SM U-20 (U-XX)

History

In 1915, the Austro-Hungarian authorities ordered the construction of four U-20 class (U-XX) submarines based on an outdated but proven Dutch design. The team is designed to replace the aging U-14 class and strengthen naval service in the ongoing world war, which now spans multiple fronts, fighting in the air, land and sea.

Construction of this class spanned from 1915 to 1917, with two ships completed at Pola and two at Flume. Of the four, two ultimately failed in action.

U-20, capital ship of the class, ordered 27 March 1915, built by Bora Naval Shipyard, keel laid on 29 September 1915. She was launched on September 18, 1916, and officially commissioned on October 20, 1917. The vessel displaces 173 tons when surfaced and 210 tons underwater. It has a barrel length of 127.1 feet, a beam of 13 feet, and a draft of up to 9 feet. Her power comes from a 1 x 450hp diesel engine for surface cruising and a 1 x 160hp electric motor for underwater cruising - both arrangements drive 1 x axle.

The speed reaches 12 knots when surfaced, 9 knots when diving, and the range (surfaced) is up to 1,400 nautical miles. Internally, she has a staff of 18, consisting of officers and submarines. Her armament consisted of 2 x 17.7 in (45 cm) torpedo tubes mounted on the bow with two torpedo rounds. She is equipped with a 1 x 66 mm (2.6 in) deck gun for surface operations.

8mm machine guns are used for local defense.

From the beginning, the U-20 and her sister ships were not fully appreciated by the Austro-Hungarian naval commanders due to their rather outdated characteristics. Even so, the boats are readily available and can be produced in a fraction of the time - any attack submarine is better than nothing in an increasingly heated war.

The design is compact for a submarine and relies on a modest crew with limited inherent offensive capabilities and acceptable performance data.

Her baptism soon took her to the battle front, but her early life was ruined by a collision with the Austro-Hungarian light cruiser Admiral Spaun during a sea trial in March 1917. This forced them to carry out repairs for about seven months - pushing the commissioning date to later this year. Patrols welcomed them early, as the ship did not see any major action during its voyage in the Adriatic. Italian Navy F-12 submarines identified the U-20 as a potential target in early July 1918 and sent the U-20 underwater.

Ultimately, U-20 was forced to surface and was torpedoed by the attackers, causing catastrophic damage to the Austro-Hungarian ship - causing her to sink on July 4 with no one on board. It wasn't until the 1960s that their remains were found, with parts raised and other parts scrapped.

Her restored conning tower is located at the Military History Museum in Vienna, Austria.

The failed U-20 class itself was replaced by the German designed wartime U-27 class. The group consisted of eight ships, two more lost - although only one during the war. Production of these units spanned from 196 to 1917 and had similar crew numbers and armament, while enjoying a better wartime record than the failed U-20 group of sinking enemy ships in conflicts.

The U-23 was another U-20 class ship lost during World War I. The remaining two were abandoned as trophies after the armistice in November 1918.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

PERFORMANCE

ARMAMENT

AIR WING