SM U-16 (Austria-Hungary)

History
Austria-Hungary
NameSM U-16
Ordered1 April 1915[1]
BuilderAG Weser, Bremen[1]
Yard number233[2][3]
Laid downApril 1915[3]
Launched31 August 1915[4]
Completed30 September 1915[4]
Commissioned6 October 1915[5]
FateSunk, 17 October 1916[6]
Service record
Commanders:
  • Eugen Hornyák Edler von Horn
  • 6 October – 12 November 1915[5]
  • Orest Ritter von Zopa
  • 18 November 1915 – 16 October 1916
Victories:
  • 1 merchant ship sunk
    (25 GRT)
  • 1 warship sunk
    (330 tons)
  • 1 merchant ship taken as prize
    (62 GRT)[5]
General characteristics
TypeU-10-class submarine
Displacement
Length
Beam3.15 m (10 ft 4 in)
Draught3.03 m (9 ft 11 in)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 6.5 knots (12.0 km/h; 7.5 mph) surfaced
  • 5.5 knots (10.2 km/h; 6.3 mph) submerged[1]
Range
  • 1,500 nmi (2,800 km; 1,700 mi) at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) surfaced
  • 45 nmi (83 km; 52 mi) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged[7]
Test depth50 m (160 ft)[8]
Complement17[1]
Armament

SM U-16 or U-XVI was a U-10-class submarine or U-boat of the Austro-Hungarian Navy (German: Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine or K.u. K. Kriegsmarine) during World War I. U-16 was constructed in Germany and shipped by rail to Pola where she was assembled and completed in September 1915. She was commissioned in October 1915.

For most of her career, U-16 operated in the Adriatic out of Kotor patrolling off the Albanian coast. The U-boat sank one small sailing ship in November and seized another in December. U-16 carried Field Marshal Svetozar Borojević of the Austro-Hungarian Army as an observer while performing diving tests after engine repairs in January 1916. A water leak in March flooded U-16's batteries and put the U-boat out of action for about six weeks of repairs. While operating off Vlorë in mid-October 1916, U-16 sank an Italian destroyer acting as a convoy escort. U-16 was sunk in the ensuing action, but sources are not clear on the exact cause of her sinking. In all U-16 sank or captured three ships with a combined tonnage of 417. She was the only U-10-class submarine sunk during the war.

  1. ^ a b c d e Gardiner, p. 343.
  2. ^ Baumgartner and Sieche, as excerpted here (reprinted and translated into English by Sieche). Retrieved 17 November 2008.
  3. ^ a b "U-16 (6104942)". Miramar Ship Index.
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Tengeral was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: KUK U16". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  6. ^ Grant, p. 163.
  7. ^ Gardiner, p. 180.
  8. ^ Messimer, p. 137.