The Submarine Torpedo Boat
Its Characteristics And Modern Development

Ioo THE SUBMARINE TORPEDO BOAT in handling them and loading them into the tubes. In the earlier vessels no provisions at all were made for getting them on board, and they had either be to taken to pieces to get them within the hull or had to be sucked in through the tubes. A great deal of time was thus spent in getting them on board. All the late boats are provided with specially constructed hatches and light portable deck cranes to handle them, but the getting a torpedo on board is still far from being a speedy operation. The torpedo firing stations at the periscopes are pro- vided with torpedo directors. These instruments solve mechanically the problem of angles for firing when the necessary data is known — speed, course and distance of target, and speed of torpedo — and eliminate the personal equation in the making of computations. The personal equation however is not eliminated from the determination of the necessary data, speed and course of target and dis- tance. Small discrepancies in making these observations lead to very wide errors, even with use of the director, unless the distance is relatively short. The armament should also comprise a specially designed quick firing rifle mounted in the superstructure in such a manner as to be quickly brought into position for firing and as quickly put back in a watertight storage space when forced to submerge quickly. This gun would offer a means of repelling light unarmed speed craft. It could also be used against aeroplanes or dirigibles quite effec- tively. Many of the modern boats are equipped with such ■runs.