HMS E55
 HMS E55 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| |
| Name: | HMS E55 |
| Builder: | William Denny, Dumbarton |
| Laid down: | 5 February 1916 |
| Commissioned: | March 1916 |
| Fate: | Sold, 6 September 1922 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | E class submarine |
| Displacement: |
|
| Length: | 181 ft (55 m) |
| Beam: | 15 ft (4.6 m) |
| Propulsion: |
|
| Speed: |
|
| Range: |
|
| Complement: | 30 |
| Armament: |
|
HMS E55 was a British E class submarine built by William Denny, Dumbarton. She was laid down on 5 February 1916 and was commissioned in March 1916.
HMS E55 was sold in Newcastle on 6 September 1922.
Design
Like all post-E8 British E-class submarines, E55 had a displacement of 622 tonnes (686 short tons) at the surface and 807 tonnes (890 short tons) while submerged. It had a total length of 180 feet (55 m)[1] and a beam length of 22 feet 8.5 inches (6.922 m). It contained two diesel engines each providing a power of 1,600 horsepower (1,200 kW) and two electric motors each providing 840 horsepower (630 kW) power.[2] Its complement was thirty-one crew members.[1]
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) and a submerged speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). British E-class submarines had fuel capacities of 50 tonnes (55 short tons) of diesel and ranges of 3,255 miles (5,238 km; 2,829 nmi) when travelling at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[1] E55 was capable of operating submerged for five hours when travelling at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph). It was fitted with a 12 pounds (5.4 kg) quick-firing gun gun (12 pounder), five 18 inches (460 mm) torpedo tubes, and one spare torpedo tube. Its torpedo tubes were fitted at the front and the aft; unlike pre-E9 submarines, the two midship section torpedo tubes were not included.[1]
E-Class submarines contained wireless systems with 1 kilowatt (1.3 hp) power ratings; in some submarines, these were later upgraded to 3 kilowatts (4.0 hp) systems by removing a midship torpedo tube. Its claimed highest dive depth was 100 feet (30 m) although it was capable of reaching depths of below 200 feet (61 m). Some submarines contained Fessenden oscillator systems.[1]
References
Bibliography
- Hutchinson, Robert (2001). Jane's Submarines: War Beneath the Waves from 1776 to the Present Day. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-00-710558-8. OCLC 53783010.
| ||||||||||||||