Japanese submarine Ro-3

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History
Japan
NameSubmarine No. 31
BuilderKawasaki, Kobe, Japan
Laid down28 October 1919
Launched10 March 1921
Completed15 July 1922
Commissioned15 July 1922
RenamedRo-3 on 1 November 1924
Stricken1 April 1932
General characteristics
Class and typeType F submarine (F2 subclass)
Displacement
  • 700 tonnes (689 long tons) surfaced
  • 1,064 tonnes (1,047 long tons) submerged
Length65.6 m (215 ft 3 in) overall
Beam6.1 m (20 ft 0 in)
Draft4.1 m (13 ft 5 in)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed
  • 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) surfaced
  • 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) submerged
Range
  • 3,500 nmi (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth40 m (131 ft)
Crew43
Armament

Ro-3, originally named Submarine No. 31, was an Imperial Japanese Navy Type F submarine of the F2 subclass. The Type F submarines were the first truly seagoing Japanese submarines, and the earliest to be classified as "second-class" or "medium" submarines of the Ro series. Ro-3 was commissioned in 1922 and operated in the waters of Chōsen and Japan. She was stricken in 1932.

Design and description

The Type F submarines were designed by the

hulls intended to provide extra internal space, but the Japanese considered the hulls weak despite the provision of additional scantlings during construction to reinforce them.[1]

The submarines of the F2 subclass

propeller shaft.[1] When submerged each propeller was driven by a Savigliano 600-horsepower (447 kW) electric motor.[1] They could reach 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) on the surface and 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) underwater.[1] On the surface, they had a range of 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph);[1] submerged, they had a range of 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph).[1]

The submarines were armed with five 450 mm (18 in)

bow and two in the stern, and carried a total of eight Type 44 torpedoes.[1] As built, they were armed with a 7.7 mm machine gun.[1] Soon after completion, however, a 76.2 mm (3.00 in) deck gun was added.[1]

In the F2 subclass, the Fiat diesel engines were unreliable and the F2 subclass′s top surface speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) was well below the expected 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph).[1] Because of their disappointing performance, the Type F submarines did not serve as the basis for any later Japanese submarine classes.[1]

Construction and commissioning

Ordered in 1918, Ro-3 was

laid down as Submarine No. 31 on 28 October 1918 by Kawasaki at Kobe, Japan.[3] Launched on 10 March 1921,[3] she was completed and commissioned on 15 July 1922.[3]

Service history

Upon commissioning, Submarine No. 31 was attached to the

Chinkai Defense Division on the southern coast of Chōsen.[3] Submarine No. 31 was renamed Ro-3 on 1 November 1924.[3]

Submarine Division 23 was reassigned to the Sasebo Defense Division in the Sasebo Naval District on 1 December 1924.[3] On 1 June 1925, the division was assigned to the 1st Fleet,[3] and on 1 December 1925 it returned to the Sasebo Defense Division in the Sasebo Naval District, where it remained for the rest of Ro-3′s active service.[3]

Ro-3 was stricken from the Navy list on 1 April 1932.[3]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Gray, p. 247.
  2. ^ Gray, p. 245.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "RO-3 ex No-31". iijnsubsite.info. 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2020.

Bibliography

  • Gray, Randal, ed., Conway′s All the World′s Fighting Ships 1906–1921, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1985,
    ISBN 0 87021 907 3
    .
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