NMS Smeul

Last updated
Smeul1920-1944.jpg
History
Austria-Hungary-flag-1869-1914-naval-1786-1869-merchant.svg Austria-Hungary
NameTb 83 F
Builder Ganz & Danubius
Laid down1913
Launched1914
Commissioned1915
FateGiven to Romania as reparations, 1920
Naval ensign of Romania (1922-1947).svg Romania
NameSmeul
Namesake Romanian mythological creature
Commissioned1920
Out of service1944
Reinstated1946
FateBroken up, 1960
Naval Ensign of the Soviet Union (1950-1991).svg Soviet Union
NameToros
Commissioned1944
FateReturned to Romania, 1945
General characteristics
Class and type 250t-class torpedo boat
Displacement
  • 266 tons (standard)
  • 330 tons (full load)
Length58.5 m (191 ft 11 in)
Beam5.8 m (19 ft 0 in)
Draft1.5 m (4 ft 11 in)
Propulsion2 Yarrow boilers, 2 AEG turbines, 2 shafts, 5,000 horse power
Speed28 knots (52 km/h)
Range1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km)
Complement38
Armament
  • World War II:
  • 2 x 66 mm Škoda naval guns
  • 2 x 20 mm Oerlikon AA guns
  • 1 x 400 mm depth charge thrower

NMS Smeul was a torpedo boat of the Royal Romanian Navy. She was commissioned in 1920, after initially serving as Tb 83 F in the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. She and six more sister ships were awarded to Romania as reparations after the war ended. [1]

Contents

Construction and specifications

A vessel of the F-group of the 250t class, Smeul was built by Ganz & Danubius at Fiume and nearby Porto Re, along with the rest of her group, between October 1913 and December 1916. Under the designation 83 F, she was laid down in 1913, launched in 1914 and completed in 1915. She had a waterline length of 58.5 m (191 ft 11 in), a beam of 5.8 m (19 ft 0 in), and a normal draught of 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in). While her designed displacement was 266 tonnes (262 long tons ), she displaced about 330 tonnes (320 long tons) fully loaded. The crew consisted of 38 officers and enlisted men. Her AEG-Curtiss turbines were rated at 5,000  shp (3,700 kW) with a maximum output of 6,000 shp (4,500 kW), enabling her to reach a top speed of 28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph). She carried 20 long tons (20.3 t) of coal and 34 long tons (34.5 t) of fuel oil, [2] which gave her a range of 1,200  nmi (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). Under the provisions of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, she was awarded as reparations to Romania in 1920, along with six more boats of the same class. [3] [2] During World War II, she had no torpedo tubes. [4] These were replaced by depth charges, her artillery consisting of two 66 mm naval guns and two 20 mm anti-aircraft guns. [5] The depth charges were deployed using one 400 mm thrower. [6]

Career

While fighting on the Axis side during World War II, she was involved in the minelaying operation of the Bulgarian coast in October 1941 [7] and escorted the Romanian minelayers Amiral Murgescu and Dacia when they laid mines near Odessa in June 1942. [8]

On 14 October 1942, the Soviet M-class submarine M-32 unsuccessfully attacked the Romanian destroyer Regele Ferdinand near Cape Burnas, the submarine being subsequently depth-charged and damaged by Smeul. [9] [10]

On 11–13 December 1942, under the command of Captain Dumitru Mitescu, Smeul escorted the Axis transport ships Tzar Ferdinand and Oituz along the Romanian coast, along with four German R-boats. In the morning of 13 December, the convoy was attacked by the Soviet destroyer Soobrazitelny and four Fugas-class minesweepers. The exchange of fire lasted for two hours, until Smeul launched a smokescreen which enabled the four R-boats to simulate a torpedo attack, causing the Soviet warships to retreat. None of the Axis or Soviet warships were damaged. [11] [12] [13] [14]

After the 23 August 1944 coup, she was commissioned by the Soviet Navy as Toros. In October 1945, she was returned to Romania. After being refitted at the Galați shipyard, she was recommissioned in 1946 and finally broken up in 1960. [15]

See also

Sources

  1. S. V. Patyanin, M. S. Barabanov. Korabli Vtoroy mirovoy voyny. VMS Balkanskih gosudarstv i stran Vostochnogo Sredizemnomorya (World War II ships. Ships of Balkan and East Mediterranean countries), p. 21–22 (in Russian)
  2. 1 2 Jane's Information Group, Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II, London, England: Studio Editions, 1989, p. 313
  3. René Greger, Austro-Hungarian Warships of World War I, London, England: Ian Allan, 1976, pp. 58 and 60
  4. Antony Preston, Warship 2001–2002, Conway Maritime Press, 2001, p. 70
  5. Janusz Piekałkiewicz, Sea War, 1939–1945, Historical Times, 1987, p. 350
  6. Е. Е. Шведе, Военные флоты 1939–1940 гг., Рипол Классик, 2013, p. 119 (in Russian)
  7. Donald A Bertke, Gordon Smith, Don Kindell, World War II Sea War, Volume 4: Germany Sends Russia to the Allies, p. 323
  8. Donald A. Bertke, Gordon Smith, Don Kindell World War II Sea War, Volume 6: The Allies Halt the Axis Advance, p. 268
  9. Antony Preston, Warship 2001–2002, Conway Maritime Press, 2001, pp. 79–80
  10. Donald A Bertke, Gordon Smith, Don Kindell, World War II Sea War, Volume 7: The Allies Strike Back, Bertke Publications, 2014, p. 179
  11. Jipa Rotaru, Ioan Damaschin, Glorie și dramă: Marina Regală Română, 1940–1945, Ion Cristoiu Publishing, 2000, p. 94 (in Romanian)
  12. Timothy C. Dowling, Russia at War: From the Mongol Conquest to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Beyond, ABC-CLIO Publishing, 2014, p. 128
  13. Spencer C. Tucker, World War II at Sea: An Encyclopedia, ABC-CLIO Publishing, 2011, p. 114
  14. Donald A Bertke, Gordon Smith, Don Kindell, World War II Sea War, Volume 8: Guadalcanal Secured, Bertke Publications, 2015, p. 77
  15. M. J. Whitley, Destroyers of World War II, Naval Institute Press, 1988, p. 226

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romanian Naval Forces</span> Military unit

The Romanian Naval Forces is the principal naval branch of the Romanian Armed Forces and operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube. It traces its history back to 1860.

Soviet M-class submarine Submarines built in Soviet Union during World War II

The M-class submarines, also Malyutka class, were a class of small, single-, or 1½-hulled coastal submarines built in the Soviet Union and used during World War II. The submarines were built in sections so they could easily be transported by rail. The production was centered in the Gorky Shipyard on the Volga River, after which the sections were transported by railway to Leningrad for assembly and fitting out. This was the first use of welding on Soviet submarines.

Shchuka-class submarine Submarine produced in the Soviet Union

The Shchuka-class submarines, also referred to as Sh or Shch-class submarines, were a medium-sized class of Soviet submarines, built in large numbers and used during World War II. "Shchuka" is Russian for pike. Of this class, only two submarines entered service after 1945, although they were launched before the war.

The Black Sea Campaigns were the operations of the Axis and Soviet naval forces in the Black Sea and its coastal regions during World War II between 1941 and 1944, including in support of the land forces.

NMS <i>Amiral Murgescu</i> WW2 Romanian Navy minelayer & convoy escort

NMS Amiral Murgescu was a minelayer and convoy escort of the Romanian Navy, the first sea-going warship built in Romania and the largest Romanian-built warship of World War II. She laid numerous minefields, from the Bulgarian port of Burgas to the Crimean port of Sevastopol, which inflicted significant losses to the Soviet Black Sea Fleet. She also carried out numerous convoy escort missions and took part in the Axis evacuation of the Crimea in May 1944. Due to her success in combat, she was decorated twice by May 1944. She was captured by the Soviet Union in September 1944 and served until 1988, when she was scrapped.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Submarine warfare in the Black Sea campaigns (1941)</span> Sea-based fighting during World War II

Submarine warfare in the Black Sea in World War II during 1941 primarily involved engagements between submarines of the Soviet Black Sea Fleet attacking Axis merchantmen defended by Romanian and Bulgarian warships. These engagements were a part of the naval Black Sea campaigns between Axis and Soviet naval forces.

Italian submarine <i>Beilul</i> Italian submarine

Italian submarine Beilul was an Adua-class submarine built for the Royal Italian Navy during the 1930s. It was named after a town of Beilul in Eritrea.

The Romanian Navy during World War II was the main Axis naval force in the Black Sea campaigns and fought against the Soviet Union's Black Sea Fleet from 1941 to 1944. Operations consisted mainly of mine warfare, but there were also escort missions and localized naval engagements. The largest naval action fought by the Romanian Navy was the 26 June 1941 Raid on Constanța, and its most extensive operation was the 1944 evacuation of the Crimea.

The action of 6 December 1941 was a confrontation between the Bulgarian and Soviet navies in the Black Sea during World War II, taking place near the Bulgarian coast at Cape Emine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Action of 9 July 1941</span>

The action of 9 July 1941 was a naval engagement between the Soviet and Romanian navies during World War II, taking place near the Romanian port-city of Mangalia.

NMS <i>Viscolul</i> Torpedo boat

NMS Viscolul was the most successful and the longest-serving motor torpedo boat of the Romanian Navy during the Second World War. She supported the Siege of Odessa and took part in the action of 9 July 1941.

NMS <i>Sublocotenent Ghiculescu</i>

NMS Sublocotenent Ghiculescu was a specialized ASW gunboat of the Romanian Navy. Initially built as a French warship in late World War I, she was purchased by Romania in 1920 and fought during World War II, sinking two submarines and one motor torpedo boat. After 1 year of Soviet service, she was returned to Romania and served as a survey vessel until 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soviet Navy surface raids on Western Black Sea</span>

The Soviet Black Sea Fleet during the first years of the Black Sea campaigns (1941–44) conducted raiding operations along the Western coast of the Black Sea aimed to disrupt Axis communications and supplies by sea.

NMS <i>Năluca</i>

NMS Năluca was a torpedo boat of the Royal Romanian Navy. She was commissioned in 1920, after initially serving as Tb 82 F in the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. She and six more sister ships were awarded to Romania as reparations after the war ended.

Italian destroyer <i>Turbine</i> (1927) Destroyer of the Regia Marina

Turbine was the lead ship of her class of eight destroyers built for the Regia Marina during the 1920s. Her name means whirlwind.

NMS <i>Sborul</i>

NMS Sborul was a torpedo boat of the Royal Romanian Navy. She was commissioned in 1920, after initially serving as Tb 81 T in the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. She and six more sister ships were awarded to Romania as reparations after the war ended.

Submarine warfare in the Black Sea in World War II during 1942 involved engagements between primarily submarines of the Soviet Black Sea Fleet attacking Axis merchantmen defended by Romanian and German naval warships. These engagements were a part of the Black Sea campaigns between Axis and Soviet naval forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval operations in Romanian-occupied Soviet waters</span>

Between 1941 and 1944, Romania held control over much of the Ukrainian Black Sea coast East of the Crimea. This was acquired during Operation Barbarossa. The Romanian conquest of the Soviet Western Black Sea coast started in July 1941 during Operation München and ended in October that year, after the Siege of Odessa. In the aftermath of these actions, Romania (re)acquired two new sectors of coastline: the Bessarabian coast and the Transnistrian Coast. The latter was lost in April 1944, but the former was successfully defended until August 1944.

NMS <i>Regele Carol I</i> Ship of the Romanian Maritime Service and the Romanian Navy

NMS Regele Carol I was a passenger ship of the Romanian Maritime Service and later a warship of the Romanian Navy, serving as both minelayer and seaplane tender. She was completed and commissioned in 1898 and sunk in 1941, during World War II.

Ungvár was a Hungarian Cargo ship that hit a mine laid by the Soviet destroyers Smyshlyony and Bodry in the Black Sea south of Odesa on 9 November 1941 while she was travelling from Sulina, Romania to Odesa, Ukraine with a cargo of ammunition, gasoline and food.