Hell Below

Hell Below is an event-based series charting the stealth game of sub sea warfare, tracking the dramatic narrative from contact to attack of the greatest submarine patrols of World War II. From the rise of the Wolfpack to the drive for victory in the Pacific, we profile the strategic masterminds and the rapid evolution of technology and tactics, as the threat of undersea warfare brings every sailors worst nightmare to life. Expert analysis and stock footage are woven with narrative driven re-enactments filmed on authentic Second World War era submarines to place the characters at the heart of the action.

2016 HD 60min TV-PG Canada English

Documentary War

cold war world war ii submarine

S1E1 - America Fights Back 2016-04-05

Its January 1943 in the Pacific and American submarine skipper Dudley Morton is just 10 days into his first patrol aboard USS Wahoo. His mission: to sink Japanese ships and disrupt supply lines. This aggressive strategy is a radically new tactic for the U.S. Navy, and Morton is just the man to carry it out. See these water wars up close and witness Morton take on entire Japanese convoys above and below the Pacific in this thrilling exploration.

S1E2 - Fatal Voyage 2016-04-12

Submarine commander Dick OKane participated in the most successful attacks on Japanese ships during World War II, until his luck, and the last torpedo he fired, took a dramatic turn. We track OKanes successful career, first as a protege aboard the legendary USS Wahoo, and then as Commander of the short-lived but lethal USS Tang. Through expert testimony, we relive OKanes seminal triumphs, and the tragic path of his last warhead.

S1E3 - Destroyer Killer 2016-04-19

The USS Harder, led by Commander Sam Dealey, sank multiple Japanese destroyers, rescued Allied operatives from capture in Borneo, and outmatched many rival ships and aircraft to return home. And that was during just one patrol. Take a deep dive aboard this submarine as we relive this incredible war patrol in the spring of 1944, and witness the events that accelerated the campaign against the Japanese and earned Dealey the Medal of Honor.

S1E4 - The Wolfpack 2016-04-26

The wolfpack tactic was made famous by Admiral Karl Donitz, Hitlers mastermind of submariners. His strategy: to send teams of U-boats to bear against the convoys of ships heading from Canada to Britain, cut maritime lifelines, and starve the enemy into defeat. Take a deep dive into the North Atlantic as we go above and below sea level to relive one of the first attacks of Donitzs lethal subs in 1940, headed by leader of the pack Commander Otto Kretschmer. Then follow Britains war strategists as they race to combat this new deadly attack.

S1E5 - Hitler's Revenge 2016-05-03

Just one month after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, another enemy brought World War II to American shores, not through the air but beneath the sea. This is the story of Operation Drumbeat, German Admiral Karl Donitzs campaign to send U-boats to the doorstep of the U.S. and attack Allied merchant shipping from Newfoundland to North Carolina. Through archival war footage and military expert testimony, we reveal how the Nazis managed to hammer our coast again and again and why the U.S. Navy was unable to stop them.

S1E6 - Atlantic Showdown 2016-05-10

A Nazi U-boat heading back for repairs unintentionally cruises right into the middle of a large Allied convoy on March 16, 1943. It is a lucky accident that sets the stage for the largest convoy battle of World War II. Relive this momentous chapter in the war for the Atlantic, an intense game of chess pitting Admiral Karl Donitzs wolf pack against a battered British Navy. Its a three-day showdown with unparalleled violence and unexpected outcomes that will turn the tide of the war.

S2E1 - Wounder Warrior aka In Enemy Waters 2018-06-07

USS Silversides and its swashbuckling skipper, Creed Burlingame, saw their first action in the Pacific in May 1942. More than a dozen patrols later, the sub now rests in Muskegon, Michigan as a museum, an ongoing testament to its extraordinary history. Witness one of Silversides most dramatic missions: aiding Marines in Guadalcanal by keeping Japanese reinforcements from reaching the island. Its an assignment fraught with depth charge attacks and aerial bombardments that nearly ended the mission and its crew.

S2E2 - Submarine Raiders aka Submarine Sabotage 2018-06-14

Decorated American submarine commander Eugene Fluckey, determined to go out with a bang, defies expectations and returns to USS Barb for one last patrol. On the eastern coast of Northern Japan, Fluckey and his crew push the boundaries of submarine warfare to new limits by launching rockets from their sub and landing a crew of saboteurs on Japanese land in order to destroy a coastal rail line. Its a highly aggressive and ambitious patrol that will forever change the way subs are used in battle.

S2E3 - Relentless Pursuit aka U-Boat Killers 2018-06-21

German U-515 departs from France in 1944, bound for the African Gold Coast to hunt Allied ships. One thousand miles to the south, the U.S. Navy launches a new hunter-killer task force--a tactical combination of destroyers, escorts, carriers, and aircraft--to prevent German U-Boat resurgence. Witness the showdown between U-boat ace Werner Henke and U.S. Navy Bronze Star recipient Daniel Gallery and see how the unrelenting attack of hunter-killer groups changed how the Battle of the Atlantic was fought and won.

S2E4 - Defying Rommel 2018-06-28

Its 1941 and Erwin Rommel and his armies hope to take Egypt, gain control of the Suez Canal, and prevent Britain from receiving vital supplies from the colony of India and the Middle East. The Allies last line of defense is a fleet of small, British U-class subs stationed on the tiny island of Malta. Despite unpredictable weather and a broken gyrocompass, HMS Upholder and its Lieutenant-Commander Malcolm Wanklyn battle to hold the line against the Axis powers and turn the tide of the North African Campaign.

S2E5 - North Sea Showdown aka Sub vs. Sub 2018-07-05

In the icy waters off of Norway in 1945, a U-boat embarks on a mission to bring top-secret German technology to Japan, unaware that a Royal Navy V-class submarine has just been ordered to patrol the area. Neither commander manning their vessel realizes that they are about to face-off in the worlds first underwater submarine dogfight. Witness the historic battle between HMS Venturer and U-864.

S2E6 - Cold War Crisis aka Cuban Crisis 2018-07-12

It was the most frightening moment of the Cold War: a crisis in Cuba in 1962 that brought the world to the brink of disaster. At the center of the drama are four Soviet submarines on a mission to supply nuclear torpedoes to bases on the communist island and the U.S. Navy hunter-killer group determined to turn the vessels around. Discover how grave miscommunications and fervent emotions could have led to catastrophe and the critical role played by the Second in Command aboard Soviet sub B-59.

S3E1 - Enigma Capture 2020-07-26

The life of German U-Boat commander Fritz Julius Lemp, who accidentally sinks the passenger liner SS Athenia, takes a series of dramatic turns when he is later forced to the surface after attacking an Allied convoy.

S3E2 - Commander Down 2020-08-02

After a violent collision, an American submarine crew begins a desperate bid for survival.

S3E3 - Killer Strike 2020-08-09

A German U-boat commander launches a shocking attack at the heart of the Royal Navy.

S3E4 - Torpedo Rampage 2020-08-16

An American submarine commander risks everything in a fight from within an enemy convoy.

S3E5 - The Longest Journey 2020-08-23

A German U-Boat Commander makes an unprecedented voyage to attack Allied shipping off the coast of Australia on Christmas morning.

S3E6 - Iwo Jima Pilot Rescue 2020-08-30

American submarines risk everything to surface in enemy waters and rescue downed aviators.

S4E2 - Subversion 2024-07-19

The career of a bright, young U-Boat officer begins with promise when he is awarded command of his own submarine. But during their first two war patrols, clashes with the Executive Officer and Chief Engineer over Nazi ideology cause tension and outright conflict. The officers complaints lead to Commanders court martial and the threat of execution.

S4E3 - The Hunted 2024-07-26

A German U-Boat, desperately low on supplies and with the crew suffering from scurvy, must be re-fueled from a supply submarine to make it back to port. With Allied Hunter Killer groups tracking their every move, the U-Boat makes a desperate run for survival. When a destroyer closes in to ram, the enemy crew uses the opportunity to board and attack the American ship.

S4E6 - The Interceptor 2024-08-16

In February 1945, an American submarine Commander receives an order to hunt Japanese submarines assigned to secretly evacuating VIPs from the Philippines. Their job to send fellow submariners to the ocean floor sparks a battle of tactics, stealth and risk that would set a record for the U.S. Navy in World War II.

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