Scout cruiser
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As Spähkreuzer was in the Navy, a type of planned light cruisers designates which Aufklärung- and security services should pay for the fleet and capital ships.
history
Development history
At the beginning of 1937, the Marine Construction Office proposed a project to develop a large destroyer , which was rejected. This triggered a development which resulted in a ship for Atlantic use. This should be superior to fleet destroyers in terms of armament and able to run away from enemy cruisers. The tasks of the planned ship can be outlined as follows:
- Accompaniment and securing of heavy units operating individually or in formation in the context of an oceanic naval warfare.
- Supporting heavy units in tactical cruiser warfare. For example, as a suitable weapon against lighter enemy units in convoy security.
- Independent use in cruiser warfare when only weak enemy security appears.
The first clearly defined design was given the name Spähkreuzer 38 . It was a design with two chimneys based on an insert displacement of 6,000 tons. In addition to three 15-cm double mounts, one in front of the bridge and two aft, two five-way torpedo tube sets were to be used. A mixed steam turbine and diesel engine system with 77,500 WPS or 14,500 PSe was planned, with which the ship should be able to run 35 knots . With 15 mm for the deck, 18 mm for the inner longitudinal bulkhead and 12 mm for other areas, the armor protection would be low.
Changes to this design led to the Spähkreuzer 39 , which, based on the enlarged dimensions and maximum displacement of now 7,550 tons, included stronger anti-aircraft equipment and better armor. The disadvantage for the stronger armament, which now also included an aircraft on board, and the better armor was a drop in speed of three knots, despite an increase in propulsion power. The armor protection now included a 50 mm thick belt armor in the waterline, a maximum of 25 mm for the deck armor and 12 mm for the inner longitudinal bulkhead. From the outside, the new design differed from the 1938 version in that there were two towers in front of the bridge, one aft and a catapult - to replace the torpedo tubes - between the funnels.
The final design, designated as Spähkreuzer 40 , was again enlarged in size. It was possible to increase the maximum speed while maintaining the drive power of the previous design. In the external appearance, the main difference lay in the reversal of the tower order - one in front, two in the back - and in the return of the torpedo tube sets at the expense of the aircraft. Overall, this design was a major improvement on the Spähkreuzer 38. It was based on improved performance, a 50% larger radius of action and anti-aircraft equipment - comparable to a light cruiser.
The design development of the scout cruiser program and similar foreign ship classes.
| design | Scout Cruiser 38 | Scout cruiser 39 | Scout cruiser 40 | Arethusa class | Dido class | Capitani Romani class | Agano class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| country |
.svg){kind=small} German Empire
|
German Empire
|
German Empire
|
 United Kingdom
|
United Kingdom
|
_crowned.svg){kind=small} Italy
|
 Japan
|
| Standard displacement | 5,037 t | 6,300 t | 6,500 t | 5,220 ts | 5,700 ts | 3,810 t | 6,652 t |
| Length over all | 152.2 m | 169.0 m | 169.0 m | 152.4 m | 156.1 m | 142.9 m | 174.1 m |
| width | 14.62 m | 16.0 m | 16.0 m | 15.54 m | 15.4 m | 14.4 m | 15.2 m |
| Draft at standard displacement |
4.66 m | 4.9 m | 4.9 m | 4.21 m | 5.1 m (max) | 4.9 m | 5.63 m |
| Main armament | 6 × 15.0 cm | 6 × 15.0 cm | 6 × 15.0 cm | 6 x 15.2 cm | 10 x 13.3 cm | 8 × 13.5 cm | 6 x 15.2 cm |
| Air defense | 2 x 8.8 cm 8 x 3.7 cm 8 x 2.0 cm |
6 x 8.8 cm 8 x 3.7 cm 8 x 2.0 cm |
4 x 8.8 cm 8 x 3.7 cm 8 x 2.0 cm |
4 × 10.2 cm 8 × 12.7 mm MG |
8 × 4.0 cm 8 × 12.7 mm MG |
4 x 3.7 cm, 4 x 2.0 cm |
4 × 7.6 cm 10 × 2.5 cm 4 × 13-mm MG |
| Torpedoes | 10 x 53.3 cm | No | 10 x 53.3 cm | 6 x 53.3 cm | 6 x 53.3 cm | 8 x 53.3 cm | 8 × 61.0 cm |
construction
In February 1939 , as a result of the Z-Plan , the Naval War Command announced the importance of the reconnaissance cruisers for oceanic warfare. However, this should not be at the expense of the rest of the shipbuilding program.
On February 17, 1941, a building order for three ships of the type Spähkreuzer 40 was given to the Germania shipyard in Kiel under construction numbers. 671 to 673 (originally commissioned and canceled as Z40 - Z42 ) with the designation SP 1 to SP 3 . In December 1941, the contract was awarded for the main propulsion system from SP 4 to SP 6 , but by April of the following year construction work on the reconnaissance cruiser program had been stopped, as the shipyard capacities and the material for the submarine construction were required.
technical description
hull
The hull of a reconnaissance cruiser 1940 , divided into 17 watertight compartments, completely welded and made of shipbuilding steel ST 52, would have had an overall length of 169 m, a maximum width of 16 m and a maximum draft of 4.9 m. The planned standard displacement should amount to 5,800 ts and the operational displacement to 7,500 ts.
crew
A crew of 18 officers and 520 NCOs / crews (538 men) was planned.
Armament
artillery
Six 15 cm TBK C / 36 guns in three twin turrets (Dopp.Dreh.L. C / 38) were planned as the main artillery . One in front of the bridge structure and two behind the aft structure, whereby the inner tower would have been arranged in such a way that it could overshoot the outer one (so-called excessive end position). They were the same guns as the main artillery of the 1936 A destroyers .
Air defense
For air defense there were four 8.8 cm SK C / 32 guns in two double mounts (8.8 cm double L. C / 32), eight 3.7 cm SK C / 30 guns in double mounts (double L. C / 30) and eight 2-cm Flak C / 38 in single mounts (MPL C / 30). Since the threat from Allied aircraft was not yet dominant at this point in planning, this number of anti-aircraft guns was considered sufficient.
Torpedoes
The planned torpedo armament would have consisted of two five-fold torpedo tube sets with a caliber of 53.3 cm that could be pivoted through 360 ° . These were located in the ship's center line , amidships between the funnels, and fired type G7a torpedoes .
literature
- Jürgen Gebauer & Egon Krenz: Marine encyclopedia from A-Z . Tosa Verlag, Vienna 2003, ISBN 3-85492-757-6 , p. 362 .
- Gerhard Koop & Klaus-Peter Schmolke: The German destroyers 1935–1945 . Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Bonn 1995, ISBN 3-7637-5940-9 .
- Mike J. Whitley: German cruiser in World War II . Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-613-01207-3 .
Web links
- Spähkreuzer (English) on german-navy.de