Type U 27

Type U 27 (“B II” – Boats)
U 27 to U 32, U 40 and U 41 = 8 U-boats

Since May 1915 the Austro-Hungarian Navy was aiming for larger U-boats, suitable for blue water operations beyond the coastal waters of the Adriatic Sea. The double hull type “B II” U-Boats of the Imperial German Navy was assessed to be best choice.

As early as October 1915 agreement was reached with Cantieri Shipyard at Pola and Danubius Shipyard at Budapest to construct 6 U-boats of the German type “B II” (2 U-boats to be built at Pola and 4 U-boats at Budapest), both shipyards had purchased the required licence contracts from their German counterparts. The construction parts of the U-Boats built in Budapest were to be transported by rail to Pola to be assembled there.

Through donations by the Österreichischer Flottenverein (Austrian Naval Association) in January 1916 enough money was raised to order a third U-Boat at Cantieri Navale (later: U 40) and in August 1916 a fourth U-Boat was put on order at Cantieri Navale (later: U 41) as a replacement for U 6, which was sunk on 13 May 1916. U 41 was to be the last submarine of the Austro-Hungarian Navy built in Austria-Hungary and commissioned before the end of World War I.

Eventually, U 27 to U 32 were commissioned between January and June 1917, to be followed by U 40 in August 1917 and U 41 in February 1918.