Crewman from a WW2 German U-Boat has words we should ponder

[Coventina]

3. I want to watch Das Boot now. I've always been scared to watch it.

I'll be quite honest: submarines give me the screaming willies! I cannot imagine serving on one. Touring the U-505 did nothing to dispel this.

Hans Gobeler writes that it really takes a combination of both physical and mental toughness.

Here's another quote from him:

"Over time, we learned what special strengths and weaknesses each one of us had, and organized ourselves accordingly. For instance, one of my good friends was a perfect seaman during normal conditions. I mean he was ABSOLUTELY perfect, and was a great asset to our crew. But as soon as the depth charges began exploding, he became totally useless. We all knew this, so someone automatically took over his duties when things got rough. I think it was this intimate knowledge of each other's individual capabilities that helped us survive the challenges we met later on, even under different skippers."