As part of a group of six submarines selected for Mediterranean service, UB-44 was broken into railcar sized components and shipped to Pola where she was assembled and launched in April 1916 and commissioned in May.

[6] The Imperial German Navy ordered UB-44 from AG Weser on 31 July 1915 as one of a series of six UB II boats (numbered from UB-42 to UB-47).

The U-boat could carry up to 27 tonnes (27 long tons) of diesel fuel, giving her a range of 6,940 nautical miles (12,850 km; 7,990 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph).

Her electric motors and batteries provided a range of 45 nautical miles (83 km; 52 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) while submerged.

[1] As one of six U-boats selected for service in the Mediterranean while under construction, UB-44 was broken into railcar-sized components and shipped overland to the Austro-Hungarian port of Pola.

[10] On 30 June, Wäger and UB-44 achieved their only success when they sank the steamer Moeris 46 nautical miles (85 km; 53 mi) southeast of Cape Sidero, Crete.

UB-44 and three of her sister ships in the Pola Flotilla were ordered to Constantinople and, en route, had to navigate through the Dardanelles, which had been heavily mined by the Allies in the middle of 1916.

[12][Note 3] UB-44 departed from Cattaro on 8 August for Hersingstand (located on the Gallipoli peninsula)[13] to pick up a pilot for the trip through the Dardanelles, but never arrived.