April 1945

Some weeks prior to the end of the WWII, British and French destroyers are chasing U-1195, one of the last remaining U-boats of Dönitz’ dreaded fleet in the English Channel. Some hours before, U-1195 had entered the heavily guarded harbour of Portsmouth and had later torpedoed the S.S. Cuba, an English troop transporter. Now, the Allies want to stop U-1195 by all means. 20 miles off the Isle of Wright, the destroyer HMS Watchman locates the enemy and drops her depth charges. The steel hull of the U-boat breaks up and water gushes in immediately. Lt. Rudi Wieser tries to seal the crack in the wall with a wooden plank. It is useless: water keeps flooding the boat. Swiftly, the water rises to the knees. All systems break down, poisoning gas kills the first of the U-boatmen. 40 meters below sea level, some of them try to exit through the tower hatch and dive to the surface. But it´s too early, the water pressure is still too strong, they drown in the tower. Wieser waits as long as possible in the dark. When the pressure is evened out, he swims to the tower, takes a deep breath and dives through the greenish water towards the surface. He is one out of 18 survivors. The other 30 men don’t make it.

Summer 1998

On his ranch in the desert of Arizona, engineer Peter Robbins has a dream: He wants to build his own small submersible to discover the wrecks of German U-boats. There are still many unexplored U-boats on the bottom of the sea all around the world. Peter is fascinated by the stories of the U-boats. For him, an air of mystery surrounds Hitler’s most feared weapon. And as an engineer, he is above all impressed by the precision of the U-boat technology. But Peter is also an entrepreneur. One day, tourists should board his mini-sub diving to unusual destinations. A U-boat with a special story would make a perfect underwater travel destination.

Autumn 2001

After consulting the world’s leading underwater specialists, Peter launches a joint venture with Paul Moorhouse, an English submarine builders in order to design the submarine ‘Alicia’. In the next 3 years, more than 2 million parts are assembled in a factory in Plymouth and the Alicia slowly starts to look like a sub. Alicia will have 6 seats and costs 1.5 million Dollars. The most expensive single part is the acrylic dome which should offer the passengers superb views and makes the Alicia unique. Peter is the only investor and therefore has to make as much use as possible of technology available. For example, the development of a special battery is too expensive, “and unnecessary” states Peter, “a fork-lift truck uses exactly the same 120-volt battery as the one we need for the Alicia.” So, a fork-lift truck battery is ordered. During the construction period, Peter starts his research for U-boats which were sunk in the English Channel. He wants to find the German U-boat sailor whose name he always comes across in the files: Horst Bredow, now 79 years old. He is in charge of the ‘U-Boat- Foundation ‘ in Cuxhaven, Germany. He mentions the sailor Rudi Wieser and his dramatic escape from the fatally hit U-boat. Peter visits Wieser and invites the 81 year old veteran to join an expedition to his former U-boat.

Summer 2004

After passing all the safety tests, the Alicia steams out of Plymouth harbour. On board are Rudi Wieser, Peter and the pilot. The Alicia takes the same route the S.S. Cuba took 59 years ago. When the team reaches the coordinates where the troop transporter was supposedly sunk, the batteries are switched on and the submersible begins the descent. Only minutes later, the sonar indicates an object: Surprisingly intact, the S.S. Cuba, a converted Luxury Liner, lies in 45 meters depth. By investigating the wreck, the points of impact of the torpedoes are located. Wieser now sees the effect of the German torpedoes for the first time in his life. Due to limited battery power they have to proceed with the search for U-1195. After searching for almost 2 hours, suddenly, there appears a seven metre tall steel wall in front of the Alicia. It is the U-1195 and it seems close enough to touch. The pilot takes Alicia a few metres backwards, cautiously. Currents could push the Alicia – tiny in comparison to the U-1195 – against the ship’s side. Although the passengers have prepared themselves intensively for this moment, its scale and the scenery impress even the experts. Wieser explains the well preserved construction and reminisces about the noise that indicated the impact of an enemy bomb. The hatch is still open today – as it was 59 years ago, when Wieser managed to escape from here to the surface. After their safe return to Plymouth harbour, Peter is content. The expedition was a full success. Only Rudi Wieser is reflective. From today, the peace at the bottom of the sea is probably a thing of the past. Now that U-1195 has been found, it could serve Peter as a new destination for extravagant tourists.