WW2 U-boat found 82 years after sinking off Devon coast

A German U-boat, U-672, has been discovered off the Devon coast 82 years after it was attacked and scuttled during World War Two ^[1]. The vessel was found at a depth of about 230ft (70m) in August by a deep sea diving team from Portland, with Plymouth’s Gasperados team identifying it roughly 20 miles (32km) off Salcombe.

The submarine was struck by depth charges from HMS Balfour in July 1944, forcing its 52 crew members to scuttle it. Despite the attack, all survived, with the commander delaying the final submergence to give his crew one last chance to reach the surface ^[1].

Diver Dominic Robinson of Gasperados said he recognised the U-672 by its distinctive features, including the snorkel and conning tower, and confirmed its identity through matching its radar-decoy equipment. A pig painted on the tower was noted as a possible identifier, but this has not been confirmed ^[2].

The crew managed to surface before sinking the vessel and spent a day floating in life rafts before being rescued by British aircraft and naval vessels ^[1]. They were taken to a prisoner of war camp and later returned to Germany after the war ^[2].

Dr Axel Niestle, a German WWII historian specialising in U-boats, confirmed the wreck was misrecorded due to a clerical error—its position was logged some 46 nautical miles (74km) off its actual location, which hid it for decades ^[1].

Robinson said he had spoken to the captain’s family, who said he lived a long and happy life and would have been proud to know the wreck had finally been found ^[2].

The discovery was made possible only after modern diving technology and historical data were cross-referenced, highlighting how wartime records can contain critical errors ^[1].

What happens next remains to be seen, but the find offers a rare closure for a wartime chapter long buried beneath the sea. The story was first reported by Mirror and Metro.