Recognition Guide Warships of the Second World War
Royal Navy — Submarine

HMS Shark (54S)

S-class submarine

HMS Shark (54S)
Royal Navy official photographer — This photograph FL 3302 comes from the collections of the Imperial War Museums (collection no. 8308-29) — Public domain — Wikimedia Commons Plate British S class submarine HMSM SHARK secured to a buoy in the Medway .

Service

  1. Royal Navy as HMS Shark31 December 1934 — 6 July 1940309 days of the war
S-class submarine Particulars
Name
HMS Shark
Builder
Chatham Dockyard
Ordered
2 January 1933
Laid down
12 June 1933
Launched
31 May 1934
Commissioned
31 December 1934
Fate
Scuttled, 6 July 1940 (1940)
Status
Wreck

Specifications

Displacement, surfaced
768 long tons (780 t)
Displacement, submerged
960 long tons (975 t)
Length
63.4 m (208 ft)
Beam
7.32 m (24 ft)
Draught
3.35 m (11 ft)
Speed
13.8 knots (25.5 km/h, 15.8 mph)
Range
6,000 nmi (11,112 km)
Complement
40
Main gun
76 mm (3 in)

HMS Shark was a S-class submarine in service with the Royal Navy. Chatham Dockyard laid her keel on 12 June 1933. Launched on 31 May 1934, she entered service on 31 December 1934.

Her class ran to 111 ships.

The boat displaced 768 long tons surfaced and 960 long tons submerged. She measured 63.4 m (208 ft) long with a beam of 7.3 m (24 ft). Her designed speed was 13.8 knots, and she carried a complement of 40. Her main battery was of 76 mm (3.0 in) calibre.

Her machinery developed 1,550 bhp.

She was in commission for 309 days of the Second World War.

She was scuttled on 6 July 1940, at 58°18′N 5°13′E. The wreck survives.

Written from the harvested record. Every figure above is sourced; the wording is this site's own.

Armament and machinery

Armament and machinery
Propulsion
  • 2 × diesel engines
  • 2 × electric motors
Power
  • 1550 bhp (diesel)
  • 1300 hp (electric)
Armament
  • 6 × bow 21 in torpedo tubes
  • 1 × 3-inch (76 mm) deck gun

Sister ships

86 more in the class

Sources

  • Facts harvested from HMS Shark (54S) on Wikipedia. Figures only — no wording is taken from it.
  • Photograph: Royal Navy official photographer — This photograph FL 3302 comes from the collections of the Imperial War Museums (collection no. 8308-29) — Public domain — Wikimedia Commons