Pola Flotilla
| U-Boat Half-Flotilla, Pola | |
|---|---|
| Active | Raised June 1915, Dissolved Oct 1918 |
| Country | Germany |
| Branch | Imperial German Navy |
| Type | U-boat flotilla |
| Garrison/HQ | Pola, Cattaro |
| Nickname(s) | Pola flotilla |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Korvettenkapitän Kophamel |
The Pola flotilla was an Imperial German Navy (IGN) formation set up to prosecute the U-boat campaign against Allied shipping in the Mediterranean during the First World War in support of Germany’s ally, the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite its official name, the (Deutsche U-Halbflotille Pola: German U-Boat Half-Flotilla, Pola), it operated mainly from an advanced base at Cattaro, at the entrance to the Adriatic.
The flotilla was made up of U-boats dispatched from German home ports, which travelled via the Atlantic and the Strait of Gibraltar, and coastal type UB- and UC- boats, which were moved in parts by rail to Pola and assembled there at the See-Arsenal of the Austro-Hungarian Navy (Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine: KuK).
The Pola Flotilla had a maximum strength of 33 U–boats; due to the favourable conditions for commerce raiding in the Mediterranean, they caused a disproportionately large number of Allied losses during the U-boat campaign. 3.6 million tons of the 14 million tons lost by the Allies were sunk in the Mediterranean. Eight of the IGNs top dozen U-boat aces served in the Pola flotilla, including Lothar von Arnauld de la Perière and Waldemar Kophamel.
In all, 45 U-boats served in the Pola Flotilla; 11 boats were lost operationally.
In 1918 the unit was divided into two separate Flotillas; the first, based at Pola, and the second, at Cattaro, while the commander, re-titled (''Führer der Unterseeboote im Mittelmeer: U-Boat Leader, Mediterranean) assumed overall command of the forces here and at Constantinople.
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