View source for German torpedo boat Wolf

{|{{Infobox ship begin |infobox caption=nodab}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=Wolf-1.jpg
|Ship caption=Type 1924 (''Raubtier''-class) torpedo boats
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Germany]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Weimar Republic|naval}} {{shipboxflag|Nazi Germany|naval}}
|Ship name=''Wolf''
|Ship namesake=[[Wolf]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder= [[Reichsmarinewerft Wilhelmshaven]]
|Ship original cost=
|Ship yard number=109
|Ship way number=
|Ship laid down=8 March 1927
|Ship launched=12 October 1927
|Ship sponsor=
|Ship christened=
|Ship completed= 
|Ship commissioned=15 November 1928
|Ship fate=Sunk by [[naval mine|mine]], 8 January 1941
|Ship notes= 
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption= (as built)
|Ship class= [[Type 24 torpedo boat|Type 24]] [[torpedo boat]]
|Ship displacement=*{{convert|932|LT|t|lk=on}} ([[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]])
*{{convert|1319|LT|t}} ([[deep load]])
|Ship length={{convert|92.6|m|ftin|abbr=on}} ([[Length overall|o/a]])
|Ship beam= {{convert|8.65|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft= {{convert|3.52|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=*2 × shafts
*2 × geared [[steam turbine]] sets
|Ship speed= {{convert|34|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range= {{cvt|1997|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|17|kn}}
|Ship power=*3 × [[water-tube boilers]]
*{{cvt|23000|shp|lk=on}}
|Ship complement=129
|Ship armament= *3 × single [[10.5 cm SK C/28 naval gun|{{convert|10.5|cm|in|abbr=on}}]] guns
*2 × triple {{convert|500|mm|in|1|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s
*30 [[naval mine|mines]]
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''''Wolf''''' was the second of six [[Type 24 torpedo boat]]s built for the German Navy (initially called the ''[[Reichsmarine]]'' and then renamed as the ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' in 1935) during the 1920s. The boat made multiple [[Non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War|non-intervention patrol]]s during the [[German involvement in the Spanish Civil War|Spanish Civil War]] in the late 1930s.  During [[World War II]], she played a minor role in the occupation of [[Bergen]] during the [[Norwegian Campaign]] of April 1940. ''Wolf'' escorted [[minelayer]]s once as they laid [[minefield]]s in late April before beginning a refit that lasted until August. She was transferred to France around September and conducted offensive patrols in the English Channel as well as laying minefields herself. The ship struck a [[naval mine|mine]] and was sunk returning from one such mission in January 1941.

==Design and description==
Derived from the preceding [[Type 23 torpedo boat]], the Type 24 was slightly larger and faster, but had a similar armament.<ref name=g1>Gröner, p. 191</ref> The boats had an [[length overall|overall length]] of {{convert|92.6|m|ftin|sp=us}} and were {{convert|89|m|ft|sp=us|0}} [[Length at the waterline|long at the waterline]].<ref name="conways06 p237"/> They had a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|8.65|m|ftin|sp=us}}, and a mean [[draft (hull)|draft]] of {{convert|3.52|m|ftin|sp=us}}. The Type 24s displaced {{convert|932|LT|t|lk=on}} at [[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard load]] and {{convert|1319|LT|t}} at [[deep load]]. ''Wolf''{{'}}s pair of [[Brown, Boveri & Cie|Brown-Boveri]] geared [[steam turbine]] sets, each driving one propeller, were designed to produce {{convert|23000|PS|kW shp|lk=on}} using steam from three [[water-tube boiler]]s which would propel the ship at {{convert|34|kn|lk=on}}.<ref name="whit2000 p57">Whitley 2000, p. 58</ref> The boats carried enough [[fuel oil]] to give them a range of {{convert|1997|nmi|abbr=on}} at {{convert|17|kn}}. Their crew numbered 129 officers and sailors.<ref name=w2>Whitley 1991, p. 202</ref>

As built, the Type 24s mounted three [[10.5 cm SK C/28 naval gun|{{cvt|10.5|cm|in}} SK C/28]]{{refn|In ''Kriegsmarine'' gun nomenclature, SK stands for ''Schiffskanone'' (ship's gun), C/30 stands for ''Constructionjahr'' (construction year) 1930.<ref>Campbell, p. 219</ref>|group=Note}} guns, one forward and two aft of the [[superstructure]], numbered one through three from bow to stern. They carried six above-water 50&nbsp;cm (19.7&nbsp;in) [[torpedo tube]]s in two triple mounts [[amidships]]<ref name="conways06 p237">Sieche, p. 237</ref> and could also carry up to 30 [[naval mine|mines]]. After 1931, the torpedo tubes were replaced by {{cvt|533|mm|in|0}} tubes<ref name=g1/> and a pair of [[2 cm FlaK 30/38/Flakvierling|{{cvt|2|cm|1}} C/30]] [[anti-aircraft gun]]s were added.<ref>Whitley 1991, pp. 47, 202; Whitley 2000, pp. 57–58</ref>

==Construction and career==
''Wolf'' was [[laid down]] at the ''[[Reichsmarinewerft Wilhelmshaven]]'' (Navy Yard) on 8 March 1927<ref name="whit2000 p57"/> as [[yard number]] 109,<ref>Gröner, p. 192</ref> [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 12 October 1927 and [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 15 November 1928.<ref name="whit2000 p57"/> The boat was initially assigned to the 3rd Torpedo Boat Half-Flotilla and by the end of 1936 she was assigned to the 2nd Torpedo Boat Flotilla. She made several deployments to Spain during the Spanish Civil War. Around June 1938, ''Tiger'' was transferred to the 3rd Torpedo Boat Flotilla which was renumbered as the 6th Flotilla on 1 July.<ref>Whitley 1991, pp. 77–79</ref>

===Second World War===
''Wolf'' supported the [[North Sea]] mining operations that began on 3 September 1939. On 17–19 October ''Wolf'', together with her [[sister ship]]s {{ship|German torpedo boat|Iltis||2}} and {{ship|German torpedo boat|Leopard||2}} and three [[destroyer]]s, patrolled the [[Skagerrak]] to inspect neutral shipping for [[contraband]] goods. On 13, 18 and 19 November, the 6th Flotilla and one or two [[light cruiser]]s met destroyers returning from [[minelaying]] missions off the English coast. The flotilla made another contraband patrol in the Skagerrak on 24–25 November.<ref>Rohwer, pp. 2, 7–10</ref>

During the Norwegian Campaign, ''Wolf'' and ''Leopard'' were assigned to Group 3 under ''[[Konteradmiral]]'' (Rear Admiral) [[Hubert Schmundt]] on the light cruiser {{Ship|German cruiser|Köln||2}}, tasked to capture [[Bergen]] harbor. After loading troops of the invasion force in [[Cuxhaven]], the torpedo boats and the [[depot ship]] ''Carl Peters'' proceeded independently to rendezvous with the rest of Group 3 on the afternoon of 8 April. Under orders to land his troops before dawn on 9 April, Schmundt's ships entered the [[Korsfjorden]] around midnight. They were spotted shortly afterwards by a Norwegian patrol boat which alerted the Norwegian defenses. All ships flashed light signals identifying them as British ships whenever challenged, but the Norwegians were not fooled. Schmundt ordered ''Leopard'' to assume the lead just before they entered the [[Byfjorden (Hordaland)|Byfjorden]] leading to Bergen around 04:00. [[Kvarven Fort]] opened fire shortly afterwards, and then [[Hellen Fort]], but they made no hits on the leading ships before they moved out of sight into Bergen harbor at 04:13 where they began landing their troops.<ref>Haar 2009, pp. 80–81, 101–102, 255–256, 261–262</ref>

Concerned that his small force could be counter-attacked by the numerous British ships reported to be operating in the North Sea and that they were within range of British bombers, Schmundt took ''Köln'', ''Leopard'' and ''Wolf'' to sea early that evening. The torpedo boats streamed their [[minesweeping]] gear and cut the cables of two mines which floated to the surface as they proceeded through the fjords. Worried that he might be intercepted after receiving further reports of British ships off the Norwegian coast, Schmundt took his ships into the [[Maurangerfjord]] where they anchored at 02:00. Schmundt headed for home as darkness was setting in and reached [[Wilhelmshaven]] the following evening.<ref>Haarr 2009, pp. 270–272</ref> Escorted by ''Wolf'', two destroyers, and the torpedo boats {{ship|German torpedo boat|Kondor||2}} and {{ship|German torpedo boat|Möwe||2}}, minelayers laid a [[minefield]] in the Skaggerak on 29–30 April. En route, ''Leopard'' was sunk when she was accidentally rammed by the minelayer ''Preussen''. ''Wolf'' was refitted in ''Stettin'', Germany, from May to August.<ref>Rohwer, p. 22; Whitley 1991, p. 209</ref>

Now assigned to the 5th Torpedo Boat Flotilla, ''Wolf'' escorted the minelayers ''Stralsund'' and ''Skaggerak'' from [[Le Havre]] to [[Brest, France]], on 28–29 September. The flotilla made an unsuccessful [[sortie]] off the [[Isle of Wight]] on 8–9 October. They made a second, more successful, sortie on 11–12 October, sinking two [[Free French]] [[submarine chaser]]s and two British [[Naval trawler|trawlers]]. The 5th Flotilla was transferred to [[St. Nazaire]] later that month. On 8 January 1941, ''Wolf'' and ''Kondor'' laid a minefield off [[Dover]], but ''Wolf'' struck a mine off [[Dover]] on the return voyage and sank at {{Coord|51|05|N|02|08|E|display=inline,title}} with the loss of 45 crewmen.<ref>Gröner, p. 193; Rohwer, pp. 42–43, 45, 55; Whitley 1991, p. 109</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=Note}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|30em}}

==References==
* {{cite book|last=Campbell|first=John|title=Naval Weapons of World War II|year=1985|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|isbn=978-0-87021-459-2}}
*{{Cite book |last=Gröner|first=Erich|title=German Warships 1815&ndash;1945|year=1990 |location=Annapolis, Maryland|volume=1: Major Surface Warships|publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=0-87021-790-9|author-link=Erich Gröner}}
* {{cite book|last=Haarr|first=Geirr H.|title=The German Invasion of Norway, April 1940|year=2009 |publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|isbn=978-1-59114-310-9|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/germaninvasionof00geir}}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2 |author-link=Jürgen Rohwer}}
*{{cite book|editor1-last=Chesneau|editor1-first=Roger|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946 |year=1980|publisher=Conway Maritime Press |location=London|isbn=0-85177-146-7|name-list-style=amp|chapter=Germany|author1-last=Sieche |author1-first=Erwin}}
*{{cite book|last=Whitley|first=M. J.|title=Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia |year=2000|publisher=Cassell & Co.|location=London|isbn=1-85409-521-8|author-link=Michael J. Whitley}}
* {{cite book|last=Whitley|first=M. J.|title=German Destroyers of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|date=1991|isbn=1-55750-302-8|location=Annapolis, Maryland}}

{{Type 24 torpedo boat}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, German torpedo boat}}
[[Category:Type 24 torpedo boats]]
[[Category:1927 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Wilhelmshaven]]