Italian submarine F20

F20 underway sometime in the 1920s.
History
Italy
NameF20
BuilderFIAT-San Giorgio, La Spezia, Italy
Laid down10 September 1915
Launched17 March 1918
Commissioned7 June 1918
Decommissioned1 July 1935
Stricken1 July 1935
IdentificationPennant number F20
MottoPorto armi sicure e cuori forti ("I carry safe weapons and strong hearts")
FateScrapped
General characteristics
Class & typeF-class submarine
Displacement
  • 262 long tons (266 t) (surfaced)
  • 319 long tons (324 t) (submerged)
Length
Beam4.2 m (13 ft 9 in)
Draught3.1 m (10 ft 2 in)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 12.5 knots (23.2 km/h; 14.4 mph) (surfaced)
  • 8.2 knots (15.2 km/h; 9.4 mph) (submerged)
Range
  • 1,600 nmi (3,000 km; 1,800 mi) at 8.5 knots (15.7 km/h; 9.8 mph) (surfaced)
  • 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) (submerged)
Test depth45 metres (148 feet)
Complement26 (2 officers, 24 men)
Armament
NotesSOURCE:

F20 was an F-class submarine in commission in the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) from 1918 to 1935. She took part in the Adriatic Campaign of World War I.

Design

Construction and commissioning

In June 1915, FIAT-San Giorgio laid down an F-class submarine for the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) at La Spezia, Italy. Originally designated F20, that submarine was sold to Portugal and entered service in the Portuguese Navy as NRP Golfinho.

To replace the first F20, the Regia Marina ordered a second submarine also designated F20. FIAT-San Giorgio laid down the second F20 at La Spezia on 10 September 1915. She was launched on 17 March 1918 and commissioned into service in the Regia Marina as F20 on 7 June 1918.

Service history

In August 1918, the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) assigned F20 to the Brindisi Submarine Squadron for operations in the southern Adriatic Sea during the Adriatic Campaign of World War I. Before the war ended in November 1918, she had carried out three war patrols along the coast of Austria-Hungary, but without significant results.

At the end of World War I, F20 was transferred to the Venice Maritime Command for operations in the northern Adriatic Sea. She returned to the Brindisi Submarine Squadron in April 1919, but was transferred to Naples in May 1919. In February 1923 she was transferred to the 3rd Squadron of the 2nd Submarine Flotilla at Taranto. She participated in the naval maneuvers of 1925 and 1926.

F20 was placed in reserve in January 1927. She was decommissioned and stricken from the navy list on 1 July 1935. She subsequently was scrapped.

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Regi Sommergibili F19-F20-F21" [Royal Submarines F19-F20-F21]. Grupsom (in Italian). Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Conway's 1906–1921 1985, p. 277.
  3. 1 2 Conway's 1922–1946 1980, p. 288.
  4. 1 2 sonar (28 February 2008). "Classe F (1915)" [F Class (1915)]. Betasom - XI Gruppo Sommergibili Atlantici (in Italian). Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "F 20". marina.difesa.it (in Italian). Marina Militare. Retrieved 11 September 2026.

Bibliography