GERMANY’S NAVY SURRENDERS

Southland Times, Issue 25668, 10 May 1945, Page 5

GERMANY’S NAVY SURRENDERS

BRITISH ADMIRALTY ISSUES ORDERS (8.0.W.) RUGBY, May 8. The Admiralty announces that the following orders have been issued for the surrender of the German Navy: — German commanders of merchant ships and other craft at sea are being ordered to report their position, in plain language, to the nearest Allied wireless telegraph station and are being given orders to proceed to such Allied ports as directed. They will remain in these ports until further directions are received. All warships and auxiliary merchant ships and other craft in harbour are being made to remain in harbour. U-boats at sea are being ordered to surface, to fly a black flag or pennant, and report their position, in plain language, to the nearest Allied wireless telegraph station. They will then proceed, on the surface, to such port as they may be directed. All warships, apd merchant ships, whether in port or at sea, are being instructed to trail all weapons fore and aft. Breech blocks will be removed from guns and torpedoes unloaded. In harbour, all ammunition, explosives, torpedoes, grenades and all private weapons will be landed. Minesweeping vessels and salvage vessels will be disarmed and will be instructed to complete fuelling themselves immediately, for mine-sweeping or salvage service, as directed. Ships in harbour are to be made ineffective. All personnel will be ordered to remain either on board their ships or in their establishments until other directions are received. U-BOATS TO RETURN

U-boats will return to their bases or show the white flag of surrender, says the naval correspondent- of the Press Association. During recent months they have been operating close to British shores. Germany possesses 200 or 300 submarines, of which about onethird were probably at sea when the capitulation was announced. They are mainly based at Norway, to where they are expected to return, but those which are far from their bases will presumably surface and run up the surrender flag. The Allied naval authorities will take over Germany’s two remaining cruisers Prinz Eugen and Nuremburg at Copenhageri. There are also a few destroyers at Oslo, Trondheim and Bergen. Squadrons of the British Home Fleet will proceed to these ports to ensure that the surrender terms are carried out,

while British warships will temporarily take over the administration of other German ports.