On 23 May 1940, ORZEL departed for the central North Sea and, on 1 and 2 June, a radio message was transmitted from Rosyth ordering her to alter her patrol area and proceed to the Skagerrak. No radio signals had been received from her since she had sailed and, on 5 June, she was ordered to return to base. She never acknowledged reception of that signal, and never returned to base.

Although various theories exist regarding her loss, and it is commonly believed that she ran onto a mine in the Skagerrak; however, the true cause of her loss remains unconfirmed to this day.

(Source: Wikipedia).

On 11 June 1940, the Polish Admiralty in London issued the following communiqué: ‘Owing to lack of information, and being long overdue, the Polish submarine Orzel is presumed lost.’

(Source: Orzel’s Patrol by Sub Lieutenant Eryk Sopocko)