Aldebaran class R boat
Class overview
NameRäumboote or Minenräumboote
BuildersAbeking & Rasmussen
Operators
Subclasses
General characteristics
TypeMinesweeper
Displacement160 t (max)
Length41.1 m (134 ft 10 in)
Beam5.80 m (19 ft 0 in)
Draught1.60 m (5 ft 3 in)
Propulsion2x MAN diesel engines; 1,836 hp
Speed20 kn (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range1,100 NM (2,000 km)
Complementup to 38
Armament

The R boats (Räumboote in German, literally "clearing boats", meaning minesweepers) were a group of small naval vessels built as minesweepers for the Kriegsmarine (German navy) before and during the Second World War. They were used for several purposes during the war, and were also used post-war by the German Mine Sweeping Administration for clearing naval mines.

Twenty-four boats were transferred back to the post-war German Navy (the Bundesmarine) in 1956 and remained in service until the late 1960s.

In 1954, the Indonesian Navy ordered 10 ships of a modified R-boat design (the Pulau Rau-class) from Abeking & Rasmussen in West Germany.[1]

Design and construction

The R boats were nine classes of motor minesweepers built for the Nazi German Navy (the Kriegsmarine) from 1929 to the end of World War II. They had standard displacements ranging from 60 to 160 tons and were from 37 to 41 meters in length. Originally armed with one to two 20mm guns they were up-gunned during the conflict, typically to carry six 20mm guns. The classes from R-41 onwards carried an additional 37mm cannon. The R301 group were also armed with two torpedo tubes and re-designated escort minesweepers. Two groups of R-boat, the R-17 and the R-130 classes, were equipped with Voith Schneider Propellers for increased manouverability. Some 424 R-boats were built, by specialist shipbuilders Lürssen, of Bremen-Vegesack; Abeking & Rasmussen, of Lemwerder; and Schlichting (de), of Travemünde.[2]

Operational use

World War II

A total of 424 boats were built for the Kriegsmarine before and during World War II. The German Navy used them in every theatre including the Baltic, Mediterranean, the Arctic and the Black Sea. In addition to its designed use as minesweepers, these boats were used for convoy escort, coastal patrol, minelaying and air-sea rescue.

Post-war

About 140 R boats survived the war and these were distributed amongst the Allies. Some were used by the German Mine Sweeping Administration (GMSA) to clear western Europe of naval mines. Twenty-four boats were transferred back to the post-war German Navy, the Bundesmarine, in 1956 and were used until the late 1960s. An unusual feature of these ships is the use of Voith Schneider Propellers on approximately one quarter of the boats for extra maneuverability.

Additionally, dozens of captured vessels from France, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Italy were used as foreign R-boats (R-boote Ausland) and were designated with RA-, RH- and RD- prefixes. A further 8 coastal motor fishing boats were designated as auxiliary R-boats and named R111-R118 in the 11th R-boat flotilla.

In Kriegsmarine service

R boat classes

Class Boats in class Displacement Length Breadth Builders[3] Notes
R1 R1–R16 60 long tons (61 t) 26.0 m 4.41 m Lürssen, Bremen-Vegesack
Abeking & Rasmussen, Lemwerder
Schlichting,(de) Travemünde		 Built 1929–34[4]
R17 R17–R24 115 tons 37.0 m 5.5 m Schlichting, Travemünde,
Abeking & Rasmussen		 Built 1934–38[5]
R25 R25–R40 110 tons 35.4 m 5.6 m Abeking & Rasmussen
Schlichting, Travemünde		 Built 1938–39[5]
R41 R41–R129 125 tons 37.8 m 5.8 m Abeking & Rasmussen
Schlichting, Travemünde		 Built 1939–43
R130 R130–150 150 tons 41.1 m 5.8 m Abeking & Rasmussen Built 1943–44[6]
R151 R151–217 125 tons 35.4 m 5.6 m Burmester (Burg Lesum) Built 1940–43
R218 R218–300 140 tons 39.2 m 5.7 m Burmester (Burg Lesum and Swinemünde)
Schlichting, Travemünde		 Built 1943–45; R271 and R291–300 unfinished at the end of the war;
R277-287 cancelled
R301 R301–312 160 tons 41.0 m 6.0 m Abeking & Rasmussen Built 1942–45; two 533 mm torpedo tubes added
R401 R401–448 140 tons 39.2 m 5.7 m Abeking & Rasmussen Launched 1943–45; mostly not completed at end of the war

R boat units

In the inter-war years and during the Second World War, a total of twenty Räumboots-Flottille (German for "Minesweeper Flotillas") were created. While most were dissolved late in the war or after the German surrender, a few were kept for use by the German Mine Sweeping Administration (GMSA) and dissolved post-war. An additional flotilla was created in the immediate post-war, also for use by the GMSA.[7]

In Bundesmarine service

In 1956 twenty-four vessels were re-fitted and returned to the newly-formed West German Navy, the Bundesmarine. These were the Aldebaran group, nine vessels of the R-41 class, the Capella group, thirteen vessels of the R-130 class, and the UW-6 group, four vessels of late-war construction.[8]

Aldebaran group

The Aldebaran group were nine vessels of the R-41 class. These were 38.7 meters in length, had a standard displacement of 125 tons, and were armed with one or two 20mm anti-aircraft guns.

NameR-numberBundesmarine
number		In serviceFate
  Aldebaran R-91 M10601956-72
  Algol R-99 M10611956-70
  Arkturus R-128 M10621956-68
  Altair R-76 M10631956-70
  Deneb R-127 M10641956-88
  Wega R-67 M-10691956-66
  Pegasus R-68 M10671956-70
  Skorpion R-120 M10681956-74
  UW-4 R-101  ? ?

Capella group

The Capella group were thirteen vessels of the R-130 class. These were 41.1 meters in length, had a standard displacement of 150 tons, and were equipped with 2 x Voight-Schnieder propellers. They were armed with one or two 20mm anti-aircraft guns.

NameR-numberBundesmarine
number		In serviceFate
Capella R-133 M10501956-72
Castor R-138 M10511956-58
Mars R-136 M10521956-67
Orion R-132 M10531956-68
  PolluxR-140 M10541956-70
  RegulusR-142 M10551956-68
  RigelR-135 M10561956-67
  SaturnR-146 M10571956-72
  SpicaR-147 M10591956-70
  SiriusR-144 M10581956-71
  JupiterR-137 M10651956-69
  MerkurR-134 M10661956-70
  UW-5R-150  ? ?

UW-6 group

The UW-6 group were four vessels of the R-218 and R-401 classes. They were 39.7 meters in length, and had a standard displacement of 140 tons.

NameR-numberBundesmarine
number		In serviceFate
  UW-6 R-408 .........
  OT-1 R-406 .........
  AT-1 R-266 .........
  AT-2 R-407 .........

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ "Australia Station Intelligence Summary, 20 August 1954" Archived 3 August 2019 at the Wayback Machine Navy.gov.au. Retrieved: 20 November 2020.
  2. ↑ Conway p.250-251
  3. ↑ Lenton 1975, pp. 330–331.
  4. ↑ Lenton 1975, p. 319.
  5. 1 2 Lenton 1975, p. 320.
  6. ↑ Lenton 1975, p. 321.
  7. ↑ "Räumboots-Flottillen". Lexikon der Wehrmacht, Räumboots-Flottillen (in German). Andreas Altenburger (webmaster). Retrieved 2014-05-04.
  8. ↑ Gardiner, Chumbley, p.

Bibliography

  • Blackman, Raymond V. B. (1960). Jane's Fighting Ships 1960–61. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co., Ltd.
  • Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946
  • Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen, eds. (1995). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland, US: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
  • Hervieux, Pierre "German Motor Minesweepers at War 1939–1945" in Warship 2002–2003, Conway's Maritime Press
  • Lenton, H. T. German Warships of the Second World War. London: Macdonald and Jane's, 1975. ISBN 0356-04661-3.

Online sources

Further reading

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