French submarine Diamant (1933)
 Diamant, date unknown
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| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | Diamant |
| Namesake | Diamond |
| Operator | French Navy |
| Builder | Arsenal de Toulon |
| Laid down | 21 July 1930 |
| Launched | 18 May 1933 |
| Commissioned | 21 June 1934 |
| Fate | Scuttled at Toulon on 27 November 1942 to prevent her capture by German forces, then refloated by the Italians on 29 March 1943. Bombed and sunk at Toulon by Allied aircraft on 22 June 1944. |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Saphir-class submarine |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 66 m (216 ft 6 in) |
| Beam | 7.1 m (23 ft 4 in) |
| Draught | 4.3 m (14 ft 1 in) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range |
|
| Test depth | 80 m (260 ft) |
| Complement | 42 men |
| Armament |
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The French submarine Diamant was a Saphir-class submarine built for the French Navy in the mid-1930s. Laid down in July 1930, it was launched in May 1933 and commissioned in June 1934. Diamant was scuttled at Toulon on 27 November 1942 to prevent her capture by German forces, then refloated by Italian forces on 29 March 1943. On 22 June 1944, Diamant was bombed and sunk at Toulon by Allied aircraft.[1][2]
Design
[edit]66 m (216 ft 6 in) long, with a beam of 7.1 m (23 ft 4 in) and a draught of 4.3 m (14 ft 1 in), Saphir-class submarines could dive up to 80 m (260 ft). The submarine had a surfaced displacement of 761 long tons (773 t) and a submerged displacement of 925 long tons (940 t). Propulsion while surfaced was provided by two 1,300 hp (969 kW) Normand-Vickers diesel motors and while submerged two 1,100 hp (820 kW) electric motors. The submarines electrical propulsion allowed it to attain speeds of 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) while submerged. Their surfaced range was 7,000 nautical miles (13,000 km) at 7.5 knots (13.9 km/h), and 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km) at 12 knots (22 km/h), with a submerged range of 80 nautical miles (150 km) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h).[1]
The Saphir-class submarines were constructed to be able to launch torpedoes and lay mines without surfacing. The moored contact mines they used contained 220 kg (490 lb) of TNT and operated at up to 200 meters (660 ft) of depth. They were attached to the submarine's exterior under a hydrodynamic protection and were jettisoned with compressed air. The Saphir-class submarines also featured an automatic depth regulator that automatically flooded ballast tanks after mines were dropped to prevent the risk of the submarine surfacing in the middle of enemy waters.[3][4]
See also
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ a b "FR Diamant of the French Navy – French submarine of the Saphir class – Allied Warships of WWII". uboat.net. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
- ^ "Q 173". sous-marin.france.pagesperso-orange.fr. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
- ^ "Saphir class Submarines – Allied Warships of WWII". uboat.net. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
- ^ "Sous Mama – Diamand – Nautilus – Perle – Rubis – Saphir – Turquoise – Les Sous-Marins de la série des "Pierres Précieuses"". www.sous-mama.org. Archived from the original on 13 July 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
References
[edit]- Fontenoy, Paul E. (2007). Submarines: An Illustrated History of Their Impact (Weapons and Warfare). Santa Barbara.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Moulin, Jean (October–November 2022). "Les sous-marins mouilleurs de mine type Saphir" [The Saphir-Class Minelaying-Submarines]. Navires & Histoire (in French) (133): 88–95. ISSN 1280-4290.
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