Type U3 was a class of U-boats built during World War I by the Kaiserliche Marine. The two Type U 3 boats were ordered on 13 August 1907 from the Kaiserliche Werft Danzig. They had more powerfull engines than the previous U 2 and were far more reliable.[2]
Type U 3s had an overall length of 51.28 m (168 ft 3 in) The boats' beam was 5.60 m (18 ft 4 in), the draught was 3.05 m (10 ft 0 in). The boats displaced 421 tonnes (414 long tons) when surfaced and 510 t (500 long tons) when submerged.[3][1]
Type U 3s were fitted with two Körting 8-cylinder two-stroke paraffin engines with a total of 600 metric horsepower (441 kW; 592 bhp) for use on the surface and two SSW double-acting electric motors with a total of 760 kW (1,033 PS; 1,019 shp) for underwater use. These engines powered two shafts, which gave the boats a top surface speed of 11.8 knots (21.9 km/h; 13.6 mph), and 9.4 knots (17.4 km/h; 10.8 mph) when submerged. Cruising range was 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) on the surface and 50 nautical miles (93 km; 58 mi) at 4.5 knots (8.3 km/h; 5.2 mph) submerged.[3][1] Constructional diving depth[lower-alpha 1] was 50 m (164 ft 1 in).[4]
The U-boats were armed with four 45 cm (18 in) torpedo tubes, two fitted in the bow and two in the stern. They carried six C/06 torpedoes instead of the older C/03 torpedo. C/06 torpedoes were slightly larger than the preceding C/03, they had a more powerful propulsion unit and could be fired under an angle.[5] The boats' complement was 3 officers and 19 enlisted.[3][1] Until the end of 1914, the Type U 3 U-boats could be equipped with a rotating Hotchkiss gun, and after 1915 U-3 was occasianally equipped with an extra 5 cm SK L/40 gun.[6][3]
Germany Navy
