On this page, you can get a preliminary view of the proposed outlines for this book, Hubert Behme Herbert Engmann Klaus Hindermann Herbert Jahn Michael Kolbinger Wilhelm Leonhard   Fähnrich (B) Klaus Hindermann (21.1.1921 - 27.5.1941) from Würzburg Klaus Hindermann was one of 29 ensigns aboard Bismarck. He joined the navy as a member of crew X 39 (=October 1939) as an officer candidate after he had passed the proficiency test of the navy. He passed the three months of basic training, followed by a five month fleet practicum with duty onboard a school ship and promotion to cadet (B). Subsequently, this was followed by five more months at the navy school in Mürwick that included career ladder specific education and promotion to ensign (B). Klaus Hindermann had chosen the specialty of ship construction technician in his education which led to a career in administration [civil service] with assignment opportunities in design offices or in shipyards. This assignment series was designated with a (B) which is added to the rank designation and stands for "Construction". The direct officer training at the naval school ended and deployment to the Fleet began. For Klaus Hindermann and 27 of his crew members this meant assignment to the battleship Bismarck. In general, this was not a very sought after command assignment, because the heavy ship had a name for being too traditionally military and a young, enthusiastic ensign could have achieve more say-so on a small ship or U boat. Ten ensigns were later dismissed from aboard at a later date and were exchanged for ten more ensigns from the same crew. Only one ensign survived the sinking of the Bismarck - Hans-Georg Stiegler - Klaus Hindermann and the other 27 ensigns (26 of them from his crew) as well as the majority of the ship's crew were left at sea. It was the largest loss of crew comrades that the Crew X 39 lost in one day. Source: Hans-Georg Stiegler (Crewcomrade)