Pontoons with aircraft motors: Siebel ferries for a possible crossing of the English Channel

_{Photo: Bundesarchiv}

When studying the issue of a possible landing of German troops in the British Isles and the transition from an exchange of air strikes to a full-scale war against England, a serious problem was discussed in Berlin. Given the presence of a considerable number of sea transports, Nazi Germany had a clear shortage of such ships that could be used in a full-scale amphibious operation. Often, the landing operation of the Nazis looked like this: a transport with thousands of soldiers approached the place near the coast where the depth allowed, after which small boats were used, many of which were not at all adapted for the operational transfer of the landing. As a result, such an operation could be successful only if the enemy did not offer noticeable resistance. And it was carried out "indecently" for a long time.

The German command began to think about the need to create such amphibious means that would make it possible to cross the English Channel during the proposed invasion of Britain. An initiative was voiced about the possibility of using ferries.

In the end, a man who was associated with a completely different element - with the sky - developed suitable means for airlifting troops by water. This is Luftwaffe officer Friedrich W. Siebel, who had an engineering degree.

Siebel ferries could travel at speeds up to 4 knots. For this, the designer decided to equip pontoons with aircraft motors used as ferries.

There was also a special version of the ferry, which could reach speeds of up to 8 knots and be used to transport not only personnel, but also cargo.

Siebel ferries are described in a video on the Starina YouTube channel:

Comments

[knn54]

The universal amphibious assault vehicle is simple and quick to manufacture (due to the technological design) and at the same time capable of transporting a sufficiently large cargo (including equipment and equipment), which could be easily landed ashore.
The "mesh" (set of pontoons) of the structure allowed:
-produce in small businesses;
-Transport individual sections even by motor transport and quickly assemble on site.
-high unsinkability.
-

[Crowe]

high unsinkability

During the battle near the island of Sukho, the damaged and disabled ferry T-21 (apparently, it was SF 156 according to the "continuous" numbering), the Germans first blew it up, then shot it for a long time with 88-mm guns, but still only Soviet gunboats with 130-mm artillery, firing almost at point-blank range. Siebel's artillery ferries were rarely used as strike or escort ships, unlike their closest "naval" competitors, the MNL-class lighters, known as "fast landing barges" (BDB)

Nevertheless, since 1943, catamarans-ferries have been actively used to transport soldiers and equipment, but not for the landing of assault forces, but, first of all, during the evacuation of German troops.

[ycuce234-san]

Quote: knn54

The "mesh" (set of pontoons) of the structure allowed:

It would be possible to modify them a little - to free (and strengthen) the center of the deck from the superstructure and leave this place for the heaviest loads, and in the stern put a light 5-7 meter tower-watchtower made of a profile or pipes and transfer the ferry control panel to its platform. Relax in hammocks suspended from a rope stretched along the line.
In versions with aircraft motors, the bridge could be located directly above them - it would be even easier to control it, since the control rods directly from the control panel would come to the engines.

[Crowe]

For the first time, the idea to use standard ferry pontoons as the basis for the ferry did not come to mind at all to Siebel. Already in July 1940, army specialists from the 47th engineer battalion of the 7th army corps independently developed the so-called "Herbert's ferry"

(or type "H" ferry), which consisted of two large bridge pontoons, developed during the First World War by the Austrian engineer Colonel Hans Herbert. Such ferries with a length of 17 meters had an important advantage - streamlined contours and good seaworthiness.

Assembling Herbert's ferries, France, 1940. A diagram of the installation of aircraft engines is clearly visible.

[svp67]

Oh, these "Siebel" (BDK) how much blood they spoiled our ancestors ... that near Leningrad, that on the Black Sea ... "shoulders" passed

[bairat]

Quote: svp67

and the rather successful evacuation of the German-Romanian troops from the Crimea, on their "shoulders" was

1. “Sperrbrecher-163” (570 brt.), April 10 At Sulina, the aircraft sank a minefill breaker
2. CNR-1468 lighter (500 brt.). torpedo boats sank
3. R-204 (2 dead) In the morning of April 11, IL-2 attack aircraft
4. (BDB) F-564C2. On April 15, in Sevastopol, the aircraft sank a high-speed landing barge.
5 BDB F-395C. In Yalta, torpedo boats and aircraft sank.
6. “Wagrein” (260 brt.) Coastal transport. At the Ak-Mosque, aviation sank on April 16.
7. BDB F-394C West of Sevastopol aviation sank
8. “Dordonj” (930 tons) lighter. Torpedo boats.
9. “Tetir Ossag” (2793 brt.) Tanker In the Sevastopol area on April 17, torpedo boats were sunk. Following on April 22 from Sevastopol with an escort) was first damaged by aircraft, and then finished off the submarine M-35.
10. “Ardajal” (5695 brt.) Romanian transport. The person following this convoy was seriously damaged.
11. “Leo” (409 brt.). As a result of the attack of IL-2 attack aircraft, the 47th glade of the German convoy was sunk on April 24.
12. UJ-104 (ex-KT-17) hunter (834 brt.), 17 people died. April 27 was damaged by a torpedo boat TKA№.344 The ship was towed back to Sevastopol where it was blown up on May 5.
13. “Lola” (1193 brt.) Transport. On April 29, coastal artillery was damaged.

On May 3, at Sevastopol, 9 A-20 bombers of the 13th guards dbap attacked an enemy convoy and sunk:
14. Hunter UJ-2304 (KFK-84).
The next day, May 4, artillery sank in the Sevastopol Bay
hunters UJ-2313
15.UJ-2314 (KFK-202),
16. transport “Junak” (444 brt.) 10 Pe-2s of the 40th bap were sunk.
17. The lighter “Bessarabija” (1489 tons) was sunk. On the afternoon of May 5 in the Sevastopol Bay it was sunk by artillery.
18. BDB F-132A sunk in the Sevastopol Bay dive pe-2 40th BAP.
19. “Elbe-5” lighter (500 brt.) On the approach to Sevastopol on May 8, torpedo boats TKA.№.344, No. 304 and SM-3 attacked an enemy convoy and sunk it.
20. Tanker “Prodomos” (877 brt.) On May 9, Soviet aircraft sank in the Sevastopol Bay.
21. “Inga” coastal transport On May 9, Soviet aircraft sunk in the Sevastopol Bay.
22. Seiner “Nadja” On May 9, Soviet aircraft sank in the Sevastopol Bay.
23. On May 9, Soviet cargo aircraft “Hella” sank in the Sevastopol Bay.
24. “Totila” (2773 brt.), May 10, 30 Il-2 attack aircraft from the 8th guards cap, 47th cap and 10 A-20 torpedo bombers from the 13th guards dbap
25. “Teja” (2773 brt.) On May 10, 30 Il-2 attack aircraft from the 8th guards cap, 47th cap and 10 A-20 torpedo bombers from the 13th guards dbap.
Convoy ships hardly restrained air attacks until noon. At noon, the Teja hit a torpedo, and it sank too.
26. BDB F-335 same convoy
27. “Banat” tugboat same convoy, same air attack.
28. G-3211 patrol boat sunk by artillery on the same day.
29. “Lus” patrol boat sunk by artillery on the same day.
30. “Sturmfogel” patrol boat sunk by artillery on the same day.
31. landing boats PiLB.319 and PiLB.402.
32. “Geiserich” transport (712 brt.), Sunk in the afternoon of May 11, when the last convoy left Cape Khersones to Constanta.
Aircraft were continuously striking at him. 11 Il-2 attack aircraft of the 8th Guards
33. transport “Danubius” (1489 brt.) Sunk 6 IL-2.

34. UJ-310 hunter (ex-KFK-194) the same 6 IL-2 at the same hour.
35. Tanker “Friederike” (ex- “Firuz”) (7327 gt), severely damaged L-4 submarine, towed to Constanta.
36. UJ-2303 (ex-KFK-83) ​​hunter, artillery fire and aviation
37. G-3106 “Anderten” patrol boat, sunk.
38. G-3162 “Tilli” patrol boat sunk by aircraft.
39. “Romania” (3152 brt.) Floating base, damaged by aircraft and finished off by torpedo boats TKA No. 301, No. 353
40. Transport “Durostor” (1309 gt) damaged by 12 Pe-2
and sunk by submarine A-5.
41. BDB F-130A. Damaged by aircraft, shot by artillery submarine S-33
In Sevastopol, the Germans blew up the damaged transports “Kazak” (759 gb) and “Erzherzog Karl” (378 gb).

"We were taken on a barge to Constanta. All the way we were bombed and fired upon by Russian planes. It was horror. Our barge was not sunk, but there were a lot of dead and wounded. The whole barge was in holes. In order not to drown, we threw all our weapons overboard. , ammunition, then all the killed, and anyway, when we came to Constanta, we stood in the water up to our throats in the holds, and the lying wounded all drowned. If we had to walk another 20 kilometers, we would definitely go to the bottom! I was very bad. All the wounds were inflamed from the sea water. At the hospital, the doctor told me that most of the barges were half filled with dead people. "

Quite successful, yeah)

[Tests]

bairat (Airat), respected, really respected svp67 (Sergei) said something about the fact that aircraft, torpedo boats, artillery did not sink ships and vessels of Germany and Romania in the Black Sea in the spring of 1944? You have the numbers: how many troops of Germany and her allies were in Crimea in March, how many were ordered to evacuate, how many were evacuated on ships and vessels, how many were evacuated by aviation. Still, of course, the number of prisoners taken in Crimea would not hurt, but here's the catch, from among those who were in the punitive battalions in March, how many former Soviet citizens took off their uniforms and hid by relatives and friends, then the NKVD and NKGB cleaned a lot of them months. From the number of those evacuated by sea, let us subtract the number of those who were evacuated on the "Siebel" and find out what the evacuation was ...