Submarines in WWII (2024)

Submarines in WWII

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<![if !vml]><![endif]>Submarinesare very valuable attack vehicles. In World War II they were basically surfaceships that could travel underwater for a limited time—however, as you willunderstand after exploring these pages, German U-boats had a number ofconsiderably more advanced features than those of the United States.

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Submarines arevery large—the hull of the USS Balao(image at left, SS-324 Balao<![if !supportFootnotes]>[1]<![endif]>), one of the most successful U.S. submarines and agood example for the basic idea of a submarine, was 312 feet long and displaced2,415 tons; but also very cumbersome—USS Balao carried 10 officers and 70 enlisted men. High surfacevelocities and long ranges were attained with strong diesel engines, but theserates were severely reduced underwater, where they relied on electric motorspowered by relatively short-lived storage batteries. The USS Balao was powered on the surface by four diesel enginesand had a top speed of just over 20 knots (37 km/hr); cruising at 10 knots (18km/hr) her range was 11,000 nautical miles (20,000 km). Two 126-cell batterygroups gave her a submerged top speed of 8.75 knots (16.2 km/hr); holding herspeed to 2 knots (4 km/hr), she could remain submerged for 48 hours. Before sonar became dependable,most submarine combat took place during the day, for the advantage of sunlight(depending on depths). Recharging the batteries usually occurred when combatwas more difficult—at night, when the submarine would surface and run theair-breathing diesels.

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The main weapon used by submarinesis the torpedo, which in itself is a 3,000 pound “mini-submarine,” able totravel about 9,000 yards (a little over 4 miles), and dive <![if !vml]><![endif]>andrise through the sea to pre-calculated depths. The submarine can travel withgreat agility, guided by a gyro and propelled by steam (generated by passingwater through burning alcohol). Torpedoes can carry 500 pounds of TNT, toexplode either directly upon striking the target or detonated by the influenceof the magnetic field of the target’s hull. The USS Balao’s armament included deck guns and 24 torpedoes. Theimage at left shows a torpedo being deployed.<![if !supportFootnotes]>[2]<![endif]>

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In comparison to the submarines ofthe United States, which were already very advanced and won the Pacifictheatre, German U-boats displayed greatly enhanced underwater speed andendurance, with highly streamlined hulls and snorkels, and in this way posedone of the most serious risks to the Allied powers in WWII—as will be furtherdiscussed. Click below to discover more about the differences between thepowers.

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