|
High resolution picture
|
The J class was a small series of attack submarines built for the Royal Navy between 1915 and 1917, as a response to the mistaken claims
about the German development of submarines which should be fast enough to operate alongside a surface fleet. The British Admiralty stated
that the submarines of the new class should reach a speed of 20 knots while in surface. Other requirements were an increased operational
range and a more powerful radio-transmitter, for the devices installed in the D and E classes had a range of only 50 miles. The projectists
faced a problem when designing the propulsion plant: the Diesel engines available then would be not powerful enough to satisfy the requirements,
if using a conventional layout with two engines and two propellers. There was not better solution than to install three 12-cylinder engines
and three propellers. This provided a speed in surface of about 19 knots, rendering these submarines as the fastest of their time. Besides,
the hull was notably narrow and relatively devoid of external elements.
Albeit larger and more powerful than previous classes of British submarines, the J class could not keep up with the expectatives of
operating in conjunction with surface warships. This was not only because the actual speed did not reach the original requirements, but also
because this kind of role was not really appropriate for the submarine weapon, which had been created primarily for surprise attacks.
Therefore these submarines operated during war time in their habitual role. However the power of their electric motors, which were confined
into the reduced space of the two outer shafts, was somewhat subpar if compared with that of the E class, the widest family of British
submarines on the World War I era.
The wartime record of the J class comprised two battleships damaged and one submarine sunken. The submarine J6 was sunk
during the war by friendly fire from a "mystery ship" (a heavily armed merchant ship intended to lure enemy submarines to the surface). The
other six units survived the war and were sold to the Royal Australian Navy. They were decommissioned in 1922 and sunk or scuttled in
subsequent years.
J class: 7 units (J1 to J7)
Type: Attack submarine
Length: 84 meters
Beam: 7 meters
Draught: 4.3 meters
Displacement (surfaced): 1210 tonnes
Displacement (submerged): 1760 tonnes
Propulsion: 3 x shaft, 3 x Diesel engine Vickers 1200 horsepower, 2 x electric motor 675 horsepower
Speed (surfaced): 19 knots (35 kilometers/hour)
Speed (submerged): 9.5 knots (17.5 kilometers/hour)
Range (surfaced): 5000 nautical miles (9260 kilometers) at 12.5 knots
Range (submerged): N/A
Test depth: 91 meters
Complement: 45
Armament: 6 x 457-millimeter torpedo tube (4 at prow, 2 in transverse), 12 x torpedo, 1 x 102-millimeter deck cannon,
1 x 76-millimeter deck cannon
|
