Operation Kiebitz - Operation Pointe Maisonnette

Operation Pointe Maisonnette

In order to capture the U-boat, the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Army established a portable surface radar array on shore at the Pointe de Maisonnette lighthouse, which would be used to locate the submarine by a task force of several warships centred around HMCS Rimouski. Rimouski was outfitted with an experimental diffuse lighting system that was considered revolutionary at the time. She and the rest of the task group were hidden nearby to wait for the German submarine.

U-536, which had been tasked with picking up the escaping naval officers, arrived off Pointe de Maisonnette at the appointed time on the night of September 26, 1943. The Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Army personnel on shore signaled with a light that the escapees were to have used, however the U-boat commander was suspicious, particularly after his hydrophones picked up the sound of the Canadian task group nearby. He opted to remain submerged and began to evade the Canadian warships, which searched throughout the night and attempted unsuccessfully to attack U-536 with depth charges.

Despite evading the Canadian's trap in Chaleur Bay that September, U-536 was sunk the following month before it returned to its German homeport.

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