British K-class submarine

	HMS K15
Class overview
Name	K class
Builders	HM Dockyard Portsmouth; HM Dockyard Devonport; Vickers Limited; Armstrong Whitworth; Fairfield; Scotts; Beardmore;
Operators	Royal Navy
In commission	1917–1931
Planned	21
Completed	17
General characteristics
Type	Submarine
Displacement	1,980 tons surfaced; 2,566 tons dived;
Length	339 ft (103 m)
Beam	26 ft 6 in (8.08 m)
Draught	20 ft 11 in (6.38 m)
Propulsion	Twin 10,500 shp (7,800 kW) oil-fired Yarrow boilers each powering a Brown-Curtis or Parsons geared steam turbines, Twin 3 blade 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) screws; Four 1,440 hp (1,070 kW) electric motors.; One 800 hp (600 kW) Vickers diesel generator for charging batteries on the surface.;
Speed	24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph) surfaced; 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) submerged;
Range	Surface: 800 nautical miles (1,500 km; 920 mi) at maximum speed; 12,500 nmi (23,200 km; 14,400 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph); Submerged: 8 nmi (15 km; 9.2 mi) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph);
Complement	59 (6 officers and 53 ratings)
Armament	4 × 18-inch (460 mm) torpedo tubes (beam), four 18-inch (450-mm) bow tubes, plus 8 spare torpedoes; 2 × BL 4-inch (101.6 mm) Mk XI guns; 1 × 3 in (76 mm) gun; Twin 18-inch deck tubes originally fitted but later removed.;

The K-class submarines were a class of steam-propelled submarines of the Royal Navy designed in 1913. Intended as large, fast vessels with the endurance and speed to operate with the battle fleet, they gained notoriety and the nickname of "Kalamity class" for being involved in many accidents. Of the 18 built, none were lost through enemy action, but six sank, with significant loss of life, in accidents. Only one ever engaged an enemy vessel, K-7 hitting a U-boat amidships, though the torpedo failed to explode with what has been described as typical "K" luck; K-7 escaped retaliation by steaming away at speed.

The class found favour with Commodore Roger Keyes, then Inspector Captain of Submarines, and with admirals Sir John Jellicoe, Commander-in-Chief British Grand Fleet, and Sir David Beatty, Commander-in-Chief Battlecruiser Squadrons. An opponent of the class was Admiral Jacky Fisher, later First Sea Lord, who on the class' suggestion in 1913 had responded 'The most fatal error imaginable would be to put steam engines in submarines.'

Thinking about submarines and their use at the time was still in its infancy. Submarines, which later acted only by stealth, are no longer expected to be within a surface warship formation.

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