Hans Heidtmann

Hans Heidtmann (8 August 1914 – 5 April 1976) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross from Nazi Germany.

Hans Heidtmann
Born	(1914-08-08)8 August 1914
Died	5 April 1976(1976-04-05) (aged 61)
Allegiance	Nazi Germany West Germany
Branch	Kriegsmarine  German Navy
Years of service	1934–1942 1958–1972
Rank	Kapitänleutnant (Kriegsmarine) Kapitän zur See (Bundesmarine)
Commands	U-14 U-2 U-559
Battles / wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

U-559 under the command of Heidtmann came under attack by several British warships and an aircraft on 30 October 1942. Fatally damaged and forced to the surface, the U-boat was abandoned after being scuttled in the Mediterranean. A British boarding party, consisting of Lieutenant Francis Anthony Blair Fasson, Able Seaman Colin Grazier, and Canteen Assistant Tommy Brown, from destroyer HMS Petard recovered the cryptographic materials, but the U-boat sank before the Enigma cipher machine could be brought out. Eight German crewmen and two British seamen were lost, and 37 German survivors were taken as prisoner of war.

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (8 April 1938)^[1]
• Spanish Cross in Bronze with Swords (6 June 1939)^[2]
• Sudetenland Medal (16 September 1939)^[2]
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (26 November 1939)^[2]
• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (27 November 1939) & 1st Class (23 September 1941)^[2]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 12 April 1943 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-559^[3]