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Howell torpedo
Howell torpedo
Howell torpedo at the Naval War College Museum in Newport, Rhode Island
Type Anti-surface ship torpedo[1]
Place of origin United States
Service history
In service 1890–1898[2]
Used by Flag of the United States United States Navy
Production history
Designer John A. Howell[2]
Designed 1870[2]
Manufacturer Hotchkiss Ordnance Company[2]
Produced 1889[2]
No. built 50 units[2]
Specifications
Mass 580 lbs[2]
Length 132 inches[2]
Diameter 14.2 inches[2]

Effective firing range 400 yards[2]
Warhead wet guncotton[2]
Warhead weight 100 lbs[2]
Detonation
mechanism
Contact device

Engine Flywheel[2]
Maximum speed 25 knots[2]
Launch
platform
Battleships and torpedo boats[1]

The Howell Automobile Torpedo was the first self-propelled torpedo be produced in quantity by the United States Navy, which referred to it as the Howell Mark I torpedo.[1] It was conceived by Lieutenant Commander John A. Howell, United States Navy, in 1870, using a 60 kg (130 lb) flywheel spun at very high speed (10000 to 12000 rpm) to store energy and drive propellers.

Design[]

Howell torpedo general longitudinal section from US Navy manual, 1896

Howell torpedo's general longitudinal section from US Navy manual, 1896

Because it had no complicated engine and fuel system, the Howell was much cheaper and easier to build than its main competitor, the Whitehead. In addition, unlike the Whitehead, the Howell was wakeless, not giving away the position of the firing vessel; its flywheel was, however, very noisy. It did demand large winches to "spin up" the flywheel (a drawback not solved in the Howell's operational lifetime.) Also unlike the Whitehead, its trim did not vary up and down. These things were all due to the gyroscopic effect of the flywheel; any tumbling was corrected by simple pendulum (an idea pioneered by Robert Whitehead). It made the Howell the first torpedo to use this effect; when, in an attempt to improve stability, Whitehead (using a Ludwig Obry design) adopted them in 1895, Howell sued for patent infringement.

Production[]

Hotchkiss Ordnance Co advertisement clipping for Howell torpedoes 11-24-1888

A Hotchkiss Ordnance Company advertisement for Howell torpedoes, published November 11, 1888

Torpedo Boat Stilletto launching a Howell torpedo ca 1890

Torpedo Boat Stilletto launching a Howell torpedo, ca. 1890

After very protracted development – the product of a paucity of funds, the novelty of the torpedo as a weapon, and myopia of the Navy's senior officers – fifty Howell Torpedoes Mark 1 were ordered (from Hotchkiss Ordnance Company of Providence, Rhode Island) in 1889. This was 14.2 in (36 cm) diameter, 129.75 in (330 cm) long, with a 96 lb (43.5 kg) warhead and a range of 400 yd (365 m) at 25 knots (46 km/h). Contemporary Whiteheads, built by E. W. Bliss Company, had superior performance, and greater growth capacity.

These fifty would be the only production examples, as the Howell was superseded by a rapidly improving Whitehead in 1892; as a consequence, the Howell's drawbacks were never cured. It is, therefore, impossible to know if quieting would have mitigated any loss of surprise to noise (as sometimes suggested).

A contemporary account of an operational test carried out on a Howell torpedo described its performance, where it "ran along the surface at a very fast but very regular speed for four minutes" and that there was "no horizontal deviation and the run was fully 900 yards".[3]

Exemplars[]

Howell torpedo fly wheel

Howell torpedo flywheel

Howell torpedo blades

Rear view, showing the propeller

In May 2013, a Howell torpedo was discovered in two pieces on the seabed by US Navy-trained dolphins, near Coronado, California.[4][5] Prior to this discovery, only two Howell torpedoes were known to exist: one at the Naval Undersea Museum and the other at the Naval War College Museum in Newport R.I.[6]

See also[]

External links[]

Sources[]

  • Blair, Clay. Silent Victory. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1975
  • Fitzsimons, Bernard, general editor. "Howell", in The Encyclopedia of Twentieth Century Weapons and Warfare. London: Phoebus/BBC, 1978. Volume 13, page 1371.
  • "Howell torpedo", in The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, online
  • Kirby, Geoff. "A History of the Torpedo The Early Days", in The Journal of the Royal Navy Scientific Service, Vol 27 No 1.
  • Milford, Frederick J. "US Navy Torpedoes--Part One: Torpedoes through the thirties", in The Submarine Review, April 1996. (a quarterly publication of the Naval Submarine League, P.O. Box 1146, Annandale, VA 22003)

References[]

All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Howell torpedo and the edit history here.
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