Shch-311 was a Series V-bis-2 Shchuka of the Baltic Fleet
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Class overview | |
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Operators: | Soviet Navy |
Preceded by: | Leninets class |
Succeeded by: | Pravda class |
In service: | 1932 |
In commission: | - 1956 |
Completed: | 88 |
Lost: | 35 |
General characteristics | |
Type: | Submarine |
Displacement: |
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Length: | 57 m (187 ft 0 in) |
Beam: | 6.2 m (20 ft 4 in) |
Draught: | 3.78 m (12 ft 5 in) |
Propulsion: | 2 shaft diesel electric, 1,020 kW (1,370 hp) diesel, 600 kW (800 hp) electric |
Speed: |
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Range: | 6,000 nmi (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) |
Test depth: | 91 m (300 ft) |
Complement: | 38 |
Armament: |
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The Shchuka-class submarines (Russian: Щука), also referred to as Sh or Shch-class submarines, were a medium-sized class of Soviet submarines, built in large numbers and used during World War II. "Shchuka" is Russian for pike. Of this class, only two submarines (411 and 412) entered service after 1945, although they were launched before the war.
On 23 January 1930, the USSR Revolutionary Military Council (Revvoensoviet) adapted a proposed submarine concept that were to "execute positioning service on closed theatres". Plans were made to construct up to 200 submarines in three main versions, the later ones would be larger and with longer range than the previous versions. However, due to the outbreak of World War II, only 88 submarines were commissioned. It was still to be the second most numerous submarine class of the Soviet Navy (only the M class were more numerous with 111 built). Seven ship construction yards were involved in the program - No. 189, 190, 194 in Leningrad, No. 112 in Gorky, No. 200 in Nikolaev and No. 202 in Vladivostok.
The name of the class was taken from the individual name of the first submarine Shch-301 Shchuka. Their numbering depended on which Soviet fleet they belonged to: the 100-series belonged to the Pacific Fleet, the 200-series to the Black Sea Fleet, the 300-series to the Baltic Fleet, and the 400-series to the Northern Fleet. There were however some special cases, i.e. the Northern Fleet submarine Shch-424 was renamed Shch-321 when she was transferred to the Baltic Fleet via the Stalin Canal (and later renamed back to Shch-424 when returning). The conning tower had brass symbols as identifiers (Щ-XXX, where the XXX is the number).