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Got it! Thanks for the clue Goose - How did I think it was 1943 to begin with? Must be Friday,
yawn!
U-85 was the first U-boat to be sunk off the North American coast after the start of the Operation Drumbeat (Paukenschlag) on January 13, 1942.
On the day that she was sunk, 14 April, U-85 stayed on the surface through the engagement. After repeated hits on the boat, fatally damaging her, the order to abandon ship was given and maybe half of the crew got into the water and then U-85 started to sink again fast. USS Roper then dropped 11 depth charges onto the already sinking U-boat and its 2 dozen survivors and in the process killed everyone in the water.
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U-156
On September 12 1942, U-156 under the command of Werner Hartenstein
torpedoed the Cunard liner/troopship Laconia in the South Atlantic.
Surfacing to confirm the sinking and inspect wreckage, the U-Boat skipper
was appalled to realize that the ship had been carrying more than 1800
Italian POW's along with 800 British and 100 Polish military personnel, and
some British civilians including women and children.
Feeling obligated to rescue as many of his Italian allies as possible, Hartenstein called upon other submarines in the area to assist, and also radioed Vichy French
surface ships to come to his aid.
Joined by the U-506, U-507 and the Italian boat "Capellini", Hartenstein's little act of humanitarianism got under way. But all was not to be well.
With four submarines towing lifeboats and their casings crowded with survivors, everyone was horrified to see the approach of an American B24 bomber. Hastily, a red cross flag was improvised, gun-crews were ordered away from their weapons, and an RAF officer on U-156 assisted in sending a message to the aircraft. But to no avail.
The aircraft disappeared, but shortly after, returned with bomb doors open. Having assessed the
situation, the pilot had requested advice on what he should do - but the temptation of four enemy submarines on the surface was just too great. Depth charges were dropped.
None of the submarines was damaged by the attack. The survivors had been handed back to the mercy of the sea, and the resulting death toll of the whole incident was large; the greatest casualties being the 1300+ Italians who perished.
Such a rescue was never attempted, or even allowed again.
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Doh!
