Type 41 torpedo boat
Class overview | |
---|---|
Name | Type 41 |
Builders | Schichau, Elbing |
Operators | Kriegsmarine |
Preceded by | Type 40 torpedo boat |
Succeeded by | Type 44 torpedo boat |
Built | 1943–1945 |
Planned | 15 |
Completed | 0 |
Cancelled | 1 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Torpedo boat |
Displacement |
|
Length | 106 m (347 ft 9 in) o/a |
Beam | 10.7 m (35 ft 1 in) |
Draft | 3.72 m (12 ft 2 in) |
Installed power |
|
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 34 knots (63 km/h; 39 mph) |
Range | 2,800 nmi (5,200 km; 3,200 mi) at 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) |
Complement | 210 |
Sensors and processing systems | |
Armament |
|
The Type 1941 torpedo boats were a group of 15
Background and design
The start of World War II in September 1939 caused the cancellation of most of the planned Type 39 torpedo boats and only 15 ships were ordered. Shortages of labor and materials seriously hampered their construction so that the Kriegsmarine did not consider improvements until 1941. It decided upon a slightly enlarged version of the Type 39 with more powerful propulsion machinery to give the ships a speed of 34 knots (63 km/h; 39 mph) and space for an additional twin-gun 3.7-centimeter (1.5 in) anti-aircraft mount.[1]
The ships had an
The Type 41 ships had two sets of Wagner geared
Armament and sensors
The main armament of the Type 41 class consisted four 42-caliber 10.5 cm (4.1 in) SK C/32[Note 1] guns in single mounts; one forward of the superstructure, one between the funnels, and two aft, one superfiring over the other.[5] Its mount had a range of elevation from -10° to +70° and the gun fired 15.1-kilogram (33 lb) projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 785 m/s (2,580 ft/s). It had a range of 15,175 meters (16,596 yd) at an elevation of +44.4°.[6]
Anti-aircraft defense was provided by three twin 80-caliber
The Type 41s were also equipped with six above-water 533 mm (21 in)
The ships of the second and third batches would have been fitted with a high-angle fire-control system to give their main battery an anti-aircraft capability. They also would have received fully automatic 3.7 cm Flak M42 guns in lieu of the semi-automatic SK C/30 weapons of the earlier ships.[12]
Construction
The Kriegsmarine ordered T37–T42 from Schichau on 25 November 1942, although their turbines had been ordered in August 1941. A batch of six more, T43–T48, were ordered on 12 June 1943 and the final batch of four, T49–T51, on 11 January 1944. All were built at the company's shipyard in Elbing, East Prussia, (now Elbląg). T51 was cancelled before construction began. The Kriegsmarine originally estimated that T37 would be completed by the beginning of 1945, but labor shortages and other problems delayed the ships by two to three months. All work ceased at the shipyard on 22 January due to power failures, a lack of workers and the advancing Soviet forces which were approaching East Prussia.[13][14]
T37, T38 and T39 were towed from Elbing around 23 January for completion at shipyards further west. T37 was intended to be finished at the
Ships
Number | Laid down[15]
|
Launched[15] | Completion percentage[14] | Fate[15][14][5] |
---|---|---|---|---|
T37 | Between 26 July and 10 October 1943 | Between 19 February and 19 April 1944 | 96.5% | Scuttled by the United States Navy, 1946 |
T38 | 11 October 1943 | Between 19 April and 19 June 1944 | 84% | Scuttled by the Royal Navy, 10 May 1946 |
T39 | Between 10 October 1943 and 19 February 1944 | 76% | ||
T40 | Between 7 August and 25 October 1944 | 70% | Accidentally ran aground, 12 March 1945, and later scuttled[12] | |
T41 | — | 66.5% | Demolished on the slipway, March 1945 | |
T42 | 58.5% | |||
T43 | Between 19 February and 19 June 1944 | 48% | ||
T44 | 40% | |||
T45 | 35% | |||
T46 | Unknown | 26% | ||
T47 | 23% | |||
T48 | 20.5% | |||
T49 | 8.2% | |||
T50 | 5.3% |
Notes
Citations
- ^ Whitley 1991, p. 59; Whitley 2000, p. 75
- ^ a b c d Gröner, p. 195
- ^ Sieche, p. 239
- ^ Whitley 1991, p. 203
- ^ a b c Whitley 2000, p. 75
- ^ Campbell, p. 248
- ^ a b Whitley 1991, pp. 58–59, 203
- ^ Campbell, p. 256
- ^ Campbell, p. 258
- ^ Campbell, p. 263
- ^ Friedman, p. 205; Whitley 1991, pp. 52–55, 59; Whitley 2000, p. 73
- ^ a b Whitley 1991, p. 59
- ^ a b Whitley 1991, pp. 59, 213
- ^ a b c d Gröner, p. 196
- ^ a b c Whitley 1991, p. 213
References
- Campbell, John (1985). Naval Weapons of World War II. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-459-4.
- ISBN 0-85177-238-2.
- ISBN 0-87021-790-9.
- Sieche, Erwin (1980). "Germany". In Chesneau, Roger (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
- ISBN 1-85409-521-8.
- Whitley, M. J. (1991). German Destroyers of World War Two. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-302-8.