German torpedo boat TA-20
Audace at Brindisi, 1917
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Preceded by: | Pilo class |
| Succeeded by: | Sirtori class |
| Built: | 1913–16 |
| In service: | 1917–44 |
| Completed: | 1 |
| Lost: | 1 |
| History | |
 Kingdom of Italy
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| Name: | Audace |
| Ordered: | 1913 |
| Builder: | Yarrow Shipbuilders, Scotstoun |
| Laid down: | 1 October 1913 |
| Launched: | 27 September 1916 |
| Completed: | 23 December 1916 |
| Acquired: | 3 July 1916 |
| Commissioned: | 1 March 1917 |
| Reclassified: | As torpedo boat, 1 September 1929 |
| Captured: | By Germany, 12 September 1943 |
 Nazi Germany
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| Name: | Audace |
| Acquired: | 12 September 1943 |
| Renamed: | TA 20 |
| Fate: | Sunk, 2 November 1944 |
| General characteristics (as completed) | |
| Class and type: | Urakaze-class destroyer |
| Displacement: | 922 metric tons (907 long tons) |
| Length: | 87.59 m (287 ft 4 in) |
| Beam: | 8.38 m (27 ft 6 in) |
| Draft: | 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) |
| Installed power: |
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| Propulsion: | 2 shafts, 2 steam turbines |
| Speed: | 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) |
| Range: | 2,180 nmi (4,040 km; 2,510 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Complement: | 5 officers and 113 enlisted men |
| Armament: |
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The Italian destroyer Audace was originally ordered by Japan from Yarrow Shipbuilders in Scotland under the name of Kawakaze, but was transferred to Italy in 1916 while still under construction. She served as the command ship for the radio-controlled target ship San Marco in 1937–40 and then was rearmed for convoy escort and patrolling duties when World War II began. Audace was captured by the Germans in 1943 and used by them as a minelayer and escort ship in the Adriatic Sea until she was sunk by a pair of British destroyers in late 1944.
Audace had a length between perpendiculars of 83.9 meters (275 ft 3 in) and an overall length of 87.59 meters (287 ft 4 in). She had a beam of 8.38 meters (27 ft 6 in) and a draft of 2.5 meters (8 ft 2 in). The ship displaced 922 metric tons (907 long tons) at normal load, and 1,170 metric tons (1,150 long tons) at deep load. Her complement was 5 officers and 113 enlisted men.
The ship was powered by two Brown-Curtis steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft using steam supplied by 3 Yarrow boilers. Designed for a maximum output of 22,000 shaft horsepower (16,000 kW) and a speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph), Audace handily exceeded this, reaching a speed of 34.5 knots (63.9 km/h; 39.7 mph) during her sea trials while lightly loaded. Her intended German-built diesel cruising engines were not delivered because of the war. She had a cruising range of 2,180 nautical miles (4,040 km; 2,510 mi) at a speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) and 560 nautical miles (1,040 km; 640 mi) at a speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph).
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