Small submarine type CA (Italy)
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Type CA was a small submarine of the Italian Navy , which was designed after the Abyssinian War in the spring of 1938 and produced in small series. It was the successor to Type B and the forerunner of Type CB .
Development history
After the Abyssinian War and building on the experience with the miniature submarines type A and type B , the Italian naval command began in 1937 a dynamic expansion of its small arms, the military benefits of which had already been demonstrated in the First World War in the Mediterranean . The Caproni -Werke from Milan was commissioned to design a new miniature submarine, which should be based on its predecessor models. This boat should also be used for defense in the near coastal area and important harbors. The two test boats delivered in August 1938 were given the IDs CA 1 and CA 2 and made their first test trips in the Venice area . The armament consisted of two 45 cm torpedoes , which were fastened on both sides of the fuselage in recesses provided for this purpose.
In February 1939 both boats were moved to La Spezia and subjected to further sea tests, the results of which were disappointing. The technical facilities convinced the naval management, but the sea behavior was very poor: Even at sea strength 3, the boat suffered from heavy rolling and pitching. Both boats were then decommissioned.
Reactivation and remodeling
It was put into service again in January 1941, this time as an offensive weapon. The CAs have been modified according to their new role as carriers of combat swimmers and explosive charges. The conversion work was carried out by the Caproni shipyard in Monte Collino. The previous dual drive system (diesel and electric motor) was removed and replaced by a 21 kW Marelli E unit drive, which could be used for both over and underwater travel. The cruising range was 70 nm at a cruising speed of 2 kn and the maximum speed was 7 kn. In addition, the two boats received a lock that should enable combat swimmers to get on and off . The torpedoes were removed and replaced by eight small explosive charges of 100 kg and 20. The crew increased by one to three men. The previous periscope was replaced by a plexiglass dome.
The conversion of CA 2 was completed in November 1941, and CA 1 followed in February 1942. The subsequent testing in Lake Iseo revealed numerous shortcomings and showed that major conversions were necessary. Nevertheless, two more boats were commissioned, which were later given the designations CA 3 and CA 4 . They had the same performance and propulsion characteristics as their predecessor boats, but the diving depth could be extended to 70 m by slightly changing the main dimensions (length: 10.47 m, width 1.90 m).
Calls
None of the boats had enemy operations. CA 1 , CA 3 and CA 4 were only used as training boats and were sunk by their crews after the armistice of Cassibile in La Spezia , but later lifted again and put into the service of the fascist RSI . They were cannibalized by the German Navy for study purposes, and individual aspects are said to have flowed into the design of the small submarine seal .
Only CA 2 was intended for a daring operation. The boat should be brought to the deck of the submarine Leonardo da Vinci in front of New York in order to sail up the Hudson River there on its own and to cause the greatest possible damage. For this, CA 2 was relocated to Bordeaux . However, the Leonardo da Vinci was not available due to the Atlantic War. The mission, which was increasingly delayed, was finally terminated in December 1943, but caught up with and abandoned by the Italian armistice. CA 2 was placed under German command in Bordeaux, but was no longer used and destroyed when the German troops withdrew in 1945.
literature
- Harald Fock: Naval small weapons. Manned torpedoes, small submarines, small speedboats, explosives yesterday - today - tomorrow. Nikol, Hamburg 1996, ISBN 3-930656-34-5 , pp. 42-44.