mount "B-24-PL" 122 rounds; 1 - 45/46 artillery mount "21-K" 250 rounds. |
| Time spent under water - 72 hours |
| Autonomy - normal - 28 days, maximum - 40 days |
| Buoyancy reserve - 29 % |
| Crew - 10 officers, 16 petty officers, 29 privates |
"L-1" ("Leninets")
Laid down on September 6, 1929 in Leningrad at plant number 189, factory number 195. February 28, 1931 launched. On October 22, 1933, it became part of the Naval Forces of the Baltic Sea.
The text of the foundation board read: “The laying of this submarine was carried out in the 12th year of the October Revolution. This year was a year of exertion of all the forces of the proletarian state in order to implement a grandiose industrialization plan. This year a five-year plan for socialist construction was approved, work began on the construction of Magnitogorsk, Kuznetsk, Telbes metallurgical plants, the world's greatest Stalingrad Tractor Plant and many others. This year was the year of continued attempts by bourgeois states to drag us into the war in the Far East and put an end to the respite and peaceful construction. The task of the Leninets submarine is to vigilantly guard from the sea. approaches to red Leningrad from enemy attack...";
On September 15, 1934, renamed L-1. On January 11, 1935, it became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. Participated in the Soviet-Finnish war: performing positional service off the coast of Finland; made 1 military campaign.
On December 11, 1940, it was at the wall of the Admiralty Plant No. 196 in Leningrad under major repairs (the degree of technical readiness as of 07/01/41 was 64%). In August 1941, it was mothballed, and the personnel were sent to form marine units. The submarine hull was towed to the Turukhanny Islands in the commercial port of Leningrad;
9(8). November 1941 sank (sat on the ground) from hits from enemy artillery shells. In 1944, it was raised by the rescue service of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. On July 7, 1945, due to the inexpediency of restoration, she was expelled from the Navy. In 1949, at the Glavvtorchermet base on Turukhanny Islands in Leningrad, it was cut into metal.
Commanders: A.G. Bulavinets (1933), 3rd generation. Mogilevsky S.S. (1941).
"L-2" ("Stalinets")
Laid down on September 6, 1929 in Leningrad at plant No. 189, factory No. 196. May 21, 1931 launched. On October 24, 1933, it became part of the Naval Forces of the Baltic Sea.
On September 5, 1934, when the boat was practicing combat training tasks, an explosion and fire occurred on it. The boat was commanded by G.A. Ivanov. On board the boat at that moment were divisional mechanical engineer K.L. Grigaitis and commander of the submarine division A.A. Taube. Grigaitis, using the Siemens instrument he took with him, determined a dangerous concentration of hydrogen in the compartment, but the division commander, relying on his experience of sailing on the Leopards and Decembrists, rejected his proposal for ascent, which would have interrupted the training task. As a result of improper operation of the ventilation system of the battery pits, which led to a dangerous concentration of hydrogen, an explosion occurred on board the boat, as a result of which 6 people, including the division commander, were killed, and 4 people, including the boat commander, were injured.
On September 15, 1934, renamed "L-2". On January 11, 1935, it became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. December 7, 1938 - November 7, 1941 modernization and major repairs took place in Leningrad. On November 7, 1941, she moved to Kronstadt.
On November 13, 1941, she left Kronstadt on her first military campaign with a full supply of mines for laying minefields in the Danzig Bay. In the afternoon, together with KON, who was heading to Hanko, she moved to Fr. Gogland.
At 01.07-01.10 on November 14 in the area of \u200b\u200b. Carey was blown up by her stern on two mines of the “D.46” barrier, deployed by the Germans. MZ "Kaiser", but remained afloat. After the resumption of KON traffic, due to the criminal negligence of the commander of BTShch-217, the crew of the dying submarine was not removed. At 06.17 it was blown up for the third time and sank at 59°46"N/25°10"7E. 50 people died on the submarine, incl. famous poet-marine painter Lieutenant A.A. Lebedev. 3 people were saved. (motorman Shcherbina, electrician Boykov and radio operator Kvasnov), who transferred to the sinking EM “Surovy” at the moment of accidental approach of the stern ends of the ship, and were rescued after the death of the EM.
The commanders were: G.A. Ivanov (1934), cap. Lt Chebanov A.P. (1941).
Duration of combat service - 0.27 months (November 6, 1941 - November 14, 1941). 1 combat campaign (2 days).
"L-3" ("Frunzenets")
Laid down on September 6, 1929 in Leningrad at plant number 189 (Baltic Shipyard), serial number 197. August 8, 1931 launched. November 9, 1933 became part of the Baltic Sea Naval Forces.
On November 21, 1931, it was renamed from “Bolshevik” to “Frunzovets”. On September 15, 1934, renamed L-3. On January 11, 1935, it became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. From November 1939 to February 24, 1941, modernization and major repairs took place in Leningrad.
From June 22 - July 2, 1941 she made her first campaign in the Great Patriotic War. At 19.22 on June 22, she left for patrol in the area of Akmenrags borough, and at 01.00 on June 23 she arrived at the position. At dawn on June 26, an order was received from the commander of the 1st BPL to lay a minefield at Memel. The same order also indicated the coordinates of the minefield. Approaching the staging site in a submerged position on the morning of June 27, the submarine commander discovered the movement of the TR along the fairway, which was located away from the intended staging site. The submarine commander did not risk violating the order and deployed at 12.30 at the location indicated to him (segments between points 55°45"8 N/21°00"3 E, 55°43"9 N/20 °59"2 E and 55°42"2 N/21°01"0 E; 4 banks of 5 minutes each, mine interval - 60 m, recess 3 m). Having completed the staging, the boat moved to the west and surfaced at 21.00, after which the S-4 submarine was discovered. On June 28, due to a malfunction of the stern horizontal rudders, she sank three times to significant depths. Then the submarine received a number of successive orders to return to various bases and only at 20:00 2.7 arrived at the bay. Kihelkona.
At 23:00 on July 3 - 6:00 on July 4, she moved to Trigi. At the transition to the mouth of the strait. Soelawain was attacked by the Germans to no avail. Submarine "U 145". On the night of July 4, it moved to Rohuküla, and on July 4-5 to Tallinn.
On July 15-30, 1941, she made her second campaign in the Second World War. At 12 o'clock on July 15, she left for mine laying on the approaches to the Danzig Bay. (position No. 3; escort BTShch-212, 2 SKA, 3 TKA, accompanied the submarine to the area of Cape Ristna). On the morning of July 19, sowing. m. Brewsterort submarine discovered 2 enemy technical units directly ahead. At 08.50-13.30, a mine was laid in the wake of the TSh (8 cans of 2 or 3 mines, a total of 20 minutes, mine interval - 60 m, deepening - 3.5 m). At 18.50 an explosion was heard in the direction of the barrier, 40 minutes later - explosions from the main building. On July 21, 7 the left diesel engine cover was replaced on the submarine. In the following days, she occupied a position in the north. parts of the Danzig Bight. On July 24, he was attacked to no avail. enemy. On the night of July 26, I discovered a stitch. KRL "Gotland". On July 27, she received an order to return to base. At 21.00 on July 27 - 06.00 on July 28, in the area of Cape Akmenrags, a German submarine was discovered and attacked. KATSCH from the 31st flotilla TSCH. The seams of the fuel tank came apart due to close ruptures of the hydraulic valve, the conning hatch sprung and let in about 1 ton of water. The alignment of the batteries was disrupted, and the battery pit began to be filled with diesel fuel. On the night of July 29, she made an observation at Hoborg Cape (Gotland Island). On the afternoon of July 30, BTShch-201, -204 and 2 SKA were met in the area of Cape Ristna and escorted to Trigi. During the transition to the mouth of the Soelavaina, she touched the ground and damaged the rudders.
On July 31 she moved to Tallinn, on July 31 - August 1 - to Kronstadt, where she was docked on August 5-7. All R. September was preparing for a breakthrough through the strait. Öresund (operation cancelled).
October 01-18, 1941 - third campaign in the Second World War. September 30 - October 1 transferred to Fr. Gogland, where she came under the command of the commander of the Forward Detachment of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. On the evening of October 1, while parking in the bay. Surkylla was unsuccessfully attacked by the Finns. TKA "Sisu" and "Vuoli" - the torpedo exploded 15 m from the submarine. On October 16, during a storm, fuel and ballast tanks were damaged as a result of impacts on the hull of the Shch-310 submarine. On October 18 she returned to Kronstadt.
On October 21, 1941, she moved to Leningrad, where she was docked on November 2-10, and then carried out repairs.
July 08-14, 1942 was in readiness for a military campaign from July 8 - the exit was postponed due to the lack of cor. provision. On the night of July 14, she moved from Leningrad to Kronstadt, where she was detained until the deployment of the 2nd echelon submarine began.
August 9 - September 10, 1942 - fourth campaign in the Second World War. At 22.44 on August 9 - 04.49 on August 10, in support of BTShch-204, -211, -218 and 2 SKA transferred to the island. Lavensari. At 02.00, in the area of Demanstein Banks, a mine exploded in paravan BTShch-211. At 00.00 on August 12, she entered the western area. O. Bornholm (position No. 1). To point 59°57"4 N/27°26"8 E. accompanied by SKA. On the evening of August 14, she completed crossing the Gulf of Finland. On August 15, she stayed in the area of \u200b\u200b. Bogshere for crew training. At 17.10 on August 18, the submarine launched a torpedo attack by KON (12 TR, 1 SKR, several SKA) at point 57°37"4 N/17°00"E. (TN 15000 t, attack=sub/vi/2, d=10 cable, 2 explosions were heard - the Swiss TR "C.F. Liljevalsh", 5513 brt, with a cargo of ore for Germany, +33, was sunk). From 17.15 to 18.00 she was persecuted by the Swiss. EM "Nordenskiöld" and "Norrköping", which dropped 42 GB at a safe distance from the submarine. On August 19, it passed north along the western coast of the island. Gotland, circled it and searched along its eastern coast on August 20-21. On the afternoon of August 23, in the Karlskrona area, a Swiss woman was pursued. MM. At 10.05 on August 24, she arrived at the position and by the end of the day discovered a large number of ShKh and RT, as well as 2 germs. Submarine in a submerged position. At 21.53 on August 25, she began laying mines to the south. Trelleborg at 55°08"7 N/13°05"5 E. (set for 6 minutes with one can). The anchor of the 7th mine did not come out of the pipe, as a result of which the mine was towed by the submarine for 30 minutes. At 00.34 on August 26, the submarine completed laying 2 more mine cans (from 4 minutes at the point 55°06"4 N/13°18"8 E and from 9 minutes at the point 55°06"3 N ./13°19"E, deepening of all mines - 2.4 m, mine interval - 60 m). At 23.56 on August 26, the submarine launched a torpedo attack by KON (3 TR) at point 55°13"8 N/13°49"5 E. (TR 8000 and 7000, attack = nadv/vi/4, d = 12-15 cables, torpedo hits and fires were observed on 2 TR - no foreign data). On August 27 it moved to the southern region. O. Eland (the submarine occupied it until 1.9), on the night of August 28, evaded the encountered MM and TKA by diving. On August 29, the crew of the boat was busy replacing the burst cover of the starboard diesel engine. At 17.12 on September 1, the submarine launched an attack on the KON (8 TR, 1 MM) southeast. Öland-Sedra-Udde mountain range at 55°52"N/17°01"E. (MM of the “Falke” type, attack = sub/pr/2, d = 8-10 cables, an explosion was heard, after 13 minutes, when viewed through the periscope, the MM was not found - no foreign data). At 17.32 the boat again attacked KON (TR 10000 t, attack = sub/vi/4, d = 12-15 cab., 2 or 3 explosions were heard, at 17.44 the boat commander observed the bow of the TR on the surface and another TR without running - cut, no data). The submarine was not persecuted. On the night of September 2, she moved to the Khoborg settlement, in the evening she began returning to base, which she reported to the command on the morning of September 3. On the night of September 5, it began crossing the Gulf of Finland. At 06.15 on September 6, 3 miles southeast. At Porkkalan-Kallboda, a CMA mine of the Nashorn barrier exploded 13-15 m above the boat, which, however, did not cause any damage other than breaking the seal of the fuel tank. At 07.48, 2 more explosions occurred above the submarine, apparently caused by the bombs themselves. enemy or glb. Finnish SKA “VMV I”, “VMV 2” (the wheelhouse hatch was slightly damaged; the submarine commander believed that the boat was blown up by antenna mines, which, however, was not confirmed by post-war data). At 09.17 there was an imaginary incident of touching a minrep. At 10.43 there was a strong explosion, which temporarily disabled the gyrocompass and part of the lighting (it was apparently caused by a bomb dropped from itself). At 17.00 the buoy touched the pole or buoy. At 00.44 on September 8 in room 25. southeast O. Gogland, at a distance of 27 m above the submarine, the EMV antenna mine of the Seeigel barrier exploded (it apparently caused another 2-4 explosions of nearby UMA mines), which did not cause damage to the boat. At 20.07 on September 8, the SKA was met and at 01.00 on September 9, it arrived at the raid on Fr. Lavensari. At 21.30 on September 9 - 04.04 on September 10, she moved to Kronstadt guarded by BTShch-211, -218 and 1 SKA.
October 27 - November 18, 1942 - fifth campaign in the Second World War. At 19.30 on October 27 - 05.02 on October 28, in support of BTShch-205, -207, -210, -211, -215, 3 SKA moved to the island. Lavensari. At 00.05 on October 29, she left for mine laying in the area of the island. Utyo and Memel and actions in the area between Vindava and Memel (position No. 3). At 22.03 on October 30 at the point 59°50"N/25°26"6E. When crossing the obstacle, the Yuminda was blown up on the spacecraft tube of an EMC mine. The explosion, which occurred at a height of 28-30 m above the boat, did not cause significant damage - a dent formed in the hull in the area of the 15th frame. At 20.00 on November 1, she completed crossing the Gulf of Finland. From 14.15 to 14.23 on November 2 at point 59°41"N/21°20"E. (6 miles south of Ute Cape) set up a mine bank (10 minutes, interval 60 m, depth 3.5 m). At 22.10 a strong explosion was heard in the direction of the mine bank, and on the morning of November 3, trawling of the fairway was observed. On the evening of November 3, she began moving to the Nidden area, where she arrived on the morning of November 5. At 12.18-12.21 the boat placed a mine bank (7 minutes, interval 60 m, depression 3.5 m) at point 55°25"E/20°37"E. (14 miles north-west of Nidden town). At 00.07 on November 6, the MM Southwestern launched a torpedo attack. Memel (attack = nadv/vi/2, d = 4.5 cables, a miss was observed through the periscope, but after 1 min 20 sec a strong explosion was heard - there was no data). On November 9, it was unable to attack KON due to the long distance. On the night of November 10, it moved to Libau. At 12.49 on November 13, in the area of Cape Akmenrags, while trying to attack the KON, it came under a ramming attack from a TR, as a result of which both periscopes were bent and disabled. At 13.00-13.04 the submarine deployed the remaining 3 mines at the point 56°44"2 N/20°46"6 E. (11 miles southwest of Akmenrags metro station). In the evening I started moving to the base. At 20.05 north-west. m. Akmenrags discovered a submarine, identified by the commander as a "Shch" type submarine. At 00.00 on November 15, the crossing of the Gulf of Finland began. At 23.25 and 23.48 on November 17, when crossing the barrier, the Seeigel touched the mines twice - there were no explosions. At 10.30 on November 18, it was met in the Narva Bay by our SKA and at 12.20 it arrived in the bay. Nørre-Kappellaht o. Lavensari. At 17.00-23.15 on November 18, in support of BTShch-207, -211, -215, -217, -218 and 2 SKA, it moved to Kronstadt.
On March 1, 1943 she was awarded the title of Guards. In 1943 it was repaired in Kronstadt. In August, the first of the KBF submarines was equipped with the Dragon-129 GAS. Until October 1944 she was engaged in combat training.
October 1 - November 16, 1944 - sixth campaign in the Second World War. On October 1-5, she left Kronstadt via the Finnish skerry fairway into the Baltic Sea. On the evening of October 5 from the area about. Utyo headed to the western area. O. Bornholm (position No. 8). At 08.00 on October 9, she arrived at the north-east position. O. Bornholm. On the night of October 10, she moved to the area west of the island, and on the night of October 11, to the northern area. m. Arkona. At 19.16-19.54 she set up a minefield on the line 54°48"6 N / 13°33"-13°34"5 E (20 minutes with one can, mine interval - 185 m, deepening - 3 m) On the night of October 12, it moved to the area of southern Ystad. On the day of October 13, it was unable to attack the OTR due to the long distance. At 00.50 on October 15, it launched a torpedo attack 10 miles southeast of the Smugehuk settlement (TR 5000 tons). attack = above/vr/3, d = 2-2.5 cable, a torpedo hit was observed and after 2 minutes the death of the TR was cut, no data available). the boat was unable to attack the OTR twice: the first time due to possible detection from the TR, the second due to an error by the helmsman-horiser. At 21.19 on October 21, the submarine received an order from the UPL commander to take a position in the sector limited by bearings 210-180° near Libau (sector. No. 3). At 03.45 on October 23, she arrived in the area of western Memel. At 07.38 on October 25 she carried out a torpedo attack by KON (2 TR) in 11 miles of western Memel (TR 6000 t, attack = sub/v/3, d = 10 cab). ., after the salvo, the submarine was thrown to the surface, the TR dodged the torpedoes - German. The TC accompanying the KON reported a spotted torpedo). An attempt to attack another KON 30 minutes later failed due to the appearance of a trim. At 10.11 on October 26, she launched a torpedo attack by KON (2 TR, 1 SKR, 3 SKA) 13 miles west. Memel (TFR, attack = sub/vi/2, d = 7 cab., after 1 minute explosion, at 10.24 when observing the KON, the TFR was not detected - the German TSCH, accompanying the KON, reported a spotted torpedo). Until 15.00, the enemy SKA was pursued, dropping several on the submarine. glb. On the evening of October 26, the submarine commander received an order to take a north-west position. Memel between parallels 55°57"N and 55°45"N. to attack the enemy missile defense, which was firing at the owls. troops (order given at 21.50 on October 25). On the night of November 2, while approaching the KON, an SKR was discovered, dropping 3 Gb on the boat. During the day, the right diesel engine was repaired on the submarine. On the night of November 5, she discovered a submarine guarding 2 TFRs, which she evaded by diving. On the afternoon of November 7th Palanga (at the point 55°45"N/20°47"E) was hit by nets or buoys (taken for minreps) 4 times, after which I heard numerous weak explosions (apparently they were caused by owl bombs . himself, who attacked the cor. in this area. enemy PLO). On the night of November 8, the submarine moved to Hoborg Cape to determine the location. On the evening of November 9, she received orders to occupy sectors No. 2 and 3 southwest. Vindavas. On the morning of November 10, the submarine took up a position, but in the evening it retreated again to determine the location to the island. Gotland. On the afternoon of November 11, she arrived in the northwestern region. m-ka Akmenrags. At 22.15, the submarine commander reported that the submarine had returned to base. From the evening of November 13th I was with Fr. Utyo. At 18.18 on November 15, she anchored in the strait. Jungfrunsund and at 10.35 on November 16 arrived at Hanko.
November 17, 1944 - November 9, 1945 On November 17, she moved to Turku for inter-cruise repairs. She was in dock since December 1st. On January 8-9, 1945, she moved from Turku to Hanko.
January 23 - February 8, 1945 seventh campaign in the Second World War. At 09.53 on January 23 from the raid on. Lum reached the Vindava area (position No. 5-p). At 08.00 on January 25, she arrived at the position. At 03.58 and at 04.17-04.58 on January 26, a minefield was laid 4-4.5 miles from the Vipdava outport (one mine at the point 57°26"1 N/21°26"E was deployed from the surface position , after detecting the enemy TFR, the deployment was continued in an underwater position - another 9 minutes were set between points 57°26"7 N/21°25"2 E and 57°27"6 N/21°. 25"2 E; mine interval - 60 m, recess - 3 m). The mines did not come out of the left pipe due to a malfunction of the electric motor of the mine device and the formation of ice in the mine pipe. On January 26, she received an order to act south. parallel 57°20" N. At 06.28 on January 31, KON launched a torpedo attack at 57°16"5 N/21°07"2 E (TR 3000 t, attack = above/time/3 , d-9 ca., a torpedo explosion was observed in the bow of the TR - no data available). , d = 8 ca., there were no explosions - no data available). On the evening of February 1, she received an order to take a position at the Brewsterort station to attack the German troops. At 09.00 on February 2, she arrived at a new position. At 12.41, he discovered the Prinz Eugen SRT and several EMs, which could not be attacked due to shallow depths. At 13.35, the submarine placed 2 mines along the enemy’s escape routes (the rest could not be placed due to a malfunction of the mine device, the left cover). after setting the mine tube, it was not possible to completely close the mine interval - 60 m, deepening 3 m). = sub/vi/3, d = 10 cab., 2 explosions were heard on the submarine - the Germans were unsuccessfully attacked. MM "T 36"). Until 15.00, the boat was pursued by the MM "T 28", which dropped 28 GB. At 00.00 on February 5, the submarine began returning to base. At 13.48 on February 7, BTShch-215 was encountered in the area of the island. Nyhamn and at 16.10 on February 8 arrived in Turku, where she underwent inter-trip repairs.
March 23 - April 25, 1945 - eighth campaign in the Second World War. At 08.45 on March 23, she entered the Danzig Bay area. (position No. 3). Exit from the skerries was provided by the Finns. LD "Suursaari". At 23.00 on March 26, she arrived at a position near the Hel Peninsula. At 18.29-18.50 and at 19.18-19.36 on March 28, she laid a minefield in 2 banks of 10 minutes each between points: 1st bank - 54°45"5 N/18°45"5 E. and 54°45"8 N/18°47"E. 2nd bank - 54°46"5 N/18°49"E and 54°47"N/18°50"5E. (mine interval - 185-277 m, deepening - 2.5 m; it should be noted that due to fog, the boat did not have observations for 3 days). In the evening of March 28, she moved to Hoborg Cape to clarify the location, but could not decide because of the fog, and in the evening of March 29, she began returning to the position (returned at 07.53 on March 30). On April 1, the submarine was repairing the GAS, and therefore the order to attack the corr. the enemy was not fulfilled. On the night of April 2, I received a repeated order from the BPL commander to attack the corr. enemy in the area of Hel. Having discovered at 22.19 April 2 cor. PLO in the area of the cape, the submarine commander decided to return to determine the location to Hoborg Cape. On the evening of April 4, I arrived in the lighthouse area and lay down on the ground to repair the gyrocompass. On the morning of April 5, after the location was determined, the return to position began. On April 6, it was unable to attack OTR due to fog. Subsequently, it operated on the northern approaches to the Danzig Bay, and in a number of cases had contacts with the cor. PLO. On the morning of April 12, she was unable to attack KON due to the unfavorable command of control. On April 14, she departed to determine the location to the Eland-Sedra-Udda settlement. On the night of April 16, it was unable to attack the OTR due to the disadvantageous CP and the high speed of the target. At 00.48 on April 17, the KON (1 TR, 2 SKR) launched a torpedo attack on the north. Riksgaft Castle at 55°09"N/18°25"E. (TR 12000 t, attack = nadv/vr/3, d = 8 cable, after 70 seconds two powerful explosions were observed, after which the TR began to dive - at point 55°13"5 N/18°20" E .d. sunk by German TR "Goya", 5230 brt, transported 385 wounded, 1300-1500 soldiers of the 4th TD and more than 5000 refugees, according to data + 6220, 6666 or 7028). After the attack, the TFR dropped 5 Gb at a safe distance from the submarine. According to some reports, on April 18, she sank a motorboat (50 GRT) (there is no foreign confirmation). At 00.34 on April 19, she launched a torpedo attack by KON (1 TR and several BDBs) 11.5 miles north. Riksgaft Castle at 55°01"6 N/18°25"E. (TR 8000 t, attack=adv/vr/3, d=12 cable, miss). At 00.40 a second attack was carried out (attack = nadv/vi/3, d = 10 cab., 2 torpedoes were hit and the ship was destroyed - cut. No data). The submarine was not pursued. At 19.22 on April 21, she launched a torpedo attack by KON (4 TR, 3 SKR, 4 SKA) north-east. m-Rixgaft at point 55°01'N / 18°34"E (TR 8000 t, attack = sub/vi/3, d = 10 cable, after 1 min a powerful explosion was heard - unsuccessful attacked by German KON). 4 times it touched nets or buoys (taken for mines), after which each time I heard from 8 to 10 explosions (the commander believed that the submarine was blown up by antenna mines. At 17.30 on April 25, it arrived in Turku, where until the end of hostilities). underwent inter-trip repairs.
February 15, 1946 - December 24, 1949 was part of the 4th Navy. On January 12, 1949, she was classified as a large submarine. On June 9, 1949, renamed B-3. On August 17, 1953, she was withdrawn from combat service and reclassified as a training submarine. On May 21, 1956, it was disarmed and turned into a survivability training station. On May 30, 1956, it was renamed STZH-25. On December 27, 1956, it was renamed “UTS-28”.
On February 15, 1971, it was excluded from the lists of Navy watercraft due to delivery to the OFI for dismantling and cutting into metal.
Until 1994, the submarine cabin stood as a memorial sign on the territory of the submarine brigade in Liepaja; after 1994, on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War, the submarine cabin was installed at the Memorial on Poklonnaya Hill in the hero city of Moscow.
The commanders were: k. 3 r., k. 2 r. Grishchenko P.D. (1941-1943), cap. l-t., room 3 r. Konovalov V.K. (1943-1945).
"L-4" ("Garibaldian")
Laid down on March 15, 1930 in Nikolaev at plant No. 198 (Nikolaev State Plant), serial number 201. On August 31, 1931, it was launched. On October 14, 1933 it became part of the Black Sea Naval Forces.
June 22, 1941 - May 9, 1945 participated in the Great Patriotic War: actions on enemy communications off the coast of Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey; made 23 military campaigns, carried out 4 attacks with the release of 15 torpedoes; carried out 11 mine laying out of 220 mines, which (presumably) were blown up and sank: on September 15, 1941, the Bulgarian steamer Shipka (2304 6rt) and on October 11, 1941, the auxiliary ship FR-12 (22 gross tons), according to other sources also 04/11/44 self-propelled barge "SNR-1468".
On December 12, 1941, in the area of Varna, on the surface, she was blown up by a mine, received damage to the hull and mechanisms, but remained in position until the end of the assigned period; Upon arrival at the base, it was under repair for 4 months.
In May-June 1942, she participated in the defense of Sevastopol, made 7 transport flights to besieged Sevastopol, delivering there 160 tons of ammunition, 290 tons of food, 27 tons of gasoline, 7 people and evacuating 243 people to the Caucasus.
On July 22, 1943, she sank the Turkish motor-sailing schooners Hudayi Bahri (29 brt) and Tayyari (409 brt) with artillery fire. On July 23, 1943, she sank the schooner Gurpinar (about 100 GRT) and damaged the high-speed landing barge F 329 (280 tons). On May 11, 1944, the steamship Friederiks (7327 gross tons) was damaged. On January 12, 1949, she was classified as a large submarine. On June 16, 1949, renamed B-34.
On November 2, 1954, she was withdrawn from service and transferred to the Sevastopol Higher Naval Engineering School for use for training purposes. On February 17, 1956, she was disarmed and expelled from the Navy in connection with delivery to the OFI for dismantling and sale. On March 26, 1956, it was disbanded and subsequently cut into metal at the Glavvtorchermet base in Sevastopol.
The commanders were: cap. l-t., k. 3 r., k. 2 r. Polyakov E.P. (1941), cap. l-t., k. 3 r. Gorbatsky S.P. (1944)
Duration of combat service - 38.8 months (June 22, 1941 - September 16, 1944). 23 military campaigns (208 days). 5 torpedo attacks, as a result of which 1 ship was damaged. 2 vessels (more than 500 GRT) were destroyed by artillery fire. 10 mine laying (200 min). Presumably, the following mines were killed by the exposed "L-4" mines: on September 15, 1941, the transport "Shipka" (2304 GRT), on April 11, 1944, the self-propelled barge "SNR-1468", and also 1 boat minesweeper was damaged.
"L-5" ("Chartist")
Laid down on March 15, 1930 in Nikolaev at plant number 198 (Nikolaev State Plant), factory number 202. June 5, 1932 launched. On November 2, 1933 it became part of the Black Sea Naval Forces.
On June 22, 1941, she met Alexey Stepanovich Zhdanov under the command of Lieutenant Commander (later captain 3rd rank) as part of the 1st Division of the 1st Submarine Brigade in Sevastopol. March 1, 5 and 8, 1942 carried out 11 shootings at coastal fortifications and vehicles on the coastal section of the Sudak-Alushta highway. Usually the submarine managed to fire 9-20 shots before enemy artillery fired at it. after which she sank. In May - June, she made 6 transport flights to besieged Sevastopol, delivering there 298 tons of ammunition, 75.7 tons of food and evacuating 37 people to the Caucasus. On October 23, Lieutenant-Commander Boris Vasilievich Gremyako was appointed commander of the ship. At the end of the year, the submarine was undergoing repairs and did not participate in hostilities anymore. April 24, 1943 Lieutenant-Commander Mikhail Vasilievich Leonov was appointed commander of the ship. April 4, 1944 Senior Lieutenant Georgy Alekseevich Nikiforov was entrusted with the temporary duties of commander of the ship. On September 19, captain-lieutenant Nikolai Filippovich Shkolenko was appointed commander of the ship.
Duration of combat service - 17.3 months (June 22, 1941 - December 1, 1942). 18 military campaigns (108 days). 9 mine laying (257 min). Presumably, on October 10, 1941, the Romanian surface minelayer Regele Carol I was killed on mines exposed by the L-5.
Commanders: Cap. l-t., k. 3 r. Zhdanova A.S. (1941), cap. l-t. Gremyako B.V. (1942), cap. l-t. Leonov M.V. (1943), cap. l-t. Shkolenko N.F. (1944).
"L-6" ("Carbonarius")
Laid down on April 15, 1930 in Nikolaev at plant No. 198 (Nikolaev State Plant), serial number 203. November 3, 1932 launched. On May 11, 1935 it became part of the Black Sea Naval Forces.
On September 15, 1934, renamed L-6. From December 1938 to October 1941, modernization and major repairs took place in Sevastopol.
On June 22, 1941, she met under the command of captain 3rd rank Bul Stanislav Petrovich as part of the 1st division of the 1st submarine brigade in Sevastopol for repairs. Having completed repairs in early October, the ship underwent an accelerated course of combat training and already on October 27 set out on its first combat cruise to carry out patrols at the main base of the fleet. On January 10, 1942, during the transition Novorossiysk - Poti, due to an error in determining its location, it ran aground in the area of Cape Doob and received significant damage to the hull. On January 11, she was refloated and towed to Novorossiysk. On January 20, towed by the rescue ship "Jupiter", she left for Poti, where she arrived safely on January 24 and was put in for repairs. On May 16, captain-lieutenant Yuri Aleksandrovich Strshelnitsky was appointed commander of the ship. On September 18, Captain 2nd Rank Alexander Vladimirovich Buk was appointed commander of the ship. On October 23, Captain 3rd Rank Zhdanov Alexey Stepanovich was appointed commander of the ship. April 26, 1943 Boris Vasilievich Gremyako was appointed commander of the ship. There are several versions of the sinking of the submarine. According to one of them, on April 16, "L-6" was damaged by depth charges of the anti-submarine ship "Uj-104". According to the third version, on April 19, it was sunk by depth charges of the anti-submarine ship "Uj-103" during its attack on the transport "Alba Iulia".
Duration of combat service - 22 months (June 22, 1941 - April 21, 1943). 12 military campaigns (183 days). 4 torpedo attacks, as a result of which 1 ship was sunk (956 GRT) and in addition, 1 ship was possibly damaged. 4 mine laying (80 min).
Commanders: k. 3 r. Bulya S.P. (1941), cap. l-t. Strshelnitsky Yu.A. (1942), volume 2 r. Buk A.V. (1942), book 3 r. Zhdanov A.S. (1942), cap. l-t., k. 3 r. Gremyako B.V. (1943).
L-2 "Stalinets" - Soviet diesel-electric mine-torpedo submarine of the Second World War, the second ship of the II type "Leninets".
On November 13, 1941, the boat left Kronstadt with a full load of mines for minelaying in the Danzig Bay as part of the 4th convoy to Hanko (destroyers “Surovy” and “Gordy”, minzag “Ural”, 3 minesweepers, 6 boats).
On the night of November 13-14, 1941, off Keri Island, the ships entered a dense minefield (D-46 minefield, laid by the Kaiser minelayer). The destroyers Gordy and Surovy, the minesweeper T-206, and the hunter MO-301 were hit by mines. At 01.07 "L-2" hit a mine, but remained afloat. The submarine anchored, and the crew of the submarine began to fight for survivability. The nature of the bottom made it impossible to keep the ship in place, a strong wind began to blow it to the side, and after 20 minutes the L-2 was blown up by another mine. The convoy ships passing by did not take part in rescuing people. The T-217 minesweeper assigned to help the submarine failed to remove the crew from the emergency ship and soon left to catch up with the convoy. Only motorman Shcherbina, electrician Boykov and radio operator Kvasnov managed to escape from the L-2, who managed to move to the nearby destroyer Surovy during the accidental approach of the stern ends of the two ships. At the time of the death of the "Severe" they were removed from the ship along with the destroyer's crew.
“L-2” continued to drift: probably in the afternoon or evening of November 14, it was demolished by the third mine of the “F-27” obstacle (exposed by the Riilahti MZ on September 4, 1941) and died with the entire remaining crew. Along with the submarine, its navigator, the famous poet Alexei Lebedev, died.
The wreck of the submarine was found in 2006 by employees of the Estonian Maritime Museum under the leadership of V. Myas at 59°46"N/25°16"E, and in June 2012 a Finnish expedition led by M. Ivanov conducted an examination object. The submarine lies at a depth of 88 meters; the aft part (which includes the area of damage) is completely covered with soil, which does not make it possible to give a complete description of the damage received.
List of L-2 crew killed on 11/14/1941. during combat operations:
1. Chebanov Alexander Petrovich, born in 1911, lieutenant captain, submarine commander.
2. Nikolai Ivanovich Akifev, born in 1919, senior Red Navy man, senior helmsman.
3. Vasily Alekseevich Assonov, born in 1921, senior Red Navy man, senior electrician.
4. Babakin Alexander Dmitrievich, born in 1921, Red Navy man, bilge officer.
5. Badaev Nikolai Vasilyevich, born in 1915, sergeant major 2nd class, commander of the motorists squad.
6. Baranov Nikolai Ivanovich, born in 1916, foreman 2nd class, commander of the torpedo squad.
7 Bayanov Vitaly Konstantinovich, born in 1919, Red Navy man, electrician.
8. Bliznin Andrey Iosifovich, born in 1918, petty officer 2nd class, commander of the navigator electricians department.
9. Leonid Vasilyevich Boltukhov, born in 1920, Red Navy man, electrician.
10. Gerasimov Konstantin Georgievich, born in 1917, senior Red Navy man, senior electrician.
11. Gimbitsky Grigory Yakovlevich, born in 1918, senior Red Navy man, senior bilge officer.
12. Nikolai Aleksandrovich Gorev, born in 1921, Red Navy man, bilge officer.
13. Gorshkov Alexander Pavlovich, born in 1909, midshipman, boatswain.
14. Grebenev Ivan Andreevich, born in 1912, political instructor, military commissar of the submarine.
15. Grishchenko Vladimir Timofeevich, born in 1916, junior lieutenant, commander of a torpedo group.
16. Dudkin Yuri Vasilievich, born in 1911, engineer-captain-lieutenant, commander of warhead-5.
17. Evstrakhov Nikolai Maksimovich, born in 1911, Red Navy man, cook.
18. Zhavnerovich Stepan Stepanovich, born in 1919, Red Navy man, motor mechanic.
19. Ivanov Ivan Lavrentievich, born in 1920, foreman 2nd class, commander of the SCS department.
20. Kastalonov Alexey Andreevich, born in 1921, Red Navy man, motor mechanic.
21. Kozhevnikov Mikhail Grigorievich, born in 1915, lieutenant engineer, commander of a motor group.
22. Kozin Pavel Nikolaevich, born in 1921, Red Navy man, commander of the acoustics department.
23. Korsun Pyotr Vasilyevich, born in 1910, senior lieutenant, commander of warhead-1.
24. Vasily Nikiforovich Kosenko, born in 1918, Red Navy man, senior motorman.
25. Kuznetsov Maxim Grigorievich, born in 1919, Red Navy man, motor mechanic.
26. Kurkov Andrey Egorovich, born in 1912, chief foreman, foreman of the bilge group.
27. Mikhail Vladimirovich Lapitsky, born in 1914, senior lieutenant, assistant submarine commander.
28. Lebedev Alexey Alekseevich, born in 1912, lieutenant, commander of the steering group.
29. Marnosov Yakov Andreevich, born in 1914, senior lieutenant, commander of warhead-3.
30. Menshikov Emelyan Nikolaevich, born in 1918, senior Red Navy man, senior motorman.
31. Nekrasov Ivan Semenovich, born in 1913, chief foreman, foreman of a group of electricians.
32. Nikolichev Mikhail Dmitrievich, born in 1917, Red Navy man, commander of the navigational electricians squad.
33. Pishcheiko Vasily Ivanovich, born in 1921, Red Navy man, helmsman.
34. Plakhotnikov Nikolai Ivanovich, born in 1914, senior Red Navy man, senior helmsman of the submarine L-3.
35. Bad Timofey Ignatievich, born in 1920, Red Navy man, commander of the gunner squad.
36. Rogachev Nikolai Yakovlevich, born 1921, senior Red Navy man, senior helmsman.
37. Ryazanov Vasily Ivanovich, born in 1917, foreman 2nd class, commander of the electricians department of submarine L-3.
38. Savenko Pavel Afanasyevich, born 1921, senior Red Navy man, senior bilge officer.
39. Sobolev Vasily Iosifovich, born in 1913, chief foreman, foreman of the torpedo group.
40. Sokolov Viktor Mikhailovich, born in 1916, sergeant major 2nd class, commander of the miner squad.
41. Spichenko Ivan Polikarpovich, born in 1918, military paramedic, senior paramedic.
42. Timofeev Pyotr Ivanovich, born in 1921, Red Navy man, senior gunner.
43. Tovstograi Konstantin Sergeevich, born in 1918, foreman 2nd article, commander of the bilge department.
44. Tolkunov Ilya Nikitovich, born in 1915, foreman 2nd class, commander of the torpedo squad.
45. Filippov Anatoly Konstantinovich, born in 1916, Red Navy man, combatant.
46. Khanarin Ivan Nikanorovich, born 1916, senior Red Navy man, senior miner.
47. Chuguev Ivan Ivanovich, born in 1913, chief foreman, foreman of a group of motorists.
48. Shilov Vladimir Ivanovich, born 1921, Red Navy man, torpedo operator.
49. Shiryaev Egor Egorovich, born in 1919, Red Navy man, senior motorman.
50. Shkurko Vasily Danilovich, born in 1919, senior Red Navy man, senior motorman.
Eternal memory to the submariners who died in the line of duty for their Motherland!
At the beginning of June 2009, the first stage of the search expedition “Bow to the ships of the Great Victory 2009” ended, which consisted of exploring the remains of a submarine lying at a depth of 59 meters off the coast of Bulgaria. After clearing the bow 100-mm gun of the sunken submarine, we read the markings “B-24” and “06-9”, which corresponded to the submarine L-24, the hull of which was discovered at the bottom of the Black Sea in 1988 by an expedition of the Institute of Oceanology of Bulgaria using a towed uninhabited submarine apparatus "Relef - 4000". According to the Bulgarians themselves, in 1988 and 1991 they “partially explored” the remains of the submarine, which, according to them, lie at a depth of about 60 meters at a course of 290 degrees and rise 9.2 meters above the bottom.
On the initiative of the Russian Underwater Federation and the Bulgarian Dive Center, supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the State Duma of the Russian Federation and the Prime Minister of Bulgaria S. Stanishev, this year it was possible to prepare an expedition led by K. Bogdanov, which included not only Russian, but also Bulgarian divers On June 2 (the first day of the dive), scuba divers examined the boat and found that it lay at a depth of 59.5 meters on an even keel, all the hatches were battened down, and the guns were secured in the stowed position. A hole was discovered on the port side under the bow 100 mm gun. Having cleared the place under the gun of the submarine, which had lain at the bottom for 67 years, the submarine was identified, thereby fulfilling the goal of the first stage of the expedition.
The Leninets-type underwater minelayer of the XIII-bis series was built at plant No. 198 NKSP (Black Sea Shipyard named after Andre Marti) in Nikolaev. Laid down on October 20 (according to other sources, 23) October 1940.
The acceptance certificate was signed on April 29, 1942, the submarine officially entered service on May 6, 1942, and was officially included in the Black Sea Fleet on May 12, 1942. For the creation of submarines of the XIII-1938 series in 1943, the honorary title of laureates of the State Prize of the 1st degree was awarded to N.V. Alekseev, V.I. Vasiliev, P.Z. Golosovsky, V.P. Goryachev, V.F. Kritsky, B M. Malinin, V. P. Funikov. The L-24 met the beginning of the Great Patriotic War at the factory wall, where the construction of the submarine continued. As of July 1, 1941, the degree of technical readiness of the submarine was estimated at 75%.
Tactical and technical data of the project:
Displacement: surface/underwater - 1108/1099 t
Speed: surface/underwater - 18/9(8.5?) knots
Cruising range:
on the surface - 950 (18 knots) miles
5500(10kt) miles
with increased fuel reserve 3400 (17 knots) miles
10000(10kt) miles
Submerged - 150 (2.5 knots) miles
13.5(9kt) miles
Crew: -52(54-56?) people
Dimensions: -85.3(83.3?)x7.0x4.1 m
Armament: 533mm NTA-6 pcs.
533mm KTA-2 pcs.
gun B-24-PL 100mm - 1 pc.
gun 21-K 45mm - 1 pc.
Mines: -20 pcs.
Autonomy: -30(45) days
Immersion depth: - up to 100 meters
In mid-August 1941, German troops approached Nikolaev. On August 12, L-24 urgently began leaving the factory. It was missing a battery and some auxiliary mechanisms and devices; The submarine could not dive. Together with the crew, the delivery team headed by builder M.I. Bychkov and mechanic A.A. Zmeytsyn left for the submarine. The senior officer on board the submarine was Hero of the Soviet Union, Captain II Rank I.A. Burmistrov. At the exit, the submarine was fired upon by German artillery, and in the area of Cape Tarkhankut it was caught in a strong storm and sea water began to flow into the hull through the rivet holes of the removable sheets, disrupting the operation of a number of mechanisms. Along the route, the L-24 withstood an attack by a German plane, but was still able to complete the difficult single passage to Sevastopol.
On August 17, 1941, Lieutenant Commander Andrei Antonovich Kosenko was appointed commander of the L-24. On November 9, L-24 moved to Poti, where it continued completion and commissioning of the ship. The state of discipline on the submarine was not up to par, and on January 12, 1942, the submarine commander was arrested and tried by a military tribunal for systematic drunkenness. Having considered his case, the court sent the former L-24 commander to a penal company.
On February 9, 1942, captain III rank Georgy Petrovich Apostolov was appointed commander of the L-24. On April 7, the submarine completed the sea trials program. At the beginning of June 1942, the L-24 moved to Novorossiysk, from where it took part in supplying the besieged Sevastopol. Over four transport flights to Sevastopol, the L-24 delivered 217.3 tons of ammunition, 95 tons of food, 98 tons (according to other sources 82 tons) of gasoline to the city’s defenders, and evacuated 54 people to the Caucasus.
After the fourth transport voyage, when the submarine returned to Novorossiysk, it survived three long pursuits by Kriegsmarine boats with a total duration of 36 hours. The total number of depth charges dropped on the submarine during this period was about three hundred. A number of electrical measuring instruments on the submarine were disabled, and the seals of the high pressure cylinders were damaged. Arriving in Novorossiysk, the L-24 came under the infamous air raid on July 2, 1942, when 64 German Ju-88 bombers, accompanied by a dozen fighters, dropped about 170 bombs on the ships standing in the harbor. In a quarter of an hour, the leader "Tashkent", the destroyer "Bditelny", the ambulance transport "Ukraine" and several small ships were killed. L-24 was also damaged. Four bombs exploded at a distance of 5-15 meters from the submarine’s hull. The submarine began to move away from the pier and at that moment a 500-kg bomb hit the first engine room of the destroyer Bditelny, causing the explosion of its two torpedoes in torpedo tube No. 1. As a result of the bombing and detonation of the Vigilant torpedoes, the submarine suffered numerous damage to the light hull and tank plating, and the breakwater flaps of the torpedo tubes were jammed. Seven L-24 crew members were injured and burned. On the same day, the submarine left for Poti, where it remained under repair until August 12, and two days after entering service, the L-24 headed to the Bosphorus, where it patrolled the area to no avail until the evening of August 31. When the submarine returned to the Samsun area, several enemy aircraft dropped 48 bombs on the L-24 without much success.
On October 1, 1942, the L-24 went to sea. Having deployed twenty mines near Yalta on October 4, the submarine moved to the designated area to the Bosphorus, where it arrived on October 6. The next day, L-24 discovered an enemy convoy and attacked a tanker from it with three torpedoes. The minesweepers R-165 and R-166 guarding the convoy dropped 9 depth charges on the submarine, from the explosions of which the submarine received minor damage. A minute and a half after the launch of the torpedoes, an explosion of one of them was recorded on the submarine. The target of the L-24 attack was the Italian tanker Arca (1883, 2.238 GRT). It is unknown whether the ship was damaged. Arca was sunk by the British submarine Taku on October 26, 1942, off Chios. L-24 remained in position until the evening of October 17, but did not encounter anyone else except the Turkish schooners.
On November 15, L-24 went to sea with the task of laying mines southeast of Cape Kaliakra (Bulgaria). On November 19, having deployed 20 mines, the submarine successfully completed its combat campaign on November 23, 1942, arriving in Poti.
The next trip to sea was the last for the L-24. On December 12, 1942, the submarine went to lay mines in the area of Cape Kaliakra, after which it was supposed to conduct patrols in this area and return to base on the morning of January 1, 1943. Before the start of patrolling at the position assigned to him, the L-24 commander, Captain III Rank G.P. Apostolov, after appropriate additional reconnaissance of the enemy’s coastal communications, was supposed to place on them 8 miles east of Cape Kaliakra the entire mine reserve of his ship - 20 boat anti-ship anchor contact mines of the PLT type .
On December 12, 1942, at 22.47, the “Combat Log of the Headquarters of the 1st Submarine Brigade of the Black Sea Fleet” recorded a radiogram given by G.P. Apostolov at 22.30 to the operational duty officer of the main naval base of the Black Sea Fleet: “For the period from 00 o’clock until 05 o’clock, please turn on the radio beacons of Poti, Batumi and Sukhumi.” This was the only radiogram received from the L-24. On December 31, 1942, in the “work log of the operational duty officer of the Flagship Command Post of the Black Sea Fleet” there appeared a record of a radiogram sent by the command of the Black Sea Fleet submarine brigade at 09.40: “At dawn on January 1, the arrival from Westa to Poti according to the plan of submarine L-24 is expected. The submarine is returning without radio communication.”
Hope for her safe return to base was given by an aerial reconnaissance report, which at 10.35 on January 1 reported that a submarine had been detected in square No. 2992, heading 80 degrees, speed 10 knots. Presumably this is submarine L-24,” but this report turned out to be erroneous. On the same day, at 13.15, patrol boat No. 039 left Poti to meet L-24, waited at sea for 6.5 hours to no avail and returned to base alone at 19.40. At 18.00, for independent entry into Poti, the lighthouse and port lights were turned on for an hour (in wartime this is an exceptional case), then their work was extended until 20.25, but the L-24 did not return to base at the appointed time.
The next day, January 2, an entry appeared in the “Historical Journal of the Black Sea Fleet No. 20” that “the submarine L-24 is one day late in returning from position No. 50. There is no connection with the submarine." 9 days later, on January 11, the following final entry was made in the same document: “ The submarine L-24 did not return from position No. 50. The submarine’s scheduled return period expired on 01/01/43. From 01/11/43 The submarine L-24 is considered lost while performing a combat mission. The cause, time and place of death of the submarine have not been established. Contacts with the submarine since leaving the base on 12/12/42. did not have».
None of the researchers were able to establish any details of the last combat campaign of the underwater minelayer L-24, and therefore most of them agreed that the L-24 died between December 15 and 29, 1942 in the area of Cape Shabla (Shabler) on a mine Romanian barrier S-15. Detection of the L-24 hull at the point 43°19.4min N/28°41.5min E. suggests that the boat did not die on the S-15 barrier itself (Sperre 15), set up on December 7, 1941 by the Romanian minelayer “Admiral Murgescu” under the command of Captain III Rank Ovidiu Margineanu, but on one of the 100 German anti-submarine mines of the type that constituted it UMA, torn from it by December storms and carried 12 miles south of it, where L-24 is located today. According to Soviet official sources, the command of the Black Sea Fleet did not know about this barrier and therefore could not inform A.G. Apostolov, who was entering the position, about it, who “apparently considered this area safe from mines.”
The analysis of the first part of the submarine’s combat mission in its last combat campaign - the planned laying of a minefield at Cape Kaliakra - allows us to find the day of the death of L-24. This task could presumably be completed in full (20 minutes) 8 miles east of Cape Kaliakra between 17 and 26 December. Available enemy data suggests that not only no mine explosions were recorded in this area, but also no Soviet boat mines themselves, which clearly indicates that the L-24 never laid any mines. L-24 did not have time to do this before her death, which, obviously, followed immediately after the submarine arrived at the position, in the process of reconnaissance of the enemy’s coastal communications before the actual laying of mines on the night of December 15-16, that is, the boat died on December 15, 1942 of the year.
Thus, it is possible to assume that the underwater minelayer L-24 died on December 15, 1942 in the area of Cape Kaliakra (Bulgaria), at a point with coordinates 43gr26.72min N/28gr56.14min E. on a drifting mine torn from an S-15 mine laid by the Romanian minelayer Admiral Murgescu.
While participating in the Great Patriotic War, the L-24 made 8 combat campaigns:
06/05/1942-06/09/1942 Transport flight to Sevastopol
06/11/1942-06/15/1942 Transport flight to Sevastopol
06/16/1942-06/20/1942 Transport flight to Sevastopol
06/22/1942-06/29/1942 Transport flight to Sevastopol
08/14/1942-09/03/1942 Combat campaign
01.10.1942-21.10.1942 Mine laying
11/15/1942-11/23/1942 Mine laying
12.12.1942- +
The number of personnel on the L-24 staff was 50 people, but in the last combat campaign, 57 Black Sea submariners were on board the submarine and died along with it:
1. Apostolov Georgy Petrovich (1910-1942) - captain of the 3rd rank, submarine commander.
2. Mamutov Abidin (1903-1942) - lieutenant captain, deputy commander of the ship for political affairs.
3. Nikolai Danilovich Ivanov (1913-1942) - lieutenant captain, assistant submarine commander.
4. Katkov Alexey Matveevich (1912-1942) - engineer-captain-lieutenant, commander of warhead-5.
5. Kuznetsov Nikolai Mikhailovich (1916-1942) - senior lieutenant, commander of warhead-1.
6. Voronov Lev Semenovich (1916-1942) - senior lieutenant, commander of the steering group.
7. Potemkin Viktor Panteleimonovich (1919-1942) - senior lieutenant, commander of warhead-3.
8. Marchenko Pyotr Sevastyanovich (1918-1942) - senior lieutenant, commander of a mine and torpedo group.
9. Borzov Nikolai Abramovich (1918-1942) - lieutenant, backup commander of the warhead-3.
10. Chaplygin Evgeniy Yakovlevich (1919-1942) - lieutenant engineer, commander of the movement group (motor group).
11. Litvinenko Mikhail Nazarovich (1920-1942) - senior military paramedic, head of the sanitary service.
12. Levkovich Petr Vasilievich (1911-1942) - midshipman, boatswain.
13. Verbenko Gavriil Ivanovich (1911-1942) - midshipman, foreman of a group of electricians.
14. Ermakov Mikhail Fedorovich (1908-1942) - midshipman, foreman of the bilge group.
15. Karpov Ivan Andreevich (1908-1942) - midshipman, foreman of a group of motorists.
16. Lyubimov Valentin Porfirievich (1912-1942) - chief foreman, foreman of the torpedo group.
17. Podolsky Nikolai Nikolaevich (1917-1942) - foreman of the 1st article, foreman of radio operators.
18. Zarubin Dmitry Fedorovich (1919-1942) - sergeant major of the first class, commander of the gunners’ squad.
19. Shishkin Tikhon Petrovich (1914-1942) - senior sergeant of the 1st class, commander of the bilge department.
20. Vasilenko Ivan Panteleevich (1916-1942) - foreman of the II class, commander of the radio operator squad.
21. Glazunov Nikolai Vasilievich (1921-1942) - foreman of the II class, commander of the helmsman squad.
22. Gorban Andrey Moiseevich (1919-1942) - foreman of the II class, commander of the department of electronic navigation devices (navigation electricians).
23. Tkachenko Viktor Fedorovich (1921-1942) - sergeant-major II class, commander of the covert communications department.
24. Khabarov Alexander Semenovich (1915-1942) - foreman of the II class, commander of the torpedo squad.
25. Chukurna Alexander Lazarevich (1915-1942) - foreman of the II class, commander of the torpedo squad.
26. Shcherbakov Vasily Grigorievich (1917-1942) - foreman of the II class, commander of the electricians department.
27. Kononets Pavel Romanovich (1913-1942) - senior Red Navy man, commander of the motorists squad.
28. Volkov Grigory Kirillovich (1919-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior engine mechanic.
29. Domovodov Nikolai Pavlovich (1920-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior engine mechanic.
30. Taran Ivan Vasilyevich (1921-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior engine mechanic.
31. Shakirov Zufar Shakirovich (1919-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior engine mechanic.
32. Belyaev Evgeniy Georgievich (1921-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior electrician.
33. Korobkin Ivan Grigorievich (1921-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior electrician.
34. Gusev Andrey Sergeevich (1920-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior helmsman.
35. Muzhikovsky David Zusimovich (1918-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior helmsman.
36. Lapkin Nikolai Tarasovich (1920-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior bilge officer.
37. Svetlichny Ilya Stepanovich (1921-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior bilge officer.
38. Litvin Pyotr Stepanovich (1920-1942) - senior Red Navy man, senior gunner.
39. Petrov Vladimir Georgievich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, senior motorman.
40. Glukhov Vasily Nikolaevich (1920-1942) - Red Navy man, engine mechanic.
41. Sharnikov Mikhail Mikhailovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, engine mechanic.
42. Shkuratov Nikolai Vlasovich (1920-1942) - Red Navy man, engine mechanic.
43. Balandin Viktor Ivanovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, torpedo operator.
44. Gaivoronsky Nikolai Maksimovich (1920-1942) - Red Navy man, torpedo operator.
45. Bozhko Ivan Ivanovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy, bilge.
46. Suprin Ivan Kirillovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, bilge officer.
47. Vasiliev Gavriil Alekseevich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, helmsman.
48. Koptsov Viktor Dementievich (1922-1942) - Red Navy man, helmsman.
49. Kabitsky Valentin Vasilievich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, miner.
50. Kutsirin Sergey Alekseevich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, miner.
51. Kovalenko Pavel Spiridonovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, electrician.
52. Komarovsky Ivan Lavrentievich (1920-1942) - Red Navy, cook.
53. Kudryavtsev Ivan Mikhailovich (1924-1942) - Red Navy man, electrician.
54. Popov Mikhail Ivanovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, electrician.
55. Savoev Anatoly Fedorovich (1921-1942) - Red Navy man, radio operator.
56. Tinyakov Nikolai Alexandrovich (1922-1942) - Red Navy man, senior hydroacoustic.
57. Usenko Ivan Dmitrievich (1923-1942) - Red Navy man, combatant.
The death of the minelayer L-24 was accompanied by the largest number of dead submariners in the history of the Black Sea Podplav.
Everlasting memory!
reserve captain 1st rank
Navy Submariner Veteran
Marine Assembly of Sevastopol