Bahia-class cruiser

Line drawings of the Bahia class
Class overview
Name:	Bahia class
Operators:	Brazilian Navy
Built:	1907–1910
In commission:	1910–1948
Completed:	2
Lost:	1
Scrapped:	1
General characteristics
Type:	Scout cruiser
Displacement:	3,100 tonnes (3,100 long tons; 3,400 short tons)
Length:	122.38 m (401.5 ft) oa 115.82 m (380.0 ft) pp
Beam:	11.89–11.91 m (39.0–39.1 ft)
Draft:	3.81 m (12.5 ft) forward 4.75 m (15.6 ft) amidships 4.42 m (14.5 ft) aft
Propulsion:	Five Parsons steam turbines, ten Yarrow boilers Coal normal 150 t (150 long tons; 170 short tons) Maximum 650 t (640 long tons; 720 short tons)
Speed:	26.5 knots (49.1 km/h; 30.5 mph) as designed 27.016 knots (50.034 km/h; 31.089 mph) trial 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph) at full load
Endurance:	1,400 nautical miles (2,600 km; 1,600 mi) @ 23.5 knots (43.5 km/h; 27.0 mph) 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) @ 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement:	320 to 357
Armament:	ten × 120 mm (4.7 in)/50 caliber, six × 47 mm (1.9 in)/50 caliber, two × 457 mm (18.0 in) torpedo tubes
Armor:	Deck: 19 mm (0.75 in) Conning tower: 76 mm (3.0 in)
Notes:	These specifications apply to when Bahia was commissioned.

The Bahia class was a pair of scout cruisers built for Brazil by Armstrong Whitworth in the United Kingdom, based on a design that borrowed heavily from the British Adventure-class scout cruisers. The class comprised the lead ship Bahia and her sister Rio Grande do Sul, along with a canceled third ship, Ceara. Both were named after states of Brazil. As a class, they were the fastest cruisers in the world when commissioned, and the first in the Brazilian Navy to use steam turbines for propulsion.

In the mid-1920s, both ships were extensively modernized with three new Brown–Curtis turbine engines and six new Thornycroft boilers, and, in the process, was converted from coal-burning ships to oil-burning. The refit resulted in a striking aesthetic change, with the exhaust being trunked into three funnels, instead of two. The armament was also modified; three 20.1 mm (0.79 in) Madsen guns, a 7 mm (0.28 in) Hotchkiss machine gun, and four 533 mm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes were added.

In the Second World War, both were used as convoy escorts. On 4 July 1945, Bahia was lost after an accident caused a massive explosion which incapacitated the ship and sunk her within minutes, resulting a large loss of life. Rio Grande do Sul survived the war and was scrapped in 1948.

The class's design borrowed heavily from the British Adventure-class scout cruisers. The ships displaced 3,100 tonnes (3,100 long tons), and their dimensions were 122.38 m (401 ft 6 in) overall, 115.82 m (380 ft 0 in) between perpendiculars, 11.89–11.91 m (39 ft 0 in–39 ft 1 in) at the beam, and a draft of 3.81 m (12 ft 6 in) forward, 4.75 m (15 ft 7 in) amidships, and 4.42 m (14 ft 6 in) aft. They were powered by five Parsons steam turbines, and ten Yarrow boilers, with a coal bunker that could hold a normal load of 150 t (150 long tons), and a maximum load of 650 t (640 long tons).