LARGEST SUBMARINE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18946, 18 February 1925, Page 10

LARGEST SUBMARINE.

NEW BRITISH VESSEL, COST OF FIVE CRUISERS. LONDON. Feb. .11. , • The.world's largest submarine, the XI, |has completed her trials, and will probably now make a voyage to Singapore .with a view to testing her sea-going i qualities. The XI is nearly five times the size of the E class submarines, which proved so effective in the war, and she cost '£320,000. ifr. W. C. Bridgeman, First Lord of : the Admiralty, stated in the House of Commons that it was estimated the five new cruisers would cost, from £1,500,000 to .£2,000.000 each, and remain efficient for 15 years. » The Daily News ridicules the American report that the battleships Nelson and Rodney, now under construction in Britain, will each carry 80 aeroplanes. It points out that the specially-built aircraft-carriers Argus and Hermes can accommodate only 20 aeroplanes, and that the' battleships mentioned, owing to their tremendous armament, and their role as platforms for the largest naval ordnance, ■do not possess the space for a large aerial 'equipment, though tbey probably possess a flight-deck for a limited number ,of machines. Despite American experience it has been found that the discharge of big guns has ; seriously damaged aircraft carried on battleships. • Sir James Fortescue-Flannery, president of the Society of Consulting Marine Engineers, in his lecture on "The Diesel 'Engine for Navigation," recalled that the hate Admiral Lord Fisher in 1911 had deplored the fact that Germany saw the importance of saving fuel and avoiding funnels and smoke, which were readily •visible to the enemy. Hie lecturer said he regretted that, for the first time in history, the British Admiralty bad failed to lead the way by constructing motor battleships. Provision was made in the navy estimates of 1921-1922 for the construction of a submarine of the XI class. It is understood that it embodies the very latest features derived from war experience, post-war experiments and trial runs with- various types of surrendered German submarines. Her dimensions are: Length i3soft., breadth 29^ft., and depth 17ft. (She is reported to have a speed of 22 iknots. :