Midget submarine

A midget submarine is any submarine under 150 tons^{[citation needed]}, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to 6 or 8, with little or no on-board living accommodation. Midget submarines normally work with mother ships, from which they are launched and recovered, and which provide living accommodation for the crew and other support staff.

Both military and civilian midget submarines have been built. Military types work with surface ships and other submarines as mother ships. Civilian and non-combatant military types are generally called submersibles, and normally work with surface ships.

Most early submarines, such as the United States Navy's USS Holland (SS-1) and the British Royal Navy's Holland 1, would now be considered midget submarines.

Contents 1 Military submarines 1.1 Uses 1.2 Armament 2 Types by nation 2.1 Belgium 2.2 China, People's Republic 2.3 China, Republic (Taiwan) 2.4 Finland 2.5 France 2.6 Germany 2.7 Iran 2.8 Italy 2.9 Japan 2.10 North Korea 2.11 Poland 2.12 Russia 2.13 Spain 2.14 United Kingdom 2.15 United States 2.16 Yugoslavia 3 See also 4 Notes

Military submarines

Uses

The best known role for midget submarines is probably harbor penetration, although only two World War Two boats, the British X-craft and the unsuccessful Welman submarine were specifically designed with this in mind. Japan's Ko-hyoteki class submarines were originally designed to take part in decisive fleet actions. However, as circumstances changed, they ended up tasked with harbour penetration. Germany’s various World War II designs were mostly designed to attack Allied shipping off landing beaches and harbours, although the Seehund had a great enough range to attack shipping off the Thames estuary.

Midget submarines have also seen some use in support roles. X-craft were used for reconnaissance, and the Seehund was used to carry supplies. A number of modern midget submarines have also been built for submarine rescue.

Armament

Midget submarines are commonly armed with torpedoes and mines. Alternatively, they may carry timed explosive charges.

Types by nation

Belgium

• FNRS-2 pioneering research submersible

China, People's Republic

• Type 7103 DSRVs
• Osprey class submersibles
• Sea Pole class bathyscaphe
• Dragon class bathyscaphe
• Harmony class bathyscaphe
• Mobile diving bell
• QSZ-II submersible

China, Republic (Taiwan)

• 2 Italian COS.MO.S CE2F/X100 post-war torpedo chariots
• 2 Italian COS.MO.S SX-404 midget submarines: S-1 Haijiao (海蛟), S-2 Hailong (海龍), in service from October 8, 1969 to November 1, 1973.

Finland

• MIR (submersible) for research and submarine rescue

France

• FNRS-4 second generation research submersible
• Nautile research submersible to depth of 6 kilometers

France also acquired a number of German midget submarines at the end of WW2.

Germany

Most German midget submarines were developed late in World War II in a attempt to stop the Allied invasion of Europe and used later to disrupt its supply lines. As a result, the submarines mostly engaged in open water attacks rather than harbour penetration.

• Biber (324 built by AG Weser of Bremen)^[1]
• Delphin (2 built) 2-man 5-ton torpedo with top speed of 20 knots (37 km/h) and submerged radius of 30 nautical miles (56 km) at 3 knots (5.6 km/h).^[1]
• Hai (midget submarine) prototype of improved Marder.^[1]
• Hecht type XXVIIA 2-man 12 ton submarine with 1 mine or 1 torpedo carried outboard to a range of 38 miles at 4 knots.^[2]
• Marder (~300 built) similar to Neger with breathing apparatus to allow submerged operation.^[1]
• Molch Completely electric motordriven WWII (1944-1945) Midget submarine. Total 393 built.
• Neger (~200 built) 1-man 5-ton torpedo with underslung G7E torpedo. Top speed 20 knots and range of 30 miles at 3 knots.^[1]
• Orca class post-war swimmer delivery vehicle
• Seehund type XXVIIB^[3] Most successful midget submarine in the Kriegsmarine. Operational deployment was between January 1945 - April 1945.
• V.80 4-man 76-ton prototype completed in 1940 to test Walther geared turbine propulsion system. Range was 50 nautical miles (93 km) at 28 knots (52 km/h).^[4]

Iran

• Ghadir
• Nahang

Italy

• Siluro a Lenta Corsa (SLC), also known as "Maiale" (pig), a low speed torpedo chariot
• Bathyscaphe Trieste was first to explore the Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench
• CA type First series was a 2 man midget submarine the second series carried a crew of three.^[5]
• CB type 45 ton 4 man design first introduced in 1941^[5]
• CE2F/X100 post-war torpedo chariot
• SX-404 a 70 ton submarine design. 4 were sold to Columbia and 2 to Taiwan in the 1970s.^[6]

Japan

• Type A Ko-hyoteki-class midget submarines were used in the 1942 Attack on Sydney Harbour, Attack on Diego Suarez Harbor and the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, in which the type 97 torpedo was used operationally. The wreckage of one of the submarines sunk at Pearl was located by NOAA's Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory (HURL) in August 2002.^[7] Photographic analysis conducted by the United States Naval Institute in 1999 indicates one of the five Ko-hyoteki-class submarines managed to enter Pearl Harbor, and successfully fired a torpedo into the USS West Virginia. On 29 May 1942, two midget submarines, one of which managed to enter the Diego Suarez harbor and fired two torpedoes. One torpedo seriously damaged battleship HMS Ramillies, while the second sank the oil tanker British Loyalty (6,993 tons).

• Type B Midget Ha 45 prototype built 1942 to test Type A improvements.^[8]
• Type C Midget Ha 62-76 similar to Type A with crew of 3 and radius increased to 350 nautical miles (650 km) at 6 knots (11 km/h) surfaced or 120 nautical miles (220 km) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h) submerged.^[8]
• Type D Koryu (115 completed) improved Type C with crew of 5 and radius increased to 1000 miles at 8 knots surfaced and 320 miles at 16 knots submerged.^[9]
• Kairyu class submarine
• Kaiten Submarine suicide torpedo.
• DSV Shinkai research submersible to a depth of 6.5 kilometers.

North Korea

• Yugo class submarine
• Yono class submarine (see also ROKS Cheonan sinking)

Poland

• Błotniak
• Living torpedoes

Russia

• In the late 19th century Russia built a class of treadle powered submarines 4.5 meters in length designed by Stefan Drzewiecki they were withdrawn from service in 1886. ^[10]

Spain

• SA-40 of the Foca class
• SA-50 of the Tiburón class

United Kingdom

The Royal Navy has used a number of midget submarines. Most were developed during WW2. The decommissioning of the Stickleback class marked the end of Midget submarines designed for combat in the Royal Navy.

• Stickleback class A post World War Two development of the XE class.
• X class were used to attack German warships in the North of Norway. One notable target of a successful attack was the battleship Tirpitz. The submarines had a crew of three (plus a diver) and carried two large mines containing Amatol – one on each side. Their strategy was to lay mines on the sea bottom beneath the target, set a time fuse, and exit.
• XE class were used in the Far East, where they carried out a number of attacks and special missions.
• Welman submarine was a single person submersible widely considered a failure.^[11]

United States

• Aluminaut
• DSV Alvin (DSV-2)
• DSRV-2 Avalon
• DSRV-1 Mystic
• Nemo (DSV-5)
• DSV Sea Cliff (DSV-4) of the Alvin class
• Bathyscaphe Trieste II (DSV-1)
• DSV Turtle (DSV-3) of the Alvin class
• X-1 Submarine

Yugoslavia

• Una class. After the Yugoslav Wars, both Croatia and FR Yugoslavia held examples.

See also

• Submersible
• Human torpedo
• Royal Navy Submarine Museum
• Wet sub
• Narco Sub

Notes