HMS ''Acheron'' (P411) was an of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
, laid down 26 August 1944, launched 25 March 1947 and completed in 1948.
Design
Like all s, ''Acheron'' had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. It had a total length of , a beam of , and a draught of . The submarine was powered by two Admiralty ML eight-cylinder diesel engines generating a power of each. It also contained four electric motors each producing that drove two shafts.
It could carry a maximum of of diesel, although it usually carried between .
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a submerged speed of . When submerged, it could operate at for or at for . When surfaced, it was able to travel at or at .
''Acheron'' was fitted with ten
torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes.
There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...
s, one
QF 4 inch naval gun Mk XXIII, one
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original German Becker Type M2 20 mm cannon design that appeared very early in World War I. It was widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others, with various models em ...
, and a
.303 British
The .303 British (designated as the 303 British by the C.I.P. and SAAMI) or 7.7×56mmR, is a calibre rimmed rifle cartridge. The .303 inch bore diameter is measured between rifling lands as is the common practice in Europe which follows th ...
Vickers machine gun
The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a water-cooled .303 British (7.7 mm) machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army. The gun was operated by a three-man crew but typically required more men to move and o ...
. Its torpedo tubes were fitted to the
bow and stern, and it could carry twenty torpedoes. Its
complement
A complement is something that completes something else.
Complement may refer specifically to:
The arts
* Complement (music), an interval that, when added to another, spans an octave
** Aggregate complementation, the separation of pitch-clas ...
was sixty-one crew members.
Service history
''Acheron'' took part in the Coronation Review of the Fleet to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. It carried out 'General Naval Service' around the UK until the end of 1964. A geomagnetic storm in February 1956, during
solar cycle 19
Solar may refer to:
Astronomy
* Of or relating to the Sun
** Solar telescope, a special purpose telescope used to observe the Sun
** A device that utilizes solar energy (e.g. " solar panels")
** Solar calendar, a calendar whose dates indica ...
, interfered with radio communications and prompted a search for the submarine after it lost radio contact. From August to December 1959, It took part in a cruise to South Africa and Pakistan.
It was decommissioned and broken up in 1972 at the yard of
J Cashmore of
Newport.
Commanding officers
References
Publications
*
External links
Pictures of HMS Acheron at MaritimeQuest
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acheron (P411)
Amphion-class submarines
Cold War submarines of the United Kingdom
1947 ships