 Hrabri underway in 1934
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders | Vickers-Armstrong Naval Yard, River Tyne, United Kingdom |
| Operators | |
| Succeeded by | Osvetnik class |
| Built | 1927–1928 |
| In commission | 1928–1954 |
| Completed | 2 |
| Retired | 2 |
| Scrapped | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Diesel-electric submarine |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 72.1 m (236 ft 7 in) (oa) |
| Beam | 7.31 m (24 ft) |
| Draught | 4 m (13 ft) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range | 5,000 nmi (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) (surfaced) |
| Complement | 47 |
| Armament |
|
The Hrabri class of submarines consisted of two vessels built for the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes – Yugoslavia from 1929 on – by Vickers-Armstrong in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1927, the boats were named Hrabri (Brave) and Nebojša (Fearless). Their design was based on that of the British L-class submarine of World War I, and they were built using parts from L-class submarines that were never completed. The Hrabri-class were the first submarines to serve in the Royal Yugoslav Navy (KM),[a] and after extensive sea trials and testing they sailed from the UK to the Adriatic coast of Yugoslavia, arriving in April 1928. They were armed with six bow-mounted 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes, two 102 mm (4 in) deck guns, one QF 2-pounder (40 mm (1.6 in)) L/39 anti-aircraft gun and two machine guns. Their maximum diving depth was restricted to 55 metres (180 ft) by Yugoslav naval regulations.
Prior to World War II, both submarines participated in cruises to Mediterranean ports. In 1930, Nebojša was damaged in a collision with a merchant ship. In 1933–1934 both boats were refitted, their superstructure was extensively modified and the 2-pounder gun on each submarine was replaced with a single 13.2 mm (0.52 in) Hotchkiss M1929 anti-aircraft machine gun. By 1938 the class was considered to be obsolete, but efforts to replace the two old boats with modern German coastal submarines were stymied by the advent of World War II, and the class remained in service.
Immediately before the April 1941 German-led Axis invasion of Yugoslavia, the two boats conducted patrols in the Adriatic Sea. Hrabri was captured by the Italians at the time of the Yugoslav surrender in mid-April, and after an inspection she was scrapped. Nebojša evaded capture and made it to Egypt to join the British Royal Navy (RN). Along with other vessels and crews that had escaped during the invasion, Nebojša formed part of the KM-in-exile, which operated out of eastern Mediterranean ports under the operational command of the RN. Nebojša was overhauled and initially served with RN submarine forces in the Mediterranean Sea as an anti-submarine warfare training boat. At the end of 1941 the RN prohibited her from diving and she was employed as a battery charging station for other submarines. In May 1942 her crew were removed and placed in a British military camp following a revolt by Yugoslav generals based in Egypt, and she received an almost entirely RN crew. Nebojša underwent another extensive overhaul by the RN, then she was briefly utilised for training in Beirut. The boat was formally handed back to the KM-in-exile in mid-1943, after which she underwent a further substantial refit. Nebojša eventually made her way to Malta where the headquarters of the KM-in-exile was then located. After the war in Europe ended, Nebojša was transferred to the new Yugoslav Navy and renamed Tara. She was used in a static training role until 1954, when she was stricken.
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