U-96

U-96 was a German submarine commissioned in 1940 originally with Captain Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock in command. She served a total of 11 patrols before being sunk by American bombers in 1945. The submarine was especially noted for the fact that in its entire career, there were no casualties among the crew, a very rare achievement for U-boats at the time.

During U-96's seventh patrol, the crew was accompanied by war correspondent Lothar-Günther Buchheim, who had been ordered to photograph and describe the submarine in action for the purposes of propaganda. Buchheim later wrote several works based on his experiences, the most famous being his fictionalized account Das Boot, which was later adapted into the 1981 film of the same name by Wolfgang Petersen.

In the Parodies
Much like how the majority of Downfall is set inside Hitler's bunker, the majority of Das Boot takes place aboard U-96, making it the primary setting for the parodies, as well as the U-Boat Parodies' counterpart to the bunker.