BIG SUBMARINES.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 4, Issue 107, 12 November 1915, Page 3 (Supplement)

BIG SUBMARINES.

Hitherto, the accepted greatest possible cruising radius of the largest submarines lias been 5,000 miles. With an 800-ton submarine fitted with Diesel engines the oil consumption is estimated at alniut ten tons for each 1,000 miles. It is believed that there is storage capacity for oO tons of oil, thus giving a cruising radius of 5,000 miles. This can be greatly increased by carrying oil in the water ballast tanks. It is said, however, that Germany has undersea craft iu course of construction which can travel an even greater distance without having to stop to replenish at any base. Indeed, experts in England consider that there is really no limit to the radius of the modern submarine, except in so far as the endurance of the crew is concerned.

For it must be renumbered that there is a limit to the time that a crew can stay on board such a vessel. The quarters, especially at the beginning of a cruise, when all available space is filled with stores, are seriously restricted. There i< a continuous oozing of oil from the bulkheads and doors throughout the ship, and the conditions, a.s a whole. ;ir«> such a to tax the endurance of an\ mail.