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Armaments

U-47 was armed with two guns, a 20mm anti-aircraft (Flugabwehrkanone, or Flak) gun that was used to ward off marauding enemy aircraft, and a heavy 88mm deck gun which was often used to finish off stricken enemy vessels to save the small supply of torpedoes. The 88mm gun was used effectively by U-47: a substantial number of its victims were either destroyed or finished off with fire from the deck gun.

20mm Flak gun

On U-47 and a number of other Type VIIB vessels, the 20mm Flak (anti-aircraft) gun was mounted behind the conning tower (Turmumbau) on the flat platform which was to become known as the Wintergarten ("Winter Garden"). Attached to a regulation C30/37 mounting, the 20mm Flak gun was of a standard design, and was very similar to the mobile weapon used by Heer and Luftwaffe units. It was capable of firing at over 200 rounds per minutes, and was usually manned by two crewmen.

88mm Deck gun

All Type VIIB vessels were armed with the 88mm Deck gun, the Schiffskanone C/35. A powerful and effective weapon located on the forward deck in front of the conning tower, the 88mm gun was mainly used to finish off enemy ships that had been incapacitated by torpedo attack, but it was also used by itself on weaker smaller craft in order to preserve the relatively limited store of torpedoes stowed onboard. In good conditions and with a well-drilled crew (usually of three men, supervised by the 2.WO), the gun could fire at a rate of 15-18 rounds per minute. Although identical in calibre, the 88mm deck gun used on the Type VIIB was of a different design and structure to its counterpart used by the other branches of the German armed forces.

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