"G" Class Submarine (1915)

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General arrangement of the design.[1]
Note the sheer lines indicating the bow was later raised to improve seakeeping.

Fourteen "G" Class Submarines were completed for the Royal Navy early in the war. G 15, to be built by White, was cancelled in April, 1915. The Royal Navy considered these to be "patrol" (as opposed to coastal or fleet) submarines.

Each cost about 80% of what a later "J" class boat cost to produce.[2]

The design inaugurated the use of 21-in submarine-borne torpedoes in service.

The Grand Fleet Battle Orders specified that the top speed on the surface was 14 knots, but that a more realistic "sea-going speed" was 12 knots.[3]

Radio

By war's end, all boats of "E" class and later were given 3 kilowatt Poulsen wireless sets, affording ranges of 200 miles submarine-to-submarine, and 300-400 miles between shore stations and submarines. Reception of shore stations of 400 miles was common, and high power shore stations could be received over 500-600 miles.[4]

Torpedoes

  • one 21-in tube in stern, two torpedoes
  • four 18-in tubes (two forward, two broadside), eight torpedoes

Guns

Originally, all were to be provided a 12-pdr on an H.A. mounting and a 2-pdr Q.F. gun,[5] but as built the armament may have been:[6]

  • one 3-in H.A. gun

See Also

Footnotes

  1. The Technical History and Index, Vol. 3, Part 21. Plate 5.
  2. The Technical History and Index, Vol. 3, Part 21. p. 11.
  3. Golding. Grand Fleet Battle Orders. p. 46.
  4. The Technical History and Index, Vol. 3, Part 21. pp. 16-17.
  5. The Technical History and Index, Vol. 4, Part 28. p. 19.
  6. Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. p. 91.

Bibliography

  • Gray, Randal (editor) (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. (on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk).


"G" Class Submarine
G 1 G 2 G 3 G 4 G 5
G 6 G 7 G 8 G 9 G 10
  G 11 G 12 G 13 G 14  
<– "H" Class Submarines (UK) "J" Class –>