Le Triomphant (ship, 1934)

Le Triomphant

Le Triomphant (between 1936 and 1939)

Ship data flag  France Free France   Ship type Large Destroyer class Le Fantasque class Shipyard Ateliers et Chantiers de France, Dunkirk Keel laying August 28, 1931 Launch April 16, 1934 Commissioning May 25, 1936 Whereabouts Decommissioned on December 19, 1954 and sold for scrap in December 1957

Ship dimensions and crew length 132.4 m ( Lüa ) width 12 m Draft Max. 4.5 m displacement Standard : 2,569 ts maximum: 3,417 ts   crew 265 men

Machine system machine 4 × water tube boilers 2 × Parsons turbines Machine performance 74,000 PS (54,427 kW) Top speed 37 kn (69 km / h) propeller 2

Armament 5 × Sk 13.86 cm L / 40 model 1929 (5 × 1) 4 × Flak 3.7 cm L / 60 model 1925 (4 × 1) 4 × MG 13.2 mm / 76 Hotchkiss M1929 (2 × 2) 9 × torpedo tube ⌀ 55.0 cm (3 × 3) Water bombs , 2 launchers, 1 drop frame 40 sea ​​mines

The Le Triomphant (German: The Triumphant) was a large destroyer ( French Contre-Torpilleurs) of the Le Fantasque class of the French Navy . It was decommissioned on December 19, 1954 and sold for scrapping in December 1957.

Machine system

The drive system of Le Triomphant consisted of four water tube boilers and two Parsons turbines . These drove the two screws via two drive shafts. The machines performed 74,000 WPS . This enabled a speed of 37 knots (about 67 km / h) to be achieved.

Armament

The main artillery of the Le Triomphant consisted of five 13.86 cm L / 40 guns of the 1929 model in individual installation. This cannon could fire a 40.4 kilogram grenade over a maximum distance of 19,000 m. As anti-aircraft armament, the Le Triomphant had four 3.7 cm anti-aircraft guns (L / 60) of the 1925 model in a single setup and four 13.2 mm / 76 Hotchkiss M1929s in a double setup. As a torpedo armament, the destroyer had nine torpedo tubes in three groups of three for the torpedo 23DT Toulon . For anti-submarine defense, the Le Triomphant had two depth charges at the stern and it was possible to accommodate up to 40 sea mines.

Classification

The Le Triomphant was built and classified as a large destroyer. Because of her size and above all her speed, she was reclassified as a light cruiser , like all ships of the Le Fantasque class, on November 28, 1943 . In 1951, the ship was reclassified as a 1st class rapid escort destroyer (French destroyer-escorteurs de 1re classe) , although it was only in reserve . A new reclassification as a fast escort (French escorteur rapide) did not take place.

Whereabouts

The Le Triomphant reached Bizerte on November 1, 1949 and was placed in reserve due to a lack of spare parts and trained personnel. It was decommissioned on December 19, 1954 and sold for scrapping in December 1957.

literature

• Roger Chesneau: Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922-1946 . Conway Maritime Press, Greenwich 1980, ISBN 0-85177-146-7 .
• Vincent P. O'Hara: Struggle for the Middle Sea . Institute Press, New York 2013. ISBN 978-1-61251-408-6 .
• Mike J. Whitley: Destroyer in World War II. Technology, classes, types . Motorbuchverlag, Stuttgart 1991, ISBN 3-613-01426-2 .
• John Jordan, Jean Moulin: French Destroyers: Torpilleurs d'Escadre & Contre-Torpilleurs 1922–1956 . Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley ISBN 978-1-84832-198-4 .

Web links

Commons : Le Triomphant  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Information about the Le Triomphant at uboat.net (English).

Footnotes

1. ↑ 138.6 mm / 40 (5.46 ") Model 1927 gun data from navweaps.com. Accessed October 22, 2019. (English)
2. ↑ 23 DT, Toulon torpedo data on navweaps.com. Retrieved October 22, 2019.