Abtao-class Submarine

The ''Abtao'' class were four submarines of the Peruvian Navy that entered service between 1954 and 1957. They are also known as the ''Lobo'' class and the ''Dos de Mayo'' class and were constructed in the United States to a design based upon the United States Navy's . They were the last submarines to be constructed by the United States for the export market. All four submarines were powered by a diesel-electric system and armed with six torpedo tubes. Two of the submarines also mounted a /25 caliber gun. The four submarines, initially named for animals, were all renamed in 1957 for famous Peruvian battles. Beginning in 1991, the submarines were taken out of service, with the last decommissioned in 1999. One, , is a museum ship located in Lima, Peru.

Design and description

The ''Abtao'' class were a modified version of the United States World War II design. They had a surfaced displacement of and submerged. They measured long overall with a beam of and a draft of .

The submarines were powered by a diesel-electric system composed of two General Motors single-acting Type 278A diesel engines and two electric motors turning two props rated at . The ''Abtao'' class had a maximum speed of when surfaced and submerged. They carried of diesel fuel and had a range of at 10 knots at snorkel depth.

The class was armed with six torpedo tubes with four located in the bow and two aft. Two vessels of the class, ''Abtao'' and ''Dos de Mayo'', had a /25 caliber gun mounted abaft the sail. The gun is manually sighted. All four submarines were equipped with SS-2A radar and BQR-3 and BQA-1A sonar. In 1981, their batteries were replaced and following that, Thomson Sintra Eledone active/passive intercept sonar was installed. They had a complement of 40 officers and ratings.

Ships

Construction and career

The Peruvian Navy initially ordered two submarines from Electric Boat on 8 December 1951 based on the United States Navy's ''Mackerel'' design. The first two were laid down at the yard in Groton, Connecticut on 12 May 1952 and two more on 27 October 1955. The four submarines were initially named for animals (''Lobo'', ''Tiburón'', ''Atun'' and ''Merlin''). The class was initially known as the ''Lobo'' class, and later as the ''Dos de Mayo'' class. However, a decree in April 1957 by the President of Peru, Manuel Prado Ugarteche, ordered that the names of the vessels be changed to those of famous Peruvian battles. ''Lobo'' became ''Dos de Mayo'', ''Tiburón'' became ''Abtao'', ''Atun'' became ''Angamos'' and ''Merlin'' became ''Iquique''. ''Abtao'' was the first to launch in October 1953 and commission in February 1954 and ''Iquique'' the last to launch in February 1957 and commission in October 1957. They were the last submarines constructed by the United States for the export market.

''Abtao'' and ''Dos de Mayo'' underwent a refit at Groton in 1965 and ''Angamos'' and ''Iquique'' in 1968. In 1988, ''Abtao'' took part in the rescue of the crew of the submarine which had sunk after a collision with the fishing vessel ''Kiowa Maru''. ''Angamos'' was taken out of service in 1990, followed by ''Iquique'' in 1993. ''Abtao'' was removed from service on 10 May 1999 and placed in reserve. The ship was removed from naval service in 2000 and converted into a museum ship in 2004 in Lima, Peru. ''Dos de Mayo'' was the last ship to be removed from service in 1999.

Citations

References

*
*
*
*
*
*
* {{cite book , editor-last=Sharpe , editor-first=Richard , year=1990 , title=Jane's Fighting Ships 1990–91 , publisher=Jane's Information Group , edition=93 , location=Surrey, United Kingdom , isbn=0-7106-0904-3

Submarines of the Peruvian Navy
Submarine classes