| Career (German Empire) | |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | 1914 Peacetime order |
| Builder: | Germaniawerft, Kiel, Germany |
| Launched: | 20 May 1915 |
| Commissioned: | 10 November 1915 |
| Fate: | Sunk by the Royal Navy on 20 April 1917 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,051 tonnes |
| Length: | 79.5 meters |
| Beam: | 8.33 m |
| Draft: | 3.74 m (fwd); 3.45 meters (aft) |
| Speed: | 34.5 knots (63.9 km/h) |
| Range: | 1,100 nautical miles at 20 knots (2,040 km at 37 km/h) |
| Complement: | 83 officers and sailors |
| Armament: | • 3 × 3.4 in (86 mm) guns • 6 × 500 mm torpedo tubes • 24 mines |
SMS G42 was a Großes Torpedoboot 1913 class torpedo boat of the German Kaiserliche Marine during World War I, and the 18th ship of her class.
Built by Germaniawerft in Kiel, Germany, she was laid down in February 1915. The "G" in G42 refers to the shipyard at which she was constructed.
When she participated in the Battle of Jutland, G42 was assigned to the Third Torpedo Boat Flotilla, Sixth Half-Flotilla of the High Seas Fleet of the Kaiserliche Marine.
G42 commanded by Bernd von Arnim, was sunk in the Battle of Dover Strait on 21 April 1917 by HMS Broke. In this action, two groups of German destroyers set out to bombard Allied positions ashore at Dover, England and Calais, France. However, HMS Broke intercepted and rammed G42. While the ships were entangled, close-quarters battle broke out between the two crews until Broke disengaged. G42 sank with 36 sailors killed in action.
SMS G85 was also sunk in this action.