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The Schnellboot S-80, built in 1942, was one of the many fast boats built for the German Kriegsmarine during the Second World War. This exemplar,
as depicted in the illustration, shows the camouflage pattern used by the 1st Flotilla on the Baltic. The complementary pictures show the armored
wheelhouse of new design introduced from the series S-100 to better protect the personnel on the bridge. The excellent Schnellboot boats were
called E-Boats (Enemy Boats) by the Allies.
Developed since 1930 by the company Lurssen, which had a considerable experience in the construction of high-speed leisure yachts, they featured a "paunchy"
hull that granted a good navigability. The first S-Boat (Fast Boat), the S-1, had highly flammable gasoline engines, and the much safer Diesel engines
were not installed until the S-6. The S-Boats from S-18 to S-25 were the first ones fitted with the Daimler-Benz Diesel engine, and the subsequent
boats had the forecastle raised above the torpedo tubes, with the reloads placed astern. The series S-100 introduced an armored wheelhouse of new
profile. The armament was increased along the war and the last models carried 30-millimeter antiaircraft cannons.
Widely used in the North Sea, the S-Boats were more than a challenge for the first British patrol torpedo boats. However, albeit they sank a certain
number of Allied ships, they were not so effective as the British counterparts, allegedly due to the lack of agressiveness in the German command.
The patrol torpedo boats built by Lurssen resulted very reliable and they were complemented with the R-Boats (Raumboote), slower but of even better
navigability. After the war were built for several foreign navies some more of these boats following the same general project.
Class: Schnellboot S-38b (81 units)
Type: Patrol torpedo boat
Length: 35 meters
Beam: 5.1 meters
Draught: 1.5 meters
Displacement (standard): 94 tonnes
Propulsion: 3 x shaft, 3 x Diesel engine Daimler-Benz, 6600 horsepower
Speed: 39 knots (72.2 kilometers/hour)
Range: 588 nautical miles (1089 kilometers) at 35 knots
Fuel: 17 tonnes of petrol
Complement: 21
Armament: 2 x 533-millimeter torpedo tube, 1 x 37-millimeter cannon, 1 x 20-millimeter cannon
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