SMS Frankfurt
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| Ship data | ||
| Ship type | Small cruiser | |
| Household name | Replacement Hela | |
| Ship class | Wiesbaden class | |
| Surname: | SMS Frankfurt | |
| Launch: | March 20, 1915 | |
| Commissioning: | August 20, 1915 | |
| Builder: | Imperial shipyard Kiel | |
| Crew: | approx. 590/474 in peacetime | |
| Fate: | Sunk as a target ship in the USA in 1921 | |
| Technical specifications | ||
| Displacement : | Construction: 5,180 t, maximum: 6601 t |
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| Length: |
KWL : 141.7 m over all: 145.3 m |
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| Width: | 13.9 m | |
| Draft : | 5.76 m forward / 6 m aft | |
| Drive: |
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| Propeller: | 2 (three-leaf ø3.5 m) | |
| Speed: | 27.5 kn | |
| Fuel supply: | 1280 tons of coal and 470 tons of oil | |
| Range: | 4800 nm at 12 kn | |
| Armor | ||
| Belt armor: | 60 mm | |
| Deck: | 40 mm | |
| Armament | ||
| 15 cm Sk L / 45: | 8 in single mounts | |
| 8.8 cm FlaK L / 45: | 2 | |
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Torpedo tubes ø50 cm: |
4 (2 under water; 2 individually on deck) |
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The SMS Frankfurt was a small cruiser of the Imperial Navy during the First World War .
history
The SMS Frankfurt was built at the Kaiserliche Werft in Kiel (construction number 40) under the name of Ersatz Hela . It was launched on March 30, 1915 and entered service on August 20.
After the tests were completed on October 12, 1915, the Frankfurt was assigned to the II reconnaissance group. She waged a trade war in the Skagerrak and the Kattegat . In March and April 1916 she made several forays to the east coast of England. In the Battle of the Skagerrak , she was the flagship of the Second Reconnaissance Group, which was commanded by Rear Admiral Friedrich Boedicker . Her sister ship Wiesbaden was sunk in this battle; the Frankfurt received only a few hits against it. After her restoration she provided outpost and security services in the North Sea.
In the autumn of 1917 Frankfurt took part in the occupation of the Baltic Islands ( Oesel company). Then she returned to the North Sea. On November 17, 1917, there was a second naval battle near Helgoland . The Frankfurt received several hits and had 6 killed and 18 wounded.
In the last year of the war, the Frankfurt was again involved in the outpost and security service in the North Sea as well as in various mine operations. On August 12, 1918, the ship came to the IV Reconnaissance Group. It replaced the mine cruiser Brummer there and was relocated to the Baltic Sea. Just five days later, the Frankfurt was replaced by the small cruiser Regensburg and returned to the North Sea. After a stay in the shipyard in Wilhelmshaven, the Frankfurt was relocated to the Baltic Sea again. On October 21, 1918, she accidentally rammed the UB 89 submarine . The submarine sank, with seven men drowning.
After the war ended, the ship was interned in Scapa Flow . His anchorage was in the north of the bay, near the coast of Mainland Island . When the order was given on June 21, 1919 to scuttling , the sea valves on the Frankfurt were opened . However, the British managed to prevent the sinking by setting the ship aground in shallow water. It was delivered to the USA as spoils of war in March 1920 , briefly put into service as the USS Frankfurt and sunk there on July 18, 1921 during tests with aerial bombs.
technical description
With a length of 145.3 m, a width of 13.9 m and a draft of 6 m, the Wiesbaden-class ships had a design displacement of almost 5200 t. Fully equipped, the Frankfurt displaced 6,610 tons. Of this, 1280 tons were coal and 470 tons oil, giving the ship a range of 4800 nautical miles at a speed of 12 knots. The crew consisted of 590 men.
The hull was lightly armored with 6 cm belt and 4 cm deck armor. It was driven by two sets of steam turbines , which produced a total of 31,000 shaft horsepower and gave the ship a maximum speed of 27.5 knots. The steam was generated by ten coal and two oil-fired steam boilers.
The SMS Frankfurt was armed with eight 15 cm guns in single mounts. Two of these guns were positioned side by side on the forecastle. Two were overfire on the stern, while two each were set up to the side of the front and rear deck superstructures. Furthermore, there were two 8.8 cm - anti-aircraft guns mounted and the ship with four torpedo tubes cm equipped caliber 50th Two of them were built into the hull below the waterline. The other two were on the upper deck. In addition, the Frankfurt was able to carry up to 120 sea mines .
Commanders
| Frigate captain / sea captain Thilo von Trotha | August 1915 to November 1916 | |
| Frigate captain / sea captain Fritz Rebensburg | November 1916 to September 1917 | |
| Frigate captain / sea captain Otto Seidensticker | September 1917 to August 1918 | |
| Frigate Captain Alfred Lassen | August to November 1918 | |
| Lieutenant Captain Hans Beesel | Internment Commander | |
Whereabouts
The ship was sunk on July 18, 1921 as a target ship for air strikes by the US Navy.
Picture gallery
Attack with 125 kg and 300 kg bombs
Navy observers investigate the effects of the bomb
Details of the bombing effect
The ship is on fire
The end of SMS Frankfurt
literature
- Gerhard Koop, Klaus-Peter Schmolke: Small cruisers 1903-1918, Bremen to Cöln class , volume 12 ship classes and ship types of the German navy. Bernard & Graefe, Munich 2004, ISBN 3-7637-6252-3
Web links
- german-navy.de
- Newsreel recording of the British Pathe from August 24, 1921 of the bombing and sinking of the Frankfurt