Bronze torpedos

[Hagen]

Just got done reading about the sinking of the Lusitania, as told by Schwieger's friend and fellow U-boat commander Max Valentiner. Valentiner states that after sighting the Lusitania Schwieger said that he had "already shot away my best torpedos and had left only two bronze ones-not so good." What were the problems with bronze torpedos? And what were the 'best' torpedos he had already fired?

[ionia]

Just got done reading about the sinking of the Lusitania, as told by Schwieger's friend and fellow U-boat commander Max Valentiner. Valentiner states that after sighting the Lusitania Schwieger said that he had "already shot away my best torpedos and had left only two bronze ones-not so good." What were the problems with bronze torpedos? And what were the 'best' torpedos he had already fired?

One reference source states that the German Navy experienced a shortagr of submarine torpedoes in mid-war and that obsolete bronze torpedoes "fifteen years old" had to be used. I suspect that these were Schwartzkopff torpedoes as distinct from Whitehead.

[Michael Lowrey]

Close. With the introduction of the campaign against merchant shipping in 1915 certain U-boats were issued very mixed torpedo armaments, a function of both projected torpedo usage and the value of targets that would be attacked.

It was standard, for example, for the U-series diesel torpedo attack boats to carry a wide variety of torpedo types from early 1915 through late 1917. Though the boats were fitted with 50 cm torpedo tubes, a number of 45 cm torpedoes were included in the mix for these boats. (Rails were inserted into the torpedo tubes to allow these to be fired.)

Bronze Torpedoes were the least powerful torpedoes included in the mix. Yes, they were 45 cm torpedoes and the least powerful sort of 45 cm torpedoes at that.. They had a 87.5 kg charge and a range of 1 nautical mile at 27 knots. By comparison, the G/6 AV type (a 50 cm torpedo type) carried a 160 kg charge over a range of 5 nautical miles at 27 knots. Bronze Torpedoes were generally used in the most tame situations (sinking captuted merchant ships, attacks against smaller targets, etc.) unless the boat had no other torpedoes left.

Best wishes,

Michael

[Hagen]

Thank you, were the bronze torpedos older as ionia states, or were they just a different type?

[Michael Lowrey]

Older type. And not the only type of 45cm carried at times on boats with 50 cm torpedo tubes. More modern 45 cm torpedoes were included in the mix as well.

Best wishes,

Michael