Squalo-class submarine

The Squalo-class submarines were a group of four submarines built for the Royal Italian Navy (Regia Marina) during the 1930s. They were built at the Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico (CRDA) shipyard at Monfalcone, and designed by Curio Bernardis.

Design and description
The Squalo-class submarines were essentially repeats of the preceding Bandiera-class submarine. They shared that design's problems with stability and seakeeping and required the same bulging of the hull to rectify the problems. They displaced 920 t surfaced and 1125 t submerged. The submarines were 69.8 m long, had a beam of 7.21 m and a draft of 5.19 m. They had an operational diving depth of 90 m. Their crew numbered 53 officers and enlisted men.

For surface running, the boats were powered by two 1500 bhp diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 650 bhp electric motor. They could reach 15.1 kn on the surface and 8 kn underwater. On the surface, the Squalo class had a range of 5650 nmi at 8 kn, submerged, they had a range of 100 nmi at 3 kn.

The boats were armed with eight internal 53.3 cm torpedo tubes, four each in the bow and stern. They carried a total of a dozen torpedoes. They were also armed with one 102 mm deck gun for combat on the surface. Their anti-aircraft armament consisted of two 13.2 mm machine guns.

Ships

 * ITALIAN SUBMARINE Delfino (Dolphin), sank after a collision off Taranto, 23 March 1943.
 * ITALIAN SUBMARINE Narvalo (Narwhal), sunk by the British destroyers HMS Pakenham (G06) and HMS Hursley (L84), and RAF aircraft, in the Mediterranean Sea at 34.13333°N, 16.06667°W, 14 January 1943.
 * ITALIAN SUBMARINE Squalo (Shark), withdrawn from service, 9 September 1943.
 * ITALIAN SUBMARINE Tricheco (Walrus), sunk by the British submarine HMS Upholder (P37) off Brindisi in the Adriatic Sea at 40.75°N, 17.93333°W, 18 March 1942.