Type U 17 submarine

Class overview
Builders	Kaiserliche Werft Danzig
Operators	Imperial German Navy
Preceded by	U 16
Succeeded by	Type U 19
Completed	2
Lost	1
General characteristics
Displacement	564  t (555 long tons) surfaced 691 t (680 long tons) submerged
Length	62.35 m (204 ft 7 in)
Beam	6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Height	7.30 m (23 ft 11 in)
Draught	3.40 m (11 ft 2 in)
Propulsion	2 shafts 2 × 2 Körting 8-cylinder two stroke paraffin motors with 1,400 PS (1,000 kW; 1,400 shp) 2 × AEG electric motors with 1,120 PS (820 kW; 1,100 shp) 550 rpm surfaced 425 rpm submerged
Speed	14.9 knots (27.6 km/h; 17.1 mph) surfaced 9.5 knots (17.6 km/h; 10.9 mph) submerged
Range	6,700 nautical miles (12,400 km; 7,700 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) surfaced 75 nautical miles (139 km; 86 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged
Test depth	50 m (164 ft 1 in)
Complement	4 officers, 25 men
Armament	4 × 45 cm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes (2 each bow and stern) 6 torpedoes On U-17 from 1914 : 1 × 3.7 cm (1.5 in) Hotchkiss gun, replaced in 1917 by 1 × 5 cm (2.0 in) SK L/40 gun

Type U17 was a class of U-boats built during World War I by the Kaiserliche Marine. As from 1908 the Germans were considering U-boats with diesel engines, but pending the development of a sufficient lightweight diesel engine, paraffin engines were used. Type 17 was a design for two diesel engines but when the U-boats were ordered in 1910, the diesel engines were not yet available and instead four paraffin engines were installed. ^[1]

Design

Type U 17s had an overall length of 62.35 m (204 ft 7 in) The boats' beam was 6.00 m (19 ft 8 in), the draught was 3.40 m (11 ft 2 in), with a total height of 7.30 m (23 ft 11 in). The boats displaced 564 tonnes (555 long tons) when surfaced and 691 t (680 long tons) when submerged. ^[2]

Type U 17s were fitted with four Körting 8-cylinder two-stroke paraffin engines with a total of 1,400 metric horsepower (1,030  kW ; 1,381  bhp ) for use on the surface and two AEG double-acting electric motors with a total of 820 kW (1,115 PS; 1,100 shp) for underwater use. These engines powered two shafts, which gave the boats a top surface speed of 14.9 knots (27.6 km/h; 17.1 mph), and 9.5 knots (17.6 km/h; 10.9 mph) when submerged. ^[2] Electrical engines were usually left open without protection against drip or bilge water to save weight, but Type 17 U-boats were the first U-boats to have fully encased electrical engines. ^[3] Cruising range was 6,700 nautical miles (12,400 km; 7,700 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) on the surface and 75 nautical miles (139 km; 86 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged. ^[2] Constructional diving depth ^[a] was 50 m (164 ft 1 in). ^[4]

The U-boats were armed with four 45 cm (18 in) torpedo tubes, two fitted in the bow and two in the stern, and carried six torpedoes. The boats' complement was 4 officers and 25 enlisted. ^[2]

Ships

Name	launched [5]	commissioned [5]	merchant ships sunk (nbr / GRT ) [5]	Fate [2]
U-17	16 April 1912	3 November 1912	12 / 16.635	Scrapped in 1919-20.
U-18	25 April 1912	17 November 1912	none	Sunk on 23 November near the Orkney islands.

Footnotes

Notes

1. Constructional diving depth had a safety factor of 2.5, which meant that crushing depth was 2.5 times construction diving depth. ^[4]

Citations

1. Rössler 1981, p. 27.
2. Möller & Brack 2004, p. 22.
3. Möller & Brack 2004, p. 154.
4. Rössler 1981, p. 26.
5. Herzog 1993, p. 67.

Bibliography

• Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). German Warships 1815–1945, U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN   0-85177-593-4.
• Herzog, Bodo (1993). Deutsche U-Boote : 1906 - 1966[German U-boats : 1906 - 1966] (in German). Erlangen: Müller. ISBN   9783860700365.
• Möller, Eberhard; Brack, Werner (2004). The Encyclopedia of U-Boats. London: Chatham. ISBN   1-85367-623-3.
• Rössler, Eberhard (1981). The U-boat: The evolution and technical history of German submarines. London: Cassell & Co. ISBN   0-304-36120-8.