The Tambor class submarine was a United States Navy submarine, used primarily during World War II.

Design history

Early U.S. submarine designs of World War I assigned to escort shipping revealed that they had minimal ability to deter an aggressive threat. Despite the fact that German U-boats proved beyond a doubt that no navy could be a world sea power without submarines, the role played by U.S. submarines in the defense of the Pacific would have to be rethought, if not flat out discarded, by Navy planners.

Following the armistice, and after testing the capabilities of German design, the U.S. navy began to see the potential for extended offensive submarine operations. Submarine operations with the fleet required boats each with a large cruising radius and a relatively high speed so that they could intercept and stay with their prey. The huge advancement in American technology required to fill that role with "a new all-purpose fleet submarine" also became apparent.

After the fiasco of submarine design experienced in the late 1920s, Navy designers finally produced plans for a practical fleet submarine. The lineage of what was to become the fleet submarine actually began with the Porpoise or "P"-class and Salmon / Sargo or "S"-class submarines, laid down in 1933 and 1935. These were smaller, more maneuverable boats than the earlier V series boats. While these newer P-class and S-class boats were a step in the right direction, they were found lacking in speed, reliability and firepower.

In the fall of 1937 a proposal for a true fleet submarine: the design was finally put forward by the team of officers put together by then Commander Charles Lockwood, who was later admiral and Commander Submarines Pacific, Lt. Comdr. Andrew I. McKee, planning officer at Portsmouth Navy Yard, and Lt. Armand M. Morgan, head of the Navy's submarine design section. It was to be large, 1,500 tons, carry the latest diesel engines, have ten torpedo tubes, a gun and a new Torpedo Data Computer. Habitability would be increased by the addition of fresh water distillation units and air conditioning.

However, the design concepts faced opposition from Admiral Thomas Hart, Chairman of the General Board. Hart stubbornly defended the building of small, coastal defense boats (without "luxuries" like air conditioning). Through determination and skilled political maneuvering, the design of Lockwood's team prevailed (though Hart would only consent to a gun). This design was finally adopted by the Navy's General Board and the Submarine Officers' Conference for the 1939 program.

The plans had finally been drawn for a practical fleet submarine in that of the Tambor or "T"-class submarine. A fairly trim and maneuverable vessel at LOA (Length Over All) and 1,500 tons (compared with the LOA and 2,000 tons of the cumbersome and much disliked predecessor, the V-class) the new fleet boats provided sufficient elbow room for long war patrols.

Maintaining all of the positive attributes of the Salmon Class, "T" and Gar classes were blessed with the added speed and fire power that the navy was long striving for. The Gar class boats were virtually identical to the "T" class and are often listed as "T" class submarines.

One key to the "T" class' success was the development of a compact diesel engine designed in concert with the American railroad industry, which enthusiastically embraced the benefits of diesel-powered locomotives (and was delighted by the Navy's willingness to fund the huge research and development costs associated with their creation). Equipped with four of the new diesels engines the boats could reach top speeds of over and make cruises without the breakdowns that plagued their predecessors.

Design changes in internal layout, silhouette and hull form also differentiate the "T" Class boats from the earlier Salmon / Sargos class. The "T" class featured a double hulled construction and included an external control room as in German U-boats. They were the last phase of development of US subs prior to the introduction of the Gato class in 1942. These two classes of submarines shouldered the bulk of the combat duties during the early stages of the war, with the holding the scoring record in the category of "number of ships sunk" by any U.S. submarine.

These boats were the core of the 56 boat U.S. submarine fleet Pacific when America entered the World War II in December 1941. The "T" class design, subtly refined in the following Gato and Balao classes, would form the backbone of the wartime submarine fleet.

Ships in class

References