Fishermen hook catch of the day - a sub

It may sound like just another fishy tale, but it’s true – a Danish trawler netted a German submarine on a Nato exercise off northern Denmark, navy officials said.

The trawler Marie Helene caught the U-boat in its net yesterday, 23 miles north of Hirtshals, on the northern tip of the Jutland peninsula.

The submarine, which was not identified, immediately surfaced and made visual contact with the fishermen, said Alex Jensen, a Danish Navy spokesman.

“Except for a damaged trawler, it was rather undramatic,” he said, adding that they spent several hours getting the submarine free from the net.

The sub was taking part in the Nato exercise Blue Game 2004 that includes aircraft and some 70 ships from 16 countries.

The Marie Helene eventually returned to Hirtshals, 200 miles north of Copenhagen, to resupply itself before returning to sea, Jensen said.

A decade ago, three Danish fishermen drowned when their boat was pulled down by a submarine that was caught in its nets.