Gymnote

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Gymnote in 1889.
Career (France)
Namesake:	Gymnotus
Launched:	24 September 1888
Decommissioned:	1908
Fate:	Scrapped
General characteristics
Class and type:	Submarine
Displacement:	30 tonnes
Length:	17.8 m
Propulsion:	Electric engine 41 KW
Speed:	7.3 knots surfaced 4.3 kn submerged
Range:	65 nm (surfaced, 5.0 knots) 25 nm (submerged, 4.3 knots)
Complement:	5 men

Gymnote was the world's first all-electric submarine, and while not as influential as Holland VI^{[citation needed]}, her design would be reference for later projects.

Launched on 24 September 1888, she was developed in France following early experiments by Dupuy de Lôme, and, after his death, by Gustave Zédé (1825-1891), who completed the project. The name "Gymnote" is used in French to describe a sort of electrical fish, the Gymnotidae.

The submarine was built with a steel single hull, a detachable lead keel, and three hydroplanes on each side. She made over 2,000 dives, using 204 cell batteries. She was armed with two 355 mm torpedoes.

Gymnote was partly inspired by the earlier development of the submarine Plongeur, the world's first mechanically-powered submarine.

Gymnote under way.

[edit] External links

• French submarines

v • d • e Groundbreaking submarines Drebbel's submarine (1620) · Turtle (1775) · Brandtaucher (1850) · H.L. Hunley (1863) · Plongeur (1863) · Ictineo II (1864) · Flach (1863) · Submarino Peral (1888) · Gymnote (1888) · USS Holland (1897) · German Type XXI submarine (1943) · USS Albacore (1953) · USS Nautilus (1954) · Zulu class SSB (1955) · USS Halibut (1960) · USS Narwhal (1967) · Alfa-class SSN (1977) · Gotland class submarine (1992) · Type 212 submarine (2005) · Astute class submarine (2007)