Acheron Class (1945) SS
Acheron Class were designed in 1942-43, with the first orders placed November
They were designed specifically for use in the Pacific.
While based on the successful Triton Class (1938) they incorporated lessons learned to date during WW2.
While a total of 46 boats were ordered, 30 were cancelled at various stages of construction and only 16 commissioned. These 16 formed the backbone of the Royal Navy's submarine Fleet until the arrival of the Porpoise Class (1958) and Oberon Class (1961).
Initially they were rather unstable but this was fixed with the addition of an extra buoyancy tank in the bow.
HMS Andrew was the last Royal Navy submarine to carry a permanent deck gun.
Beginning 1955, during refit, most of the class underwent a major rebuilding programme to improve their streamlining. This comprised a 26ft 6in (8m) higher conning tower, the hull lengthened to 283ft (86m), removal of the gun, and removal of the two external bow torpedo tubes. The overall effect was to reduce their underwater noise, improve the Sonar performance, and increase range by 500nm.
HMS Alliance became a permanent exhibit at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum, Gosport after being paid off on 01-Jan-1981.
This page last edited -
12 March, 2013.
Copyright © Ian M King, except where otherwise indicated.