Soviet submarine Shch-317

Shch-317 was a Shchuka-class submarine of the Soviet Navy. Her keel was laid down by A. Marti in Leningrad on 23 July 1934. She was launched on 24 September 1935 and commissioned on 29 September 1936 in the Baltic Fleet.

Shch-317 was of X series.
History
Soviet Union
NameShch-317
Laid down23 July 1934
Launched24 September 1935
Commissioned29 September 1936
Out of service14 July 1942
FateSunk by Finnish minelayer Ruotsinsalmi
General characteristics
Class and typeShchuka-class submarine, Type X[1]
Displacement
  • 577 tons surfaced
  • 704 tons submerged
Length57.00 m (187 ft 0 in)
Beam6.20 m (20 ft 4 in)
Draught3.78 m (12 ft 5 in)
Propulsion2 shaft diesel electric, 1,020 kW (1,370 bhp) diesel, 600 kW (800 bhp) electric
Speed
  • 12.5 knots (23.2 km/h; 14.4 mph) on the surface;
  • 6.3 knots (11.7 km/h; 7.2 mph) submerged
Range6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph)
Test depth91 m (300 ft)
Complement38
Armament
  • 4 × bow torpedo tubes
  • 2 × stern torpedo tubes
  • (10 torpedoes)
  • 2 × 45 mm (1.8 in) semi-automatic guns

Service history

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During the 1942 campaign, the submarine was under the command of Captain Mokhov Nikolay Konstantinovich and took part in the Soviet submarine campaign on 1942 in Baltic Sea. Shch-317 scored victories, all of them in the summer 1942. The submarine torpedoed and damaged the Danish merchant Orion (2,405 GRT) on 19 June 1942, but did not sink the cargo vessel. She scored most of her success against the German-Swedish iron ore shipping lines, which was the main target of 1942 Soviet submarine campaign.[2]

Loss

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While returning home after the successful campaign of summer 1942, Shch-317 was sunk. On the last mission, the submarine division commander Captain 2nd Rank V.A. Yegorov was also on board. The most likely cause of the sinking was that she struck a naval mine in the Seeigel minefield on 18 July 1942.[3]

Ships sunk by Shch-317.[4]
Date Ship Flag Tonnage Notes
16 June 1942 Argo   2,513 GRT freighter(torpedo)
22 June 1942 Ada Gorthon   2,399 GRT freighter (torpedo)
8 July 1942 Otto Cords   966 GRT freighter (torpedo)
Total: 5,878 GRT

Wreck discovery

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UMEX (Underwater Exploration Team) divers located the wreck of Shch-317 on 2 May 2018 at a depth of 255 ft. (78 meters) in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland near Gogland.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Shch (Scuka) class". Uboat. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  2. ^ Orlov Alex; Dmitriy Metelev; Evgeniy Chirva. "Великая Отечественная - под водой". Town.ural.ru. Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  3. ^ "Подводная лодка Щ-317. Тип "Щ" X серии". deepstorm.ru. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
  4. ^ "Shch-317 of the Soviet Navy - Soviet Submarine of the Shch (Scuka) class - Allied Warships of WWII". uboat.net. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  5. ^ "Soviet Sub found and identified".