HMS H5

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A view from the bridge of HMS H5.
History
United Kingdom
NameH5
BuilderCanadian Vickers, Montreal
Laid down11th January 1915
Launched1 April 1915
Commissioned10 June 1915
FateSunk, 2 March 1918
General characteristics
Class & typeH-class submarine
Displacement
  • 364 long tons (370 t) surfaced
  • 434 long tons (441 t) submerged
Length150 ft 3 in (45.80 m)
Beam15 ft 4 in (4.67 m)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) surfaced
  • 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) submerged
Range
  • 1,600 nmi (3,000 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 130 nmi (240 km) at 2 kn (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph) submerged
Complement22
Armament

HMS H5 was a British H-class submarine of the Royal Navy that served in the First World War. The boat, which was launched on 1 April 1915, was lost after being rammed by a British merchant ship off Caernarfon Bay in March 1918. It had been mistaken as a German U-boat and sank with the loss of all hands.[1]

Design

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She had a displacement of 364 long tons (370 t) at the surface and 434 long tons (441 t) while submerged. Her total length was 150 feet 3 inches (45.8 m), with a beam of 15 feet 4 inches (4.7 m) and a draught of 12 feet (3.7 m).

Her two diesel engines provided a total power of 480 horsepower (360 kW) and her two electric motors provided 320 horsepower (240 kW) power which gave the submarine a maximum surface speed of 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) and a submerged speed of 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph). She would normally carry 16.4 long tons (16.7 t) of fuel and had a maximum capacity of 18 long tons (18 t)[2] and a range of 1,600 nautical miles (2,963 km; 1,841 mi). The boat was armed with a 6-pounder (2.7 kg) Hotchkiss quick-firing gun and four 18-inch (457 mm) bow torpedo tubes with six 18-inch (457 mm) torpedoes carried. The complement was twenty-two crew members.

Service record

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On 14 July 1916 H5 spotted the SM U-51 leaving the Ems and torpedoed her. U-51 sank with the loss of 34 of her crew; four men survived.[3]

Sinking

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HMS H5 was sunk after being rammed by the British merchantman Rutherglen when mistaken for a German U-boat on 2 March 1918. All on board perished including a US Navy observer, Lieutenant Earle Wayne Freed Childs from the American submarine AL-2. He became the first US submariner to lose his life in the First World War. All on board are commemorated on Panel 29 at Royal Navy Submarine Museum. The wreck's site is designated as a controlled site under the Protection of Military Remains Act. In 2010, a plaque commemorating the 26 crew was dedicated on Armed Forces Day in Holyhead.[4]

References

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  1. ^ "WW1 shipwrecks pictured by sonar off Welsh coast". BBC News. 7 October 2018.
  2. ^ J. D. Perkins (1999). "Building History and Technical Details for Canadian CC-Boats and the Original H-CLASS". Electric Boat Company Holland Patent Submarines. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  3. ^ National Archives, Kew: HW 7/3, Room 40, History of German Naval Warfare 1914–1918
  4. ^ "Ceremony for Armed Forces Day marks submarine tragedy". BBCNews. BBC. 19 June 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2010.