Member of Class
 Boat
O 25		 Sister Ships
O 21, O 22,O 23
O 24, O 25, O 26, O 27

 

Launching of O 25, 1 May 1940 Launching of O 25, 1 May 1940

For more O 21 class images check out the  O 21 class photo special.

1938

28 June 1938: K XXV is ordered.

1939

10 Apr 1939: K XXV is laid down at the Wilton-Fijenoord shipyard in Schiedam.

At some stage (exact day/year unknown) during the construction the K XXV is renamed O 25.

1940

1 May 1940: O 25 is launched and prepared by Off MSD 1' F.J. de Hoop for a towed journey to England.

10 May 1940: Germany attacks the Netherlands.

14 May 1940: Because no tug boat is available the O 25 must be scuttled and is sunk in the Nieuwe Waterweg (near Rotterdam).

The Germans salve and complete the O 25 they rename the boat U-D3.

The Germans also captured the "getrimd diesel systeem" or "snort system" with the O 25, O 26 and O 27. The Royal Netherlands Navy was the first Navy to install such a system on their submarines (O 19 and O 20).

1941

Exact period unknown: The Germans test the snort of 'O 26'. Late 1941 the tests are broken off (against the wishes of U-Boat designer Christoph Aschmoneit) and the BdU orders the removal of the snorts of U-D3, U-D4 and U-D5.

8 June 1941: U-D3 is commissioned to the German Navy.

8 June 1941 - Oct 1943: U-D3 is under the German command of Krvkpt. Hermann Rigele.

June - July 1941: U-D3 is attached to the 3rd Flotilla in Kiel (Germany) and is used as a trial boat.

July - Aug 1941: U-D3 is attached to the 5th Flotilla in Kiel (Germany) and is used as a school boat.

Aug 1941 - Sep 1942: U-D3 is attached to the 2nd Flotilla in Loriënt (France).

7 Dec 1941: The USA declares war on Japan after Japanese forces attack Pearl Harbour. Approximately 7 hours after the attack the Netherlands also declares war on Japan.

14 Dec 1941: Japanese planes bomb Tarempah (Anambas Islands) which is Netherlands East Indies territory.

27 Dec 1941: Japanese invaders occupy Tambelan Islands, Dutch territory, between Borneo and Singapore.

1942

Oct 1942 - Feb 1943: U-D3 is attached to the 10th Flotilla in Loriënt (France).

3 Nov 1942: U-D3 departs Loriënt (France) for a patrol in the Central Atlantic.

26 Nov 1942: U-D3 patrols off the west coast of Africa and sinks the Norwegian freighter Indra (5041brt).

A German type VII-C U-boat (left) and the U-D4 (ex-O 26). Note the German flags on the towers.
According to some sources the boat on the right is U-D3 (ex-O 25) and the photo  is taken in 1944 in Germany.
Please contact us if you have more information on this photo.
.		 A German type VII-C U-boat (left) and the U-D4 (ex-O 26). Note the German flags on the towers.

1943

7 Jan 1943: U-D3 arrives in Loriënt (France).

Mar 1943 - Oct 1944: U-D3 is attached to the U-boot Abwehr Schule (ASW school) in Bergen (Norway) and is used as a school boat.

Oct 1943 - Oct 1944: U-D3 is under the German command of Kptlt. Joachim Seeger.

1944

13 Oct 1944: The U-D3 is decommissioned after being heavily damaged in a bombing raid on Kiel (Germany).

1945

3 May 1945: German Navy personnel scuttle the U-D3 in Kiel (Germany).

8 May 1945: Germany surrenders.

 

For more O 21 class images check out the  O 21 class photo special.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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