A Class

The 'A' class was a larger version of the 'Holland', but built to an all-British design following the end of Vickers' relationship with the Holland Torpedo Boat Co.  The raised conning tower was fitted to all boats in the class and was a standard feature of submarine construction thereafter.  As an additional safety feature the conning tower had two hatches: the upper hatch which led out onto the bridge and the lower hatch which sealed oA.1's commanding officer, Lieutenant Mansergh, reported that:  'She  behaved well and could keep an even depth at quite moderate speed wheras the earlier boats had to be trimmed fine and kept at full speed while working submerged.'  A.1 was attached to the depot ship HMS Mercury.ff the conning  tower from the control room.

Reports from sea indicated that the 'A' class represented a considerable improvement on the 'Holland'.

Chief ERA Charles Sinden was killed in an explosion onboard A.5 at Queenstown on 16th February 1905.  The explosion was a result of a build-up of petrol  fumes inside the boat resulting from a badly packed gland in the petrol pump.   When the order to start the engine to ventilate the boat was given, the  fumes exploded.  Four other members of A.5's crew died in the  explosion.

A.7 was fitted with experimental hydroplanes on her conning tower.  The  boats of the 'Holland' and 'A' classes were fitted with one set of 'diving rudders' aft, as the operation of diving the boat was performed while she was stationary.  As early submariners grew more experienced, they found that they could dive their craft while under way and that another set of 'diving  rudders' was necessary. Conning tower hydroplanes were not a standard fitting in the 'A' class boats.

A.13 was the last of the A-boats and was the first British submarine to be fitted with a diesel engine.  The engine was a Hornsby-Ackroyd six-cylinder of 500 b.h.p. The diesel was heavier than the petrol engine fitted in other boats of the class and consequently fuel stowage was reduced.  Nevertheless, on passage from Barrow to Portsmouth, the engine ran for 29 and a half hours - an extremely good performance for the time.

4 Built

Submarine	Builder	Built
A1 - A4	Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness	1903 - 1907

Technical Information

Displacement (tons):	165 sf 180 sm
Length (ft):	100 oa
Breadth (ft)	11.5 oa
Draught/Height (ft):	10.0
Machinery:	450 hp petrol engine. 80 hp electric motor.
Speed (kts):	11.5 sf - 7.0 sm
Fuel supply (tons): Oil Supply (tons):	7 tons. na.
Armament:	2 x 18 inch tube (bow) with the exception of A1 which only had one 18 inch tube. Reloads: 2
Range:	500 miles at 10 sf.. 30 miles at 5 kts  sm.
Complement:	2 officers and 9 ratings.
Amendments to Surface displacement were kindly pointed out by Mr.  Alec Dancer of Barrow-in-Furness.
sm = submerged, sf = surfaced, oa = overall, hp = horsepower, na  = not available.

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H.M.Submarine A1.

Type:	'A' Class	Group One
Pennant No.:	Non Allocated.
Laid Down:	19th February 1902	Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness.
Commissioned:	23rd July 1904	Lt. L.C.O. Mansergh
Commander:	-----	Lt. L.C.O. Mansergh
Complement:	11	2 Officers and 9 ratings.
Service Career:	1904	HMS Hazard/Fort Blockhouse.
Fate:	On completion and during passage to Portsmouth, whilst off Lands End, the unreliable engines had broken down and she had had to be taken in tow. In the rough sea she had rolled and the sea had entered the batteries, the submarine was filled with chlorine gas, choking the crew and forcing them to abandon the boat.   They put into Falmouth to effect repairs to the batteries and then proceeded (in tow) to Portsmouth. Rammed and sunk by SS Berwick Castle 18th March 1904 off Portsmouth, no survivors. Raised 18th April 1904 and eventually used as target, sunk August 1911.

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Type:	'A' Class	Group One
Pennant No.:	Non Allocated.
Laid Down:	6th November 1902	Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness.
Commissioned:	21st June 1904	Not known at present.
Commander:	-----	Not known at present.
Complement:	11	2 Officers and 9 Ratings.
Service Career:	Peacetime	HMS Mercury, Portsmouth
Fate:	Wrecked January 1920, consequently sold in 1925.

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H.M. Submarine A.3

Type:	'A' Class	Group One
Pennant No.:	Non Allocated.
Laid Down:	6th November 1902	Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness.
Commissioned:	13th July 1904	Lt. F.T. Ormond.
Commander:	-----	Lt. F.T. Ormond.
Complement:	11	2 Officers and 9 ratings.
Service Career:	Peacetime	HMS Mercury, Portsmouth
Fate:	Rammed and sunk by H.M.S. Hazard (The original Submarine Tender), off the Isle of Wight, 2nd February 1912 with the loss of 14 lives. Raised and used as target 1912.

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H.M. Submarine A.4

H.M. Submarine A4 and others.

Type:	'A' Class	Group One
Pennant No.:	Non Allocated.
Laid Down:	19th February 1902	Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness.
Commissioned:	17th July 1904	Lt. M.E. Nasmith.
Commander:	-----	Lt. M.E. Nasmith.
Complement:	11	2 Officers, 9 Ratings.
Service Career:	Peacetime
Fate:	Whilst carrying out exercises on experimental underwater signalling, with the ventilation tube protruding above the surface, a steamer passed the boat too closely which sent sea water flooding down the tube into the boat.   She was sent down to the bottom and chlorine gas quickly formed. She was saved by the actions of the First Lt, Lt. G. Herbert, who found the blowing controls and brought the boat to the surface. In mid October 1905 A4 was involved in another near fatal accident.
	(13th February 2000) The following was recently sent to me via E-mail by the grandson of Lt. M.E. Nasmith.
	The flooding incident involving A4 actually occurred on 16 October 1905, and there was only the one incident. A dinghy was positioned some distance from the submarine, and from it a bell was struck underwater.  In order for those in A4 to show whether they could hear the bell, a ventilation shaft was left open and a boathook with a flag tied to it was poked up through the ventilator. The experiment had been carried out at sea the previous day, but on the 16th the weather was much rougher so they stayed inside the breakwater.  The same trim settings were used on the second day, but there was a much greater proportion of fresh water inside the breakwater. This meant that the water was less bouyant than on the first day, so quite simply the submarine sank. We have a silver cigarette case here, presented to my grandfather (then aged 22) by the whole of the rest of the crew in gratitude for his actions in then bringing A4 to the surface. This experience allowed my grandfather to recognise what was happening to E11 on the way up the Dardanelles, and also to discover that they could dive to 70 feet anywhere in the Marmara, and rest on the line between the fresh water and sea water with all engines turned off.  It meant that the whole crew could have an undisturbed night's sleep, with no battery usage.

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