ubåds base Bruno
Tyskernes erobring af Norge i 1940, gav krigsmarinen en oplagt mulighed for at få sine ubåds baser rykket tættere på fronten. Bygning af ubåds bunkeren i Bergen blev påbegyndt i 1941. Bunkeren havde 3 tørre ubåds pens, 3 våde, og en der blev brugt til opbevaring af blandt andet torpedoer og brændstof.
Det blev den tyske krigsmarines 11. ubåds flotille der blev overflyttet fra Tyskland og fik sit hovedkvarter i Bergen.
Efter de allieredes landgang i Frankrig i Juni 1944, skete der en massiv udbygning af ubåds basen i Bergen. Dette førte i oktober 1944 til et massivt engelsk bombeangreb med deltagelse af over 150 fly. Angrebet endte i en katastrofe hvor 193 nordmænd, heriblandt 61 børn på en nærliggende skole blev dræbt.
Bunkeren fik flere træffere, men det massive tag i jernbeton modstod trykket og kun to ubåde blev beskadiget.
Senere i samme måned endte endnu et angreb uden resultat. De 244 fly kunne på grund af skyer ikke finde målet og de få der forsøgte, ramte ikke bunkeren.
Det tredie og sidste luftangreb fandt sted i januar 1945, hvor 33 bombefly lastet med “Tallboy” bomber, angreb basen. Bunkeren fik 3 direkte hits og en af bomberne trængte gennem taget og beskadige to ubåde og dræbte 20 tyskere.
Som med flere af de andre tyske flådebaser, fik basen i Bergen navn efter det tyske fonetiske alfabet. “B” for Bergen, blev derved til Bruno.
Bunkeren bruges i dag af den Norske flåde til reparation af ubåde og depot.
© fotograferet af Willem Nabuurs
“ I have recently come into possession of my father's WW2 Pilots Log Book and noticed that he flew on a mission on January 12th 1945 to attack the U-boat pens at Bergen with a "Tallboy" bomb.
Having struck the target and headed back to England he noticed 4 Mustangs approaching but they turned out to be 4 109's which shot his Lancaster to pieces as he took avasive action.
The 109's ran out of ammunition as did the Lancaster with damaged hydrologic lines but managed to limp back to England with only one injured crew member, rear gunner - who did recover.
The aircraft had 1100 holes in the fuselage when it was inspected on the ground, the crew were flown back to their Bardney, Lincolnshire base the following day. ”
John Harris
“ RAF Campaign Diary 12/1-1945:
32 Lancasters and 1 Mosquito of Nos 9 and 617 Squadrons attacked U-boat pens and shipping in Bergen harbor. 3 Lancasters of No 617 Squadron and 1 from No 9 Squadron were lost; the Germans told the local people that 11 bombers had been shot down. A local report says that 3 Tallboys penetrated the 3½-metre-thick roof of the pens and caused severe damage to workshops, offices and stores inside. ”
Chris Kirkegaard
“ This raid damaged the U864, delaying her departure. She was later sunk by HMS Venturer as she sailed from Bergen to Japan. The British put a lot of effort into sinking that boat and there is a theory that the raid was less about the bunker, and more about U864. ”
Mike
“ The U864 is still at the bottom of the sea west of the Norwegian island Fedje. It is loaded with mercury, and there is discussions in Norway how to best deal with the pollution. The options are to raise the U-boat or to cover it where it is.”
Per Daniel