HMS P222
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Class and type: | S class submarine |
| Name: | HMS P222 |
| Ordered: | 7 April 1943 |
| Builder: | Vickers Armstrong Barrow in Furness |
| Laid down: | 10 August 1940 |
| Launched: | September 20, 1941 |
| Commissioned: | 4 March 1942 |
| Fate: | Most likely sunk off Capri, 12 December 1942 by Italian torpedo boat |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 814-872 tons surfaced 990 tons submerged |
| Length: | 217 ft (66 m) |
| Beam: | 23 ft 6 in (7.2 m) |
| Draught: | 11 ft (3.4 m) |
| Speed: | 14.75 knots surfaced 8 knots submerged |
| Complement: | 48 officers and men |
| Armament: | 6 x forward 21-inch torpedo tubes, one aft 13 torpedoes one three-inch gun (four-inch on later boats) one 20 mm cannon three .303-calibre machine gun |
HMS P222 was an S class submarine of the Royal Navy, and part of the Third Group built of that class. She was built by Vickers Armstrong and launched on September 20, 1941. She was initially assigned to the naval base at Gibraltar to guard the entrance to the Mediterranean. On 27 July, 1942 P 222 intercepted the Vichy French merchant Mitidja off Cape Palos, Spain. The Mitidja was boarded by the V class destroyer HMS Wrestler and escorted to Gibraltar.
P222 left Gibraltar to patrol off Naples on 30 November 1942. She sent a number of messages on 7 December but after that date no further communication as made. She failed to arrive at Algiers on her due date and was reported overdue on 21 December 1942. The Italian torpedo boat Fortunale claimed to have sunk a submarine with depth charges on the 12 December, south-east of Isola di Capri. This remains the most probable cause of the submarine’s loss but there has been no confirmation. Since she was sunk before her name could be formally assigned, she is known by her pennant number, P222.
[edit] References
- Colledge, J. J. and Warlow, Ben (2006). Ships of the Royal Navy: the complete record of all fighting ships of the Royal Navy, Rev. ed., London: Chatham. ISBN 9781861762818. OCLC 67375475.
- HMS P222 at Uboat.net
- SUBMARINE LOSSES 1904 TO PRESENT DAY
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