Aventurier-class destroyer

The Aventurier-class destroyers were a group of four destroyers built during the early 1910s. Originally ordered by Argentina, they were taken over by the French Navy when the First World War began in August 1914, completed with French armament and renamed.

Téméraire at anchor
Class overview
NameAventurier class
Operators French Navy
Preceded byEnseigne Roux class
Succeeded byArabe class
Built1911–1914
In service1914–1938
In commission1914–1938
Completed4
Scrapped4
General characteristics
TypeDestroyer
Displacement
Length88.5 m (290 ft 4 in) (o/a)
Beam8.6 m (28 ft 3 in)
Draft3.1 m (10 ft 2 in)
Installed power
Propulsion2 shafts; 2 steam turbines
Speed32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph)
Range1,850 nmi (3,430 km; 2,130 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement140
Armament
  • 4 × single 100 mm (3.9 in) guns
  • 1 × single 47 mm (1.9 in) AA gun
  • 4 × single 450 mm (18 in) torpedo tubes

Design and description

The Aventurier-class ships were significantly larger and more heavily armed than other French destroyers of the period. The ships had an overall length of 88.5 meters (290 ft 4 in), a beam of 8.6 meters (28 ft 3 in), and a draft of 3.1 meters (10 ft 2 in). They displaced 930 metric tons (915 long tons) at normal load and 1,250 t (1,230 long tons) at deep load. Their crew numbered 140 men.[1]

The ships were powered by a pair of Rateau steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft using steam provided by five mixed-firing Foster-Wheeler boilers. The engines were designed to produce 18,000 shaft horsepower (13,000 kW) which was intended to give the ships a speed of 32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph). The ships carried 230 t (226 long tons) of coal and 72 t (71 long tons) of fuel oil that gave them a range of 1,850 nautical miles (3,430 km; 2,130 mi) at a cruising speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[2]

The primary armament of the Aventurier-class ships consisted of four 100-millimeter (3.9 in) guns in single mounts, one on the forecastle, one between the funnels, and two on the quarterdeck, in front and behind the searchlight platform. They were fitted with a 47-millimeter (1.9 in) AA gun for anti-aircraft defence. The ships were also equipped with four single mounts for 450-millimeter (17.7 in) torpedo tubes amidships.[1]

Ships
NameFormerlyBuilderLaunchedFate
OpiniâtreLa RiojaDyle et Bacalan, BordeauxJanuary 1911Broken up, 1935
AventurierMendoza18 February 1911Broken up, 1940
TéméraireSan JuanNantes8 December 1911Struck, 1936
IntrépideSalta25 September 1911Broken up, 1938

Citations
  1. Smigielski, p. 204
  2. Couhat, p. 117

References
  • Couhat, Jean Labayle (1974). French Warships of World War I. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0445-5.
  • Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One: Guns, Torpedoes, Mines and ASW Weapons of All Nations; An Illustrated Directory. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-100-7.
  • Smigielski, Adam (1985). "France". In Gray, Randal (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. pp. 190–220. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.