Birinci İnönü-class submarine
Birinci İnönü (written as Birindji-In-Uni) in 1928 | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Birinci İnönü class |
| Operators | Turkish Navy |
| Succeeded by | Oruç Reis class |
| Built | 1926–1928 |
| In service | 1928–c. 1950 |
| Completed | 2 |
| Scrapped | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Coastal submarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 58.67 m (192 ft 6 in) |
| Beam | 5.79 m (19 ft 0 in) |
| Draft | 3.51 m (11 ft 6 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Complement | 29 |
| Armament |
|
The Birinci İnönü class was a pair of coastal submarines operated by the Turkish Navy between 1928 and the early Cold War. Their design was heavily based on the World War I-era Type UB III U-boat and built in the Netherlands to capitalize on German submarine experience. The boats, Birinci İnönü and İkinci İnönü, meaning "First İnönü" and "Second İnönü" respectively, had uneventful histories and operated with the Navy throughout the rest of the interwar period and World War II before they were decommissioned in the 1950s.
Development and design
After World War I, the Allied powers seized the Ottoman Navy and reduced it to a small coastal force. The fleet remained under foreign control during the Turkish War of Independence and was returned to the new Republic of Turkey in 1922. Due to government instability and a lack of funds, the navy was initially a low priority. Four years later, efforts to rebuild the force began, which included repairs, refits, and an order for two new submarines.[1]: 406 Design work for the two boats were undertaken by NV Ingenieurskantoor voor Scheepsbouw (IvS), a clandestine Dutch front company founded by Kaiserliche Marine officials intended to maintain German submarine experience to circumvent limitations introduced by the Treaty of Versailles. The design for the Turkish submarines was based on the World War I-era Type UB III coastal U-boat, as IvS used the opportunity to further develop and modernize the design for later German use.[2]: 52 [3]: 24,194 The submarines retained many characteristics from the Type UB III, but featured a second stern torpedo tube that was achieved by decreasing the diameter of each tube.[4]: 336
The class measured 58.67 metres (192 ft 6 in) in length, with a beam of 5.79 metres (19 ft 0 in) and a draught of 3.51 metres (11 ft 6 in). They displaced 507 tons surfaced and 620 tons submerged, with a complement of 29. Armament consisted of six 450 mm (18 in) torpedo tubes with four forward and two aft, a 75 mm (3.0 in) deck gun, and a 20 mm (0.79 in) anti-aircraft gun. Propulsion was provided by two MAN diesel engines and two electric motors producing 1,100 brake horsepower (820 kW) and 700 shaft horsepower (520 kW), respectively, which drove two propeller shafts. The submarines could achieve speeds of 13.5 knots (25.0 km/h; 15.5 mph) surfaced and 8.5 knots (15.7 km/h; 9.8 mph) submerged.[1]: 407
Service history
After being ordered in 1925, the two submarines were built at Fijenoord in Rotterdam and constituted the first warships built for the Navy since before World War I.[1]: 407 [4]: 336 The boats were commissioned in 1928, were named Birinci İnönü and İkinci İnönü[a] after the first and second battles of İnönü, and were sailed to Istanbul by German crews.[4]: 336 The two boats remained in Turkish service for the next several decades, and were discarded sometime in the 1950s.[1]: 407
| Name | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Stricken |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birinci İnönü | 1926 | 1 February 1927 | 1928 | c.1950 |
| İkinci İnönü | 1926 | 12 March 1927 | 1928 | c.1950 |
References
- ^ a b c d e f Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships, 1922–1946. London: Conway Maritime Press. 1980. ISBN 978-0-85177-146-5.
- ^ Bagnasco, Erminio (2000). Submarines of World War Two. London: Cassell & Co. ISBN 978-1-85409-532-9.
- ^ Fontenoy, Paul E. (2007). Submarines: an Illustrated History of Their Impact. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-85109-563-6.
- ^ a b c van Dijk, Anthonie (1986). "The Fijenoord-built Submarines for Turkey". Warship International. 23 (4): 335–340. ISSN 0043-0374. JSTOR 44889060.