| abstract | - German submarine U-438 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 25 April 1940 at the Schichau-Werke yard as 'Werk' 1480 in Danzig, launched on 6 September 1941 and commissioned on 22 November 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Rudolf Franzius. The city of Berlin adopted the submarine within the popular sponsorship programme (Patenschaftsprogramm), organising gifts and holidays for the crew and earning her the honorary name of U-438 Berlin. The U-boat served with the 8th U-Boat Flotilla for her training and later with the 9th Flotilla from 1 August 1942 to her loss on 6 May 1943. U-438 completed four patrols, sinking three ships, totalling and damaging one ship totalling . She was a member of ten wolfpacks.
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