HMS ''L5'' was a
L-class submarine built for the Royal Navy during World War I. The boat survived the war and was sold for
scrap
Scrap consists of Recycling, recyclable materials, usually metals, left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap Waste valorization, has monetary ...
in 1931.
Design and description
The L-class boats were enlarged and improved versions of the preceding
E class. The submarine had a length of
overall
Overalls, also called bib-and-brace overalls or dungarees, are a type of garment usually used as protective clothing when working. The garments are commonly referred to as a "pair of overalls" by analogy with "pair of trousers".
Overalls were ...
, a
beam
Beam may refer to:
Streams of particles or energy
*Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy
**Laser beam
*Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles
**Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...
of and a mean
draft
Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vessel ...
of . They
displaced on the surface and submerged. The L-class submarines had a crew of 35 officers and
ratings.
[Gardiner & Gray, p. 93]
For surface running, the boats were powered by two 12-cylinder
Vickers
Vickers was a British engineering company that existed from 1828 until 1999. It was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by Edward Vickers and his father-in-law, and soon became famous for casting church bells. The company went public in 18 ...
diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...
s, each driving one
propeller shaft
A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft (Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power and torque and rotation, usually used to connect ...
. When submerged each propeller was driven by a
electric motor
An electric motor is an Electric machine, electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a Electromagneti ...
.
[ They could reach on the surface and underwater. On the surface, the L class had a range of at .][
The boats were armed with a total of six 18-inch (45 cm) ]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. Four of these were in the bow and the remaining pair in broadside mounts. They carried 10 reload torpedoes, all for the bow tubes. They were also armed with a deck gun
A deck gun is a type of naval artillery mounted on the deck of a submarine. Most submarine deck guns were open, with or without a shield; however, a few larger submarines placed these guns in a turret.
The main deck gun was a dual-purpose ...
.[Akermann, p. 165]
Construction and career
HMS ''L5'' was laid down
Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship.
Keel laying is one o ...
on 23 August 1916 by Swan Hunter
Swan Hunter, formerly known as Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, is a shipbuilding design, engineering, and management company, based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, England.
At its apex, the company represented the combined forces of three powe ...
at their Wallsend
Wallsend is a town in North Tyneside, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne.
History Roman Wallsend
In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of Segedunum. This fo ...
shipyard
A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...
, launched on 1 September 1917, and completed on 15 May 1918. She was based at Falmouth, Cornwall
Falmouth ( ; kw, Aberfala) is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,797 (2011 census).
Etymology
The name Falmouth is of English or ...
in 1918. ''L5'' was assigned to the 4th Submarine Flotilla
Fourth or the fourth may refer to:
* the ordinal form of the number 4
* ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971
* Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision
* Fourth (music), a musical interval
* ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...
and HMS Titania
HMS ''Titania'' (pennant number F32) was a Royal Navy submarine depot ship. Most of those that saw service in the First World War were scrapped in the 1930s. ''Titania'', however, saw service in the Second World War. She was scrapped at Faslane ...
in 1919 and sailed to Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
, arriving on 14 April 1920. She served on the China Station
The Commander-in-Chief, China was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941.
From 1831 to 18 ...
with other vessels of this class in the 1920s. On 20 October 1927 off Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
, L5 and rescued the crew of the merchant ship
A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are u ...
SS ''Irene'' from a pirate attack after firing her deck gun. HMS ''L5'' was sold in 1931 and broken up in Charlestown, Fife
Charlestown (also known as Charlestown-on-Forth) is a village in Fife, Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, around west of Limekilns and south-west of Dunfermline.
History
Charlestown was established in 1756 by Charles Br ...
.
Notes
References
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*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:L05
British L-class submarines
Ships built on the River Tyne
1918 ships
World War I submarines of the United Kingdom
Royal Navy ship names
Ships built by Swan Hunter