Operation Bosemüller

(German assault unit in World War I)

'Bosemüller' was a U-boat wolfpack operation in the Atlantic against the SL.84 and OG.73 convoys (1/2 September 1941).

The wolfpack comprised U-71, U-83, U-95, U-557, U-558, U-561, U-562 and U-751, and neither lost any of its own number nor sank any ship.

On 1 September the 'Kurfürst' (i) wolfpack was established with U-77, U-96, U-206, U-553, U-563, U-567 and U-568 to the west of the North Channel and the 'Bosemüller' wolfpack was created to the west and south-west of Ireland, the latter wolfpack’s boats being directed to the SL.84 convoy, which had been sighted and reported by the returning U-73. The wolfpack found nothing in conditions of poor visibility.

The boats of the 'Kurfürst' (i) wolfpack were directed to the OG.73 convoy, which had been sighted and reported by a Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor four-engined long-range maritime reconnaissance bomber of Hauptmann Wendt Freiherr von Schlippenbach’s I/Kampfgeschwader 40. On 2 September U-557 chanced on the OG.73 convoy in the mist, U-83 sighted a corvette of the convoy’s escort, and the convoy was also reported by air reconnaissance.

In consequence, the 'Kurfürst' (i) and 'Bosemüller' wolfpacks were combined to form the 'Seewolf' (i) wolfpack and were directed to this convoy. However, they find neither this convoy nor another convoy which was sighted and reported by U-98 on 3 September.