Torpedo belt

The torpedo belt was part of the armouring scheme in some warships of between the 1920s and 1940s. It consisted of a series of lightly armoured compartments, extending laterally along a narrow belt that intersected the ship's waterline. In theory, this belt would absorb the explosions from torpedoes and thus minimize internal damage to the ship itself.

Torpedo belts are also known as Side Protection Systems or SPS, or Torpedo Defense System or TDS.

Armoured warships (dreadnought battleships, armoured cruisers and later light and heavy cruisers) of the early 20th century carried their main protective armour above the waterline – the "main belt" – which was intended to stop flat-trajectory gunfire from piercing the hull. Below the belt, the armour generally tapered away, to reduce overall weight. This, however, makes a ship vulnerable to hits below the waterline from torpedoes; and the occasional large-calibre shell. Extending the belt downwards is impractical, since this increases displacement and draft, reducing speed and seaworthiness.

Another solution was needed. Originally, torpedo nets were tried. These were heavy metal mesh nets hung out on booms at some distance from the sides of ships to catch or detonate torpedoes short of the ship. These proved largely ineffective since they could only be deployed when ships were stationary, were useless against shell hits below the waterline, and were ineffective against mines. Some ships were fitted with underwater armor in vulnerable areas below the waterline. This stopped torpedoes from penetrating the ship, but the shock from an underwater explosion could cause damage to weapon mountings and sensitive machinery, along with violently stressing the ships' structure. The German Imperial High Seas Fleet introduced torpedo belts with the first modern armored cruiser SMS Blücher and the simultaneous battleships of the Nassau-class since 1908. It was the only fleet during the duration of the First World War to do so.

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