| United States O-class submarine | |
|---|---|
 USS O-1 (SS-62) lead ship of her class in dry dock at Portsmouth Nary Yard in September 1918 | |
| Class overview | |
| Operators: | United States of America |
| Preceded by: | N-class submarine |
| Succeeded by: | R-class submarine |
| Completed: | 16 |
| Lost: | 3 |
| Retired: | 16 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Submarine |
| Displacement: |
Group 1 : 520.6 long tons (529 t) surfaced 625 long tons (635 t) submerged Group 2 : 491 long tons (499 t) surfaced 565 long tons (574 t) submerged |
| Length: |
Group 1 : 173 ft 4 in (52.83 m) Group 2 : 175 ft (53 m) |
| Beam: |
Group 1 : 18 ft (5.5 m) Group 2 : 16 ft 7 in (5.05 m) |
| Propulsion: |
Group 1 : 2 × 440 hp (328 kW) NELSECO diesel engines 2 × New York Navy Yard (O1-O5) or Electro Dynamic Co. 370 hp (276 kW) electric motors Group 2 : 2 × 500 hp (373 kW) Busch Sulzer diesel engines 2 × Diehl Manufacture Co. 400 hp (298 kW) electric motors |
| Speed: |
Group 1 : 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) surfaced 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) submerged Group 2 : 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) surfaced 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph) submerged |
| Range: |
5,000 nmi (9,300 km) at 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph) surfaced 250 nmi (460 km) at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged |
| Complement: | 29 |
| Armament: |
• 4 × 18 in (457 mm) torpedo tubes, 4 reloads • 1 × 3 in (76 mm) deck gun |
The United States Navy's O class submarines were created out of the lessons learned from the United States L class submarine. The O class were more robust with greater power and endurance for ocean patrols. The O class were built much faster than previous classes and were commissioned in 1918. The group 2 boats entered service just before the end of World War I. Eight of the group 1 boats survived to serve in World War II as training boats when they were recommissioned in 1941.
The class originally operated in the anti-submarine role off the USA's East Coast. Two of the boats, USS O-4 and USS O-6, came under fire from a British merchantman in the Atlantic on 24 July 1918. The steamer scored six hits on O-4's conning tower and pressure hull before her identity was discovered. O-4 suffered minor damage caused by shell splinters. USS O-3 to USS O-10 boats formed part of the twenty-strong submarine force that left Newport, Rhode Island on 2 November 1918 for the Azores but the task force was recalled after the Armistice was signed nine days later.
Nine O type submarines from Submarine Division 8 at Boston, 1921
The second group of boats suffered from electrical problems. USS O-11 was immediately sent to the Philadelphia Navy Yard for a five-month overhaul. USS O-13 sank the patrol boat Mary Alice in a collision while she (O-13) was submerged.[1] USS O-15 also underwent a refit but was sent into reserve soon after before she went into service at Coco Solo in the Panama Canal Zone. This also involved another overhaul. USS O-16 also underwent a refit soon after commissioning and later suffered a fire in her conning tower in December 1919. All of the group 2 boats were decommissioned in July 1924 and were scrapped in July 1930 under the terms of the London Naval Treaty. USS O-12 however was used in an Arctic expedition by Sir Hubert Wilkins and was renamed Nautilus. After being returned to the US Navy, she was sunk in a Norwegian fjord in November 1931.
The first group served well although USS O-5 was rammed by a cargo ship and sunk near the Panama Canal with the loss of three crew members. All of the group 1 boats were recommissioned in 1941 to serve as training boats based at New London, Connecticut. The remaining boats were taken out of service four months later except for USS O-9 which sank in deep submergence trials in June 1941. Thirty-three of her crew were lost.
O-3 underway, 1918
Boats in class[]
Group 1
- USS O-1 (SS-62)
- USS O-2 (SS-63)
- USS O-3 (SS-64)
- USS O-4 (SS-65)
- USS O-5 (SS-66)
- USS O-6 (SS-67)
- USS O-7 (SS-68)
- USS O-8 (SS-69)
- USS O-9 (SS-70)
- USS O-10 (SS-71)
Group 2
- USS O-11 (SS-72)
- USS O-12 (SS-73)
- USS O-13 (SS-74)
- USS O-14 (SS-75)
- USS O-15 (SS-76)
- USS O-16 (SS-77)
See also[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to O class submarines of the United States. |
References[]
- ↑ 1 Dictionary of American Fighting Ships
- Submarines, War Beneath the Waves, from 1776 to the Present Day, By Robert Hutchinson.
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The original article can be found at United States O-class submarine and the edit history here.