HMS E34

History
Name	HMS E34
Builder	John Thornycroft, Woolston, Hampshire
Laid down	21 January 1917
Commissioned	March 1917
Fate	Sunk by mine, 20 July 1918
General characteristics
Class and type	E class submarine
Displacement	662 long tons (673 t) surfaced 807 long tons (820 t) submerged
Length	181 ft (55 m)
Beam	15 ft (4.6 m)
Propulsion	2 × 1,600 hp (1,193 kW) diesel 2 × 840 hp (626 kW) electric 2 screws
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) surfaced 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) submerged
Range	3,000 nmi (5,600 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 65 nmi (120 km) at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) surfaced
Complement	30
Armament	5 × 18 in (457 mm) torpedo tubes (2 bow, 2 beam, 1 stern) 1 × 12-pounder gun

HMS E34 was a British E class submarine built by John Thornycroft, Woolston, Hampshire. She was laid down on 21 January 1917 and was commissioned in March 1917. HMS E34 sank the U-Boat UB-16 off Harwich in the North Sea on 10 May 1918. E34 was mined near the Eijerlandse Gronden, the sands between the Frisian islands Texel and Vlieland on 20 July 1918. There were no survivors.

Design

Like all post-E8 British E-class submarines, E34 had a displacement of 622 tonnes (686 short tons) at the surface and 807 tonnes (890 short tons) while submerged. It had a total length of 180 feet (55 m) and a beam length of 22 feet 8.5 inches (6.922 m). It contained two diesel engines each providing a power of 1,600 horsepower (1,200 kW) and two electric motors each providing 840 horsepower (630 kW) power. Its complement was thirty-one crew members.

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) and a submerged speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). British E-class submarines had fuel capacities of 50 tonnes (55 short tons) of diesel and ranges of 3,255 miles (5,238 km; 2,829 nmi) when travelling at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). E34 was capable of operating submerged for five hours when travelling at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph). It was fitted with a 12 pounds (5.4 kg) quick-firing gun gun (12 pounder), five 18 inches (460 mm) torpedo tubes, and one spare torpedo tube. Its torpedo tubes were fitted at the front and the aft; unlike pre-E9 submarines, the two midship section torpedo tubes were not included.

E-Class submarines contained wireless systems with 1 kilowatt (1.3 hp) power ratings; in some submarines, these were later upgraded to 3 kilowatts (4.0 hp) systems by removing a midship torpedo tube. Its claimed highest dive depth was 100 feet (30 m) although it was capable of reaching depths of below 200 feet (61 m). Some submarines contained Fessenden oscillator systems.

Bibliography

• Hutchinson, Robert (2001). Jane's Submarines: War Beneath the Waves from 1776 to the Present Day. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-00-710558-8. OCLC 53783010.