The hero, Gerhard Traeger, a gunnery officer in the Kriegsmarine, and heroine, Elaine Fabian, a French widow, are fictional characters in a story about real ships in a real war. Gerhard is serving on the Scharnhorst when the war starts and in 1941, after a successful sortie in the Atlantic, followed by a training accident, the ship is laid up and Gerhard is transferred to the Tirpitz. Elaine follows him to Norway, where they have a charming love affair while the Tirpitz rarely ventures from the safety of the Norwegian fjords due to fuel shortages. Populated with many real and fictional characters, On Board the Tirpitz provides an interesting glimpse of life in Germany's World War II Navy. 31 photos. A Merriam Press World War II Historical Novel.