&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Primeiros_submarinos_brasileiros_constru%C3%ADdos_na_It%C3%A1lia_e_comissionados_em_17_de_julho_de_1914.jpg) The three Foca-class submarines with their respective crews
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Foca class |
| Builders | Fiat-Sant Giorgio Shipyard |
| Operators |  Brazilian Navy |
| Succeeded by | Humaytá |
| Built | 1912–1913 |
| In service | 1914–1933 |
| Completed | 3 |
| Scrapped | 3 |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Type | Submarine |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 45.15 m (148 ft 2 in) |
| Beam | 4.20 m (13 ft 9 in) |
| Installed power | |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed |
|
| Range |
|
| Test depth | 40 m (130 ft) |
| Complement | 23 |
| Armament | 2 × 450 mm (18 in) torpedo tubes |
The Foca class, or simply F, was the first naval class of submarines operated by the Brazilian Navy. It consisted of the F1, F3 and F5 submarines designed by Italian naval engineer Cesare Laurenti and built in La Spezia, Italy. The name Foca comes from the Portuguese vessel of the class. The class was part of Brazil's 1906 naval program to acquire warships to modernize its navy. The submarines were acquired to serve as a training and maintenance platform for the crews, with few naval actions during the 19 years they were active. The navy incorporated the class on 17 July 1914 and, as a result, expanded its naval structure to house these new vessels, such as the creation of the first naval school for submariners and the incorporation of ships designed to support submarines only.
The Brazilian Navy was outdated in a period when the country wanted to be among the world powers of the time. At first, the acquisition of submarine means was left aside, as the government prioritized the incorporation of large steel ships, such as the Minas Geraes-class battleships. With the initiative of several officers in the internal development of submersible prototypes and the inclusion of this discussion in the press, the Brazilian government began to analyze this naval medium as well, with the first attempt to acquire it in 1894, when a contract was signed with the French engineer Claude Goubet, but the project did not advance. It was not until 1910 that the government actually ordered its submarines from the Italian Fiat-Sant Giorgio shipyard. The three submarines mostly served on the coast of Rio de Janeiro state with a single record outside that area a visit to the port of Santos in 1914.
During the First World War, submarines contributed to the surveillance of the port of Rio de Janeiro. From that period on, the class participated in events related to the Independence Award, an award given by the navy to the ships that had the most hits of targets with torpedoes, which the vessels of this class were awarded several times. During the training commissions, there were incidents, some more serious than others, that took the submarines to the bottom of Guanabara Bay. On one occasion, the F5 had a rupture in the air intake valve that caused the submarine to dive out of control several times, forcing the crew to perform a maneuver that, if not done correctly, was potentially fatal.
The Foca class allowed Brazil to develop the notion of submarine warfare, which was evidenced by the constant acquisitions of these naval assets throughout the country's naval history. More than 20 submarines were commissioned after the Focas, with the most recent being commissioned in the late 2010s and early 2020s. In the 21st century, the submarine environment is the sector in which the Brazilian Navy invests the most among all departments under its jurisdiction.