Onboard an espionage submarine

Jakob Hürner · March 22, 2026

During my stay in Hamburg, I had the opportunity to board the Russian hunter-killer and spy submarine U-434. It’s almost unbelievable what conditions the submarine crews had to — and still have to — endure.

As an engineer by training, the technological complexity of a submarine was unbelievable for me.

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Uboot U-434 Submarine Hamburg

Pictures taken with the Apple iPhone 15 Pro.