U-50-class submarine
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders | Fiume[1] |
| Operators |  Austro-Hungarian Navy |
| Preceded by | U-48-class submarine |
| Succeeded by | U-52-class submarine |
| Built | 1916–1918 |
| Planned | 4 |
| Completed | 0 |
| Cancelled | 2 |
| Scrapped | 2 |
| Preserved | 0 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | submarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 241 ft (73 m)[1] |
| Beam | 20 ft 8 in (6.30 m)[1] |
| Draft | 12 ft 11 in (3.94 m)[1] |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Complement | 33[1] |
| Armament | |
The U-50 class was a
Design
To that end, the Austro-Hungarian Navy purchased plans for the Germaniawerft Project 835 design on 11 July 1915 in order to build under license in Austria-Hungary. The plans called for a submarine that displaced 840 t (930 short tons) surfaced and 1,100 t (1,200 short tons) submerged. The boats were to be about 241 feet (73 m) long with a beam of 20 feet 8 inches (6.30 m) and a draft of 12 feet 11 inches (3.94 m). For propulsion, the design featured two shafts, with twin diesel engines of 2,300 bhp (1,700 kW) (total) for surface running at up to 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h), and twin electric motors of 1,200 shp (890 kW) (total) for submerged travel at up to 9 knots (16.7 km/h). The U-50 class boats were designed for a crew of 33 men.[1]
The U-50 design called for six 45 cm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes—four bow tubes and two stern tubes—and carried a complement of nine torpedoes. The original design specified two 10 cm/35 (3.9 in) deck guns, which were superseded by two 120 mm/35 (4.7 in) deck guns in plans for the third and fourth boats.[1]
Construction
On 7 February 1916,
Shortages of skilled shipyard workers and materials slowed construction of the boats,
Notes
- ^ The other four boats were U-48 and U-49 of the U-48 class and U-52 and U-53 of the U-52 class. See: Gardiner, p. 341.
References
Bibliography