The German Haft Minen (HM) mine series consisted of three types, HMA, HMB, and HMC. The HMA and HMB were completed but were never used operationally; the HMC was abandoned after preliminary design work had been completed.

General. After the British had achieved their successful "human torpedo" attack against the Tirpitz, the German Navy undertook the development of a series of mines that could be used in the same manner by their midget-submarine group, KdK (Kommando der Kleinkampfverbände).

Both HMA and HMB were intended for use with the Hect submarine, which was in de-velopment simultaneously with the mines. It was intended that the mines be carried by this submarine as a false bow that could be released mechanically whenever the opera-tor so desired. However, since the German Navy favored midget submarine that could fire torpedos, the Hecht submarine project was dropped in 1944, and consequently, the HMA and HMB mines were never used.

When work the Hecht submarine was discontinued, the German Navy requested the development of a self-propelled mine that could be guided to its target by a swimmer. To meet these requirements the design of the HMC mine has begun. After preliminary design work has been completed, the HMC mine fell into disfavor and was discontinued.