The wrecks of two German U-boats from the Second World War, U-583 and U-649, have been discovered in the Polish Baltic Sea. Both sites are considered grave markers for German servicemen.
Christian Lübcke, the officer for maritime war grave affairs at the Volunteer Association German War Graves Commission, reported to the newspaper “Bild”: “Last week, I was notified of the findings of two new U-boat wrecks in the Baltic Sea. U-583 and U-649. Both are war cemeteries at sea.”
According to reports, U-583 was located on July 15th at a depth of approximately 65 meters, in the sea area between the Danish island of Bornholm and the Polish coast. The largely preserved wreck is partially covered by fishing nets. The U-boat sank on November 15, 1941, during a training voyage after colliding with another German submarine, resulting in the deaths of 45 soldiers.
Similarly, U-649 also sank after a collision with a German U-boat. The incident on February 24, 1943, claimed the lives of 35 men, though eleven were rescued. The Volunteer Association has currently limited information regarding the exact location or condition of this wreck.
The association is issuing a warning against the looting of these newly found submarines. While Poland was previously recognized as a leader in protecting such wrecks and signed the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage-a measure Germany had not taken-Poland’s current protective regulations have reportedly been relaxed. Lübcke argues that this relaxation sends the wrong signal, given the presence of “massive looting of German maritime war graves worldwide, and also in the Baltic Sea,” and therefore demands that the U-boat wrecks be left untouched as military cemeteries.
A separate wreck discovery was made off the Greek island of Lefkada. Divers from the company AegeanTec located the German S-boat LS 6 at a depth of 96 meters. This 15-meter-long boat is considered the only largely preserved example of its type. Expedition leader Marinos Giourgas noted that the wreck stands upright on the seabed, “as if ready to set out on its next mission.”
The LS 6 was damaged during an aerial attack in 1943 and subsequently sank while undergoing a tow transfer. According to the research team, no fatalities are known to be associated with its sinking.
