HMS A3

HMS A3
History
United Kingdom
Name:	HMS A3
Builder:	Vickers, Sons & Maxim Ltd. Barrow-in-Furness, England
Laid down:	6 November 1902
Launched:	9 March 1903
Commissioned:	13 July 1904
Fate:	Sunk, 12 May 1912
General characteristics
Class and type:	A-class submarine
Displacement:	190 long tons (193 t) surfaced 206 long tons (209 t) submerged
Length:	105 ft (32.0 m)
Beam:	12 ft 9 in (3.9 m)
Draught:	10 ft 8 in (3.3 m)
Installed power:	450 bhp (340 kW) (petrol engine) 150 hp (110 kW) (electric motor)
Propulsion:	1 × 16-cylinder Wolseley petrol engine 1 × electric motor
Speed:	10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) submerged
Range:	320 nautical miles (590 km; 370 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
Complement:	2 officers and 9 ratings
Armament:	2 × 18-inch (45 cm) torpedo tubes

HMS A2 was an A-class submarine built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century.

Design and description

A3 was a member of the first British class of submarines, although slightly larger, faster and more heavily armed than the lead ship, HMS A1. The submarine had a length of 105 feet 1 inch (32.0 m) overall, a beam of 12 feet 9 inches (3.9 m) and a mean draft of 10 feet 8 inches (3.3 m). They displaced 190 long tons (190 t) on the surface and 206 long tons (209 t) submerged. The A-class submarines had a crew of 2 officers and 11 ratings.^[1]

For surface running, the boats were powered by a single 16-cylinder 450-brake-horsepower (336 kW) Wolseley petrol engine that drove one propeller shaft. When submerged the propeller was driven by a 150-horsepower (112 kW) electric motor. They could reach 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) on the surface and 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) underwater. On the surface, A3 had a range of 320 nautical miles (590 km; 370 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph);^[1] submerged the boat had a range of 30 nautical miles (56 km; 35 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph).^[2]

The boats were armed with two 18-inch (45 cm) torpedo tubes in the bow. They could carry a pair of reload torpedoes, but generally did not as doing so that they had to compensate for their weight by an equivalent weight of fuel.^[3]

Construction and career

A3 was built at Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness and was commissioned on 13 July 1904. She was accidentally rammed whilst surfacing by the submarine tender Hazard off the Isle of Wight on 2 February 1912 and sank with the loss of all on board.^[4][5] The wreck was salvaged and subsequently sunk as a gunnery target near Portland Bill on 12 May 1912, where she remains today.

Notes

1. Gardiner & Gray, p. 86
2. Akermann, p. 120
3. Harrison, Chapter 27
4. • Innes McCartney (2002). Lost Patrols: Submarine Wrecks of the English Channel.
5. Gray, Edwyn (2003). Disasters of the Deep A Comprehensive Survey of Submarine Accidents & Disasters. Leo Cooper. pp. 69–70. ISBN 0-85052-987-5.

References

• Akermann, Paul (2002). Encyclopaedia of British Submarines 1901–1955 (reprint of the 1989 ed.). Penzance, Cornwall: Periscope Publishing. ISBN 1-904381-05-7.
• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
• Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1984). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships: 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
• Harrison, A. N. (January 1979). "The Development of HM Submarines From Holland No. 1 (1901) to Porpoise (1930) (BR3043)". Submariners Association: Barrow in Furness Branch. Retrieved 19 August 2015.

External links

• MaritimeQuest HMS A-3 Pages
• 'Submarine losses 1904 to present day' - Royal Navy Submarine Museum

Coordinates: 50°31.41′N 2°11.25′W / 50.52350°N 2.18750°W