 USSL-5 underway, probably atProvincetown, Massachusetts, 15 August 1917 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | L-5 |
| Builder | Lake Torpedo Boat Company,Bridgeport, Connecticut |
| Cost | $590,038.59 (hull and machinery)[1] |
| Laid down | 14 May 1914 |
| Launched | 1 May 1916 |
| Sponsored by | Miss Rosalind Robinson |
| Commissioned | 17 February 1918 |
| Decommissioned | 5 December 1922 |
| Stricken | 20 March 1925 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Sold for scrapping, 21 December 1925 |
| General characteristics[2][3] | |
| Type | L-classsubmarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 165 ft (50 m) |
| Beam | 14 ft 9 in (4.50 m) |
| Draft | 13 ft 3 in (4.04 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range |
|
| Test depth | 200 ft (61.0 m) |
| Complement |
|
| Armament | |
USSL-5 (SS-44), also known as "Submarine No. 44", was anL-classsubmarine of theUnited States Navy. She worked on submarine tactics off theEast Coast, prior to sailing to theAzores, duringWWI. After the war she transferred to thePacific, where she worked with experimental torpedoes and underwater detection equipment.
The L-class boats designed byLake Torpedo Boat (L-5 throughL-8) were built to slightly different specifications from the other L boats, which were designed byElectric Boat, and are sometimes considered a separateL-5 class. The Lake boats had a length of 165 ft (50.3 m)overall, abeam of 14 ft 9 in (4.5 m), and a meandraft of 13 feet 3 inches (4.0 m). Theydisplaced 456long tons (463 t) on the surface and 527 long tons (535 t) submerged. The L-class submarines had a crew of two officers and 28 enlisted men. They had a diving depth of 200 ft (61.0 m).[2]
For surface running, the boats were powered by two 600-brake-horsepower (447 kW)Busch-Sulzerdiesel engines, each driving onepropeller shaft. When submerged eachpropeller was driven by a 400-horsepower (298 kW)electric motor. They could reach 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph) on the surface and 10.5 kn (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph) underwater. On the surface, the Lake boats had a range of 5,150 nmi (9,540 km; 5,930 mi), at 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph),[2] and 150 nmi (280 km; 170 mi), at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph), submerged.[4]
The boats were armed with four18-inch (450 mm)torpedo tubes in the bow. They carried four reloads, for a total of eight torpedoes. The L-class submarines were also armed with a single3 in (76 mm)/23 caliber on a disappearing mount.[4]
L-5'skeel waslaid down on 14 May 1914, by theLake Torpedo Boat Company, inBridgeport, Connecticut. She waslaunched on 1 May 1916, sponsored by Miss Rosalind Robinson, andcommissioned on 17 February 1918.[5]
After participating in exercises along theAtlantic coast,L-5 departedCharleston, South Carolina, on 15 October 1918, with Submarine Division 6, and reached theAzores, on 7 November. Following theArmistice with Germany on 11 November,L-5 headed west, arriving atBermuda, on 1 December. She participated in exercises in theCaribbean Sea before steaming on toSan Pedro, California, where she arrived 13 February 1919.[5]
From 1919 to 1922, she remained on theWest Coast, experimenting with newtorpedoes and underseas detection equipment.[5]
L-5 departed San Pedro, on 25 July 1922, and after visits inMexico,Nicaragua, and thePanama Canal Zone, she arrivedHampton Roads, Virginia, on 28 September.[5]
L-5 remained there until she decommissioned on 5 December 1922. She was sold on 21 December 1925, toPassaic Salvage and Reclamation Company, inNewark, New Jersey, and subsequently scrapped.[5]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
