HMS E12 was a British E class submarine built by HM Dockyard, Chatham. She was laid down on 16 December 1912 and commissioned on 14 October 1914. Her construction costs totalled £101,900.
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | E12 |
| Builder | HM Dockyard, Chatham |
| Cost | £101,900 |
| Laid down | 16 December 1912 |
| Launched | 5 September 1914 |
| Commissioned | 14 October 1914 |
| Fate | Sold, 7 March 1921 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | E-class submarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 181 ft (55 m) |
| Beam | 15 ft (4.6 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range |
|
| Complement | 30 |
| Armament |
|
During the Great War, anti-submarine nets in the Dardanelles entangled her forward hydroplanes, forcing her down to a depth of 245 feet. At the time, this was the greatest depth achieved by any British submarine.[citation needed] E12 managed to surface only to come under fire by shore batteries, but avoided further damage. She survived the war and was sold for scrap in Malta on 7 March 1921.[1]
Design
editLike all post-E8 British E-class submarines, E12 had a displacement of 662 long tons (673 t) at the surface and 807 long tons (820 t) while submerged. She had a total length of 180 feet (55 m)[2] and a beam of 22 feet 8.5 inches (6.922 m). She was powered by two 800 horsepower (600 kW) Vickers eight-cylinder two-stroke diesel engines and two 420 horsepower (310 kW) electric motors.[3][4] The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) and a submerged speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). British E-class submarines had fuel capacities of 50 long tons (51 t) of diesel and ranges of 3,255 miles (5,238 km; 2,829 nmi) when travelling at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[2] E12 was capable of operating submerged for five hours when travelling at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph).
E12 was armed with a single 4-inch QF gun mounted forward of the conning tower, and five 18 inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes, two in the bow, one either side amidships, and one in the stern; a total of 10 torpedoes were carried.[3]
E-Class submarines had wireless systems with 1 kilowatt (1.3 hp) power ratings; in some submarines, these were later upgraded to 3 kilowatts (4.0 hp) systems by removing a midship torpedo tube. Their maximum design depth was 100 feet (30 m) although in service some reached depths of below 200 feet (61 m). Some submarines contained Fessenden oscillator systems.[2]
Crew
editHer complement was three officers and 28 men.[2]
References
edit- ^ Hutchinson, Robert (2001). Jane's Submarines: War Beneath the Waves from 1776 to the Present Day. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-00-710558-8. OCLC 53783010.
- ^ a b c d Innes McCartney; Tony Bryan (20 February 2013). British Submarines of World War I. Osprey Publishing. pp. 11–12. ISBN 978-1-4728-0035-0.
- ^ a b Akerman, P. (1989). Encyclopaedia of British submarines 1901–1955. p.150. Maritime Books. ISBN 1-904381-05-7
- ^ "E Class". Chatham Submarines. Archived from the original on 13 August 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2015.