Name HMS Unbeaten Commissioned 10 November 1940 Launched 9 July 1940 Draft 4.62 m | Laid down 22 November 1939 Fate sunk 11 November 1942 Construction started 22 November 1939 Length 58 m Builder Vickers-Armstrongs | |
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Displacement Surfaced - 540 tons standard, 630 tons full loadSubmerged - 730 tons | ||
HMS Unbeaten was a U-class submarine, of the second group of that class, built by Vickers Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 22 November 1939 and was commissioned on 10 November 1940. So far she has been the only ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name Unbeaten.
Contents
Career
Unbeaten spent much of her career operating in the Mediterranean, where she sank the Italian sailing vessel V 51 / Alfa, the Vichy-French merchant PLM 20, the Italian submarine Guglielmotti and the German submarine U-374. She also claimed to have sunk two sailing vessels with gunfire. Until today there is no confirmation from Italian or German sources as to the identity of the vessels attacked. It is also quite possible that the vessels were only damaged.
Unbeaten also lightly damaged the Italian merchant Vettor Pisani on 16 March 1942. She also unsuccessfully attacked the Italian merchant Silvio Scaroni, the Italian troop transport Esperia and a large Italian troop transport, thought to be either Oceania or Neptunia.
Sinking
After a refit in Chatham, and subsequent workup, Unbeaten was attached to the Third Submarine Flotilla in Scotland. Having sailed from Holy Loch on her last patrol, Unbeaten completed Operation Bluestone, landing an agent in Spain near Bayona. She then completed her patrol in the Bay of Biscay and was returning to the UK when she went missing. It is believed that she was probably attacked and sunk in error by an Royal Air Force Wellington of No. 172 Squadron, Coastal Command in the Bay of Biscay on 11 November 1942 . She was lost with all hands.
Commanding officers
Her first CO was Edward "Teddy" Woodward. Her second and last CO was Lt Donald Ogilvy Watson.