SM UB-16

For other ships with the same name, see German submarine U-16.

SM UB-16
SM UB-16
History
German Empire
NameUB-16
Ordered25 November 1914[1]
BuilderAG Weser, Bremen[2]
Yard number225[1]
Laid down21 February 1915[1]
Launched26 April 1915[1]
Commissioned12 May 1915[1]
FateTorpedoed by HMS E34 on 10 May 1918[1]
General characteristics [3]
Class and typeType UB I submarine
Displacement
  • 127 t (125 long tons) surfaced
  • 141 t (139 long tons) submerged
Length27.88 m (91 ft 6 in) (o/a)
Beam3.15 m (10 ft 4 in)
Draught3.03 m (9 ft 11 in)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 7.45 knots (13.80 km/h; 8.57 mph) surfaced
  • 6.24 knots (11.56 km/h; 7.18 mph) submerged
Range
  • 1,500 nmi (2,800 km; 1,700 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) surfaced
  • 45 nmi (83 km; 52 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth50 metres (160 ft)
Complement14
Armament
Notes33-second diving time
Service record
Part of:
Commanders:
  • Oblt. Hans Valentiner[1]
  • 12 May 1915 – 4 April 1916
  • Oblt. Paul Hundius
  • 5 April – 29 August 1916
  • Oblt. Ernst Müller-Schwarz
  • 30 August 1916 – 19 January 1917
  • Oblt. Hans Ewald Niemer
  • 20 January – 17 March 1917
  • Oblt. Hugo Thielmann
  • 18 March – 22 April 1917
  • Oblt. Wilhelm Rhein
  • 23 April – 25 August 1917
  • Oblt. Günther Bachmann
  • 26 August – 24 December 1917
  • Oblt. Alfred Krameyer
  • 25 December 1917 – 19 February 1918
  • Oblt. Rudolf Stier
  • 20 February – 21 April 1918
  • Oblt. Vicco von der Lühe
  • 22 April – 10 May 1918
Operations: 87 patrols[1]
Victories:
  • 24 merchant ships sunk
    (18,711 GRT)[1]
  • 1 warship sunk
    (1,075 tons)
  • 1 merhchant ship damaged
    (5,822 GRT)
  • 1 merhchant ship taken as prize
    (Unknown GRT)

SM UB-16 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. The submarine was sunk by a British submarine in May 1918.

UB-16 was ordered in November 1914 and was laid down at the AG Weser shipyard in Bremen in February 1915. UB-16 was a little under 28 metres (92 ft) in length and displaced between 127 and 141 tonnes (125 and 139 long tons), depending on whether surfaced or submerged. She carried two torpedoes for her two bow torpedo tubes and was also armed with a deck-mounted machine gun. UB-16 was broken into sections and shipped by rail to Antwerp for reassembly. She was launched in April 1915 and commissioned as SM UB-16 in May.[Note 1]

UB-16 spent her entire career in the Flanders Flotilla and sank 24 merchant ships, about half of them British fishing vessels. The U-boat was also responsible for sinking the new British destroyer HMS Recruit in 1917. In 1918, UB-16 was converted into a minelayer with the replacement of her torpedo tubes with four mine chutes. On 10 May 1918, UB-16 was torpedoed by the British submarine HMS E34 off the British east coast. Of the 16 men on board, only UB-16's commander survived the attack.

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: UB 16". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 19 February 2009.
  2. ^ Tarrant, p. 172.
  3. ^ Gröner 1991, pp. 22–23.


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