Name HMS L18 Class and type L-class submarine Construction started 22 June 1917 | Laid down 22 June 1917 Length 73 m Draft 4.04 m | |
Builder Vickers Limited, Barrow-in-Furness Fate Sold for scrapping, October 1936 Displacement 914 long tons (929 t) surfaced
1,089 long tons (1,106 t) submerged | ||
HMS L9 was a L-class submarine built for the Royal Navy during World War I. The boat was completed after the war and was sold for scrap in 1936.
Contents
Design and description
L9 and its successors were enlarged to accommodate 21-inch (53.3 cm) torpedoes and more fuel. The submarine had a length of 238 feet 7 inches (72.7 m) overall, a beam of 23 feet 6 inches (7.2 m) and a mean draft of 13 feet 3 inches (4.0 m). They displaced 914 long tons (929 t) on the surface and 1,089 long tons (1,106 t) submerged. The L-class submarines had a crew of 38 officers and ratings.
For surface running, the boats were powered by two 12-cylinder Vickers 1,200-brake-horsepower (895 kW) diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 600-horsepower (447 kW) electric motor. They could reach 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) on the surface and 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph) underwater. On the surface, the L class had a range of 3,800 nautical miles (7,000 km; 4,400 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).
The boats were armed with four 21-inch torpedo tubes in the bow and two 18-inch (45 cm) in broadside mounts. They carried four reload torpedoes for the 21-inch tubes for a grand total of ten torpedoes of all sizes. They were also armed with a 4-inch (102 mm) deck gun.
Construction and career
HMS L18 was laid down on 22 June 1917 by Vickers at their Barrow-in-Furness shipyard, launched on 21 November 1918, and completed on 15 May 1919. In February 1927, L18 trained with the submarines HMS X1 and her sister HMS L26. The boat was sold in October 1936 at Pembroke Dock.