In 1944, German U-boat U-672 sank off Devon; more than 80 years later, divers find the wreck — all 52 crew members survived

More than 80 years after it sank during World War II, divers have identified the wreck of German U-boat U-672 off the coast of Devon, uncovering a remarkable story: although the submarine was ultimately lost, all 52 crew members survived the sinking.

The Type VIIC submarine was discovered nearly 20 miles off the coast of Salcombe, England, at a depth of almost 70 meters. Diver Dom Robinson, 55, and his Gasperados team found the wreck after making a second attempt to locate it.

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The submarine had previously been identified only as an unidentified German U-boat by Ian Taylor and the Skin Deeper team. Robinson's team later consulted boat historian Axel Niestlé, helping confirm that the wreck was U-672.

A second attempt leads to a jackpot discovery

The divers were surprised when they found the submarine because its predicted location was actually about 40 miles away from the wreck site. Dom said: “We didn’t quite expect to find it there, and in fact this was our second attempt trying to find the ship. “It was a jackpot moment to find it — and I couldn’t stop thinking about how scary it must be to be in those times.

“We lost so many boats around D-Day it must be so scary having your submarine fill with water as people try to kill you from the surface.” The discovery offers a rare glimpse into a World War II wreck that remained unidentified for more than eight decades.

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How the German submarine U-672 sank

U-672 was a Type VIIC submarine that sank on July 18, 1944, after being attacked by HMS Balfour. Robinson explained how the anti-submarine weapons known as Hedgehogs were used during World War II.

Dom said: “During World War II, we used these weapons called Hedgehogs, which were basically these mortars used to sink ships. “A hedgehog weapon would be fired in front of the ship, they would sink and attach to the submarines, causing them to fill with water due to holes in the framework.

“This particular ship held 52 crew members, all of which miraculously survived.”

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All 52 crew members survived

Although U-672 was ultimately lost, its entire crew survived the sinking. Dom said: “When the crew realized they were filling with water — it became very apparent they couldn’t pump the water out as fast as it was filling — or drive home.

“So, they waited until dark to rise to the water’s surface — where they got on little dinghies. This was the day after D-Day, so there were a lot of allies about. “They were rescued and interviewed about what happened — hence why we know the story to this day.”

Divers descend nearly 70 meters to reach wreck

The Gasperados divers had to descend nearly 70 meters to reach U-672 on the seafloor. Dom said: “We were only down there about 25 minutes, but it took three hours because of having to decompress and compress due to the pressure of being that far down.

“When we first got down, I saw this anglerfish with all its teeth — we followed that down to see a rope with an octopus who ran into a school of fish — that’s when we knew we had found the wreck.

“When you are trying to identify a wreck you need to get a good look for what could be an iconic sign of a specific boat.

“For us that included things such as a unique Schnorkel system — that really pointed towards being a U- 672.”