"Kapitänleutnant" Hans-Joachim Rahmlow commanded "U-570". He was an experienced naval officer, but had only recently transferred to U-boats, having previously been a gunnery and coastal defence specialist. He had commanded the training submarine , but had carried out no war patrols. Likewise, the First Watch Officer (second-in-command) had only served a few months with the U-boat branch, after serving on destroyers, and the Second Watch Officer had little experience, having only recently been commissioned. The engineer was the only officer (and one of only four crewmen) who had served on a U-boat war patrol. While the boat's petty officers had several years of navy service, many of the enlisted crew were still new to the German navy and had only a few months of U-boat training.