 A group of British "A" class submarines
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS A6 |
| Builder | Vickers, Sons & Maxim Ltd. Barrow-in-Furness |
| Laid down | 1 September 1903 |
| Launched | 3 March 1904 |
| Commissioned | 23 March 1905 |
| Fate | Sold, 8 October 1920 for breaking up |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | A-class submarine |
| Displacement |
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| Length | 105 ft (32.0 m) |
| Beam | 12 ft 9 in (3.9 m) |
| Draught | 10 ft 8 in (3.3 m) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion |
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| Speed |
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| Range | 500 nautical miles (930 km; 580 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced |
| Complement | 2 officers and 9 ratings |
| Armament | 2 × 18-inch (45 cm) torpedo tubes |
HMS A6 was an A-class submarine built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century.
Design and description
A6 was a member of the first British class of submarines, although slightly larger, faster and more heavily armed than the lead ship, HMS A1. The submarine had a length of 105 feet 1 inch (32.0 m) overall, a beam of 12 feet 9 inches (3.9 m) and a mean draft of 10 feet 8 inches (3.3 m). They displaced 190 long tons (190 t) on the surface and 206 long tons (209 t) submerged. The A-class submarines had a crew of 2 officers and 9 ratings.
For surface running, the boats were powered by a single 16-cylinder 550-brake-horsepower (410 kW) Wolseley petrol engine that drove one propeller shaft. When submerged the propeller was driven by a 150-horsepower (112 kW) electric motor. They could reach 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph) on the surface and 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) underwater. On the surface, A6 had a range of 500 nautical miles (930 km; 580 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph); submerged the boat had a range of 30 nautical miles (56 km; 35 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph).
The boats were armed with two 18-inch (45 cm) torpedo tubes in the bow. They could carry a pair of reload torpedoes, but generally did not as doing so that they had to compensate for their weight by an equivalent weight of fuel.
Construction and career
A6 was ordered as part of the 1903–04 Naval Programme from at Vickers. She was laid down at the shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness on 1 September 1903, launched on 3 March 1904 and completed on 23 March 1905.
A6 ran aground on a sandbank in Sandown harbour on 31 July 1906, but received little damage.
Notes
- ^ Gardiner & Gray, p. 86
- ^ Akermann, p. 120
- Harrison, Chapter 27
- Harrison, Chapter 3
- "Naval Matters—Past and Prospective: Portsmouth Dockyard". The Marine Engineer and Naval Architect. Vol. 29. 1 September 1906. p. 41.
References
- Akermann, Paul (2002). Encyclopaedia of British Submarines 1901–1955 (reprint of the 1989 ed.). Penzance, Cornwall: Periscope Publishing. ISBN 1-904381-05-7.
- Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) . Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
- Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
- Harrison, A. N. (January 1979). "The Development of HM Submarines From Holland No. 1 (1901) to Porpoise (1930) (BR3043)". RN Subs. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
External links
| British A-class submarines | |
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