British R class submarine
The R class submarines were a class of 12 British diesel-electric submarines built for the Royal Navy during World War I
Originating in 1917, they were unique in having been designed specifically to attack and sink other submarines, a forerunner of the modern hunter-killer type of submarine in use today and for this purpose they were designed to be faster underwater (14 knots) than on the surface (9 knots).
Designed with a streamlined spindle-shaped hull with a single screw at the extreme end, with greatly increased battery capacity and a greater underwater horsepower than available on the surface, they carried an initial armament of six 18" bow torpedo tubes, later exchanged for the larger 21-inch type. The bulbuous-shaped bow also contained sensitive listening gear (hydrophones). The vessels had a well-streamlined conning tower and carried no deck gun.
At 14 knots the class set an underwater speed record that was not broken for a further 25 years, and it was only exceeded then by research vessels.
One of the class succesfully tracked and fired a torpedo at a U-Boat in October 1918, the torpedo hitting the submarine but failing to explode.
All of the R class vessels were sold-off in 1923.
R class submarines
- HMS R1
- HMS R2
- HMS R3
- HMS R4
- HMS R5
- HMS R6
- HMS R7
- HMS R8
- HMS R9
- HMS R10
- HMS R11
- HMS R12
References
- Submarines in Colour by Bill Gunston - Blandford Colour Series - Blandford - 1976 - ISBN 0-7137-0780-1
- Submarines - The History and Evolution of Underwater Fighting Vessels by Anthony Preston - Octopus Books - 1974 - ISBN 0-7064-0429-7
Categories
Submarine classes | British R class submarines | Royal Navy submarines