A CRUISER-SUBMARINE

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 93, 10 October 1911, Page 3

A CRUISER-SUBMARINE

AX EXTRAORDINARY VESSEL." Plans of a new type of submarine have been submitted by a Russian naval cm giueer to his Government. "It is," says the naval expert of the Standard, "nothing less than a large sea-going protected cruiser which, while, being ordinarily a surface-keeping' vessel, will he capable! of submersion in less than the space of three minutes." On the .surface it can lm compared to protected cruisers of the Dartmouth class, now running their trials. The speed of twenty-five knots is identical. The British cruiser exceeds slightly in length and .beam. The Russian vessel will carry 5 4.7 guns, while the other carries eight (iin weapons. In the matter of torpedo tubes, however, the new submarine is to be uuqiitc, car. rying no fewer than thirty. Hitherto foreign boats have carried six or seven tulies, but no English vessel has carried more than- three. It will be seen that on the surface the .submarine-cruiser will not be greatly inferior to our protected cruisers. Taking into account, however, her nihility to disappear under the water in three minutes, to maintain a .submerged speed of fourteen knots, and to utilise thirty torpedo tubes, the superiority of the Russian becomes unquestionable. Comparing the vessel with other sub-! marines, it is seen that while Great Britain. France, and Germany have been building vessels up to 1000 tons displacement, this vessel will be on the iU.'l.Vton mark. With an old capacity of :Vi*i tons, giving a steaming radius ot IS.OOO miles, and a surface speed of 2:"> knots, it outclasses the present type, which has only aai extreme radius of 2000 miles, and has never exceeded a surface speed of sixteen 'mots, or a submerged speed of ten knots. A feature of the Russian invention is an apparatus for the sowing of ' mines while under waiter. The idea of carrying guns on a : submarine is not a new one, but live ! 4.7 quick-firers is a tremendous advance I in armament. - The mountings will be I collapsible, and the guns will -be stored ! away between decks when the cruiser j is about to submerge. The need for such ' a vessel may be found in the fact that I for years the ofTensiveness of the gun ha* 'exceeded the delusiveness of the armoured plate. At the present time the British Admiralty are. said to have plans of a "semi-submarine battleship." which leaves a very small mark for the gun-fire of the enemy.