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The United States' S-class submarines, often simply called S-boats (sometimes "Sugar" boats, after the Navy phonetic alphabet for "S"), were the first class of submarines built to a United States Navy design. (Note that many other navies had an "S class submarine;" see that disambiguation page for more information.)

The first S-boat, S-1 (SS-105), was commissioned in 1918 and the last, S-51 (SS-162), in 1925. The S class is subdivided into four groups of slightly different designs:

• Group I (S-1 class, or "Holland" boats): S-1 and S-18 through S-41, built by Bethlehem Steel at Quincy, Massachusetts, and San Francisco, California.
• Group II (S-2 class, or "Lake" boats): S-2 through S-17, built at the Portsmouth Navy Yard and Lake Torpedo Boat at Bridgeport, Connecticut.
• Group III (S-42 class): S-42 through S-47, built by Bethlehem Quincy.
• Group IV (S-48 class): S-48 through S-51, built by Bethlehem Quincy.

Three prototypes were built to the same specification, with competing Lake, EB, and Bureau of Construction and Repair (later Bureau of Ships) designs.^[1] The Lake boats were considered inferior, but second, improved groups of EB and BuC&R boats were built.

The United States Navy commissioned 48 S-Class submarines between 1920 and 1922. The first of the S-boats, S-1 was launched on 26 September 1918 at the Fore River Shipbuilding Company (Quincy),^[2] which was acting as subcontractor for Electric Boat, but not commissioned until 5 June 1920.

They were improvements over the O- and R-boats, with greater range, higher speed, and more torpedo reloads (but the same number of forward tubes, while a few later boats also had an additional stern tube.^[3] In 1923, S-1 experimented with a seaplane (an idea the Japanese would adopt); four like boats were provided to Peru in 1926-8.^[4]

Contents 1 Service 2 General characteristics 2.1 Group I 2.2 Group II 2.3 Group III 2.4 Group IV 3 S-boat fates 3.1 Lost at sea between wars 3.2 Scrapped between World War I and World War II 3.3 Transferred to the Royal Navy during World War II 3.4 Lost during World War II 4 Notes and references 5 See also 6 External links

These boats saw service in World War II in both the Atlantic and the Pacific. Smaller and slower than many of the submarines produced for war service, and lacking the range for Pacific Ocean patrols (as well as being 20 years old), they were used in reconnaissance and supply roles, as well as for coastal defense, such as during Alaska the aftermath of the Battle of the Aleutian Islands. They were withdrawn in mid-1943 as fleet submarines became available, and were relegated to ASW training. The majority of surviving boats were scrapped in 1946.

In World War II, they were the only boats which used the Mark 10 torpedo, a first world war relic, while other submarines deployed used the Mark 14 torpedo. The S-Class boats could not launch the longer Mark 14 torpedo due to its shorter torpedo tubes. However, as the Mark 14 suffered from a high dud-rate early in the war, this was not necessarily a disadvantage.

Some were transferred to other navies, such as the 6 given over to the British Royal Navy. These were mostly used for training in anti-submarine warfare and removed from service by mid-1944.

• Displacement: 854 tons surfaced; 1,062 tons submerged
• Length: 219 ft 3 in (67 m)
• Beam: 20 feet 9 inches (6.3 m)
• Draft: 16 feet (4.9 m)^[5]
• Propulsion: 2 x New London Ship and Engine Company (NELSECO) diesels, 1,200 hp (895 kW) each;^[6] 2 x Electro Dynamic (S-1, S-30-S-35), Ridgway (S-18, S-20 through S-29), or General Electric (S-36 through S-41) motors, 750 hp(550 kW) each;^[7] 120 cell Exide battery;^[8] two shafts
• Bunkerage: 168 tons oil fuel
• Speed: 14.5 knots (27 km/h) surfaced; 11 knots (20 km/h) submerged
• Range: 5,000 miles (8,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced
• Test depth: 200 ft (61 m)
• Armament (as built): four 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (bow, 12 torpedoes); 1 × 4 in (102 mm)/50 caliber deck gun
• Crew: 42 officers and men
• Boats in Group: S-1, S-18, S-20 through S-41

• Displacement: 876 tons surfaced; 1,092 tons submerged
• Length: 231 ft (70 m)
• Beam: 21 feet 9 inches (6.6 m)^[9]
• Draft: 13 feet (4 m)^[10]
• Propulsion: 2 x [[MAN AG|M.A.N]] (S-1 through S-13) or Busch Sulzer (S-14 through S-17) diesels, 1,000 hp (746 kW) each; 2 x Westinghouse motors, 600 hp (447 kW) each; 120-cell Exide battery;^[11] two shafts
• Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h) surfaced; 11 knots (20 km/h) submerged
• Bunkerage: 148 tons oil fuel^[12]
• Range: 5,000 nautical miles (9,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced
• Test depth: 200 ft (61 m)
• Armament (as built): four 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (bow, 12 torpedoes) or (S-11 through S-13) five (four forward, one aft, 14 torpedoes)^[13]; 1 × 4 in (102 mm)/50 caliber deck gun
• Crew: 42 officers and men
• Boats in Group: S-2, S-11 through S-17

• Displacement: 906 tons surfaced; 1,126 tons submerged
• Length: 216 ft (65.8 m) waterline, 225 ft 3 in (68.7 m) overall^[14]
• Beam: 20 feet 9 inches (6.3 m)^[15]
• Draft: 16 feet (4.9 m)^[16]
• Propulsion: 2 x New London Ship and Engine Co (NELSECO) diesels, 600 hp (448 kW) each;^[17]

2 x Electro Dynamic motors, 750 hp (559 kW) 550 kW) each;^[18] 120 cell Exide battery;^[19] two shafts

• Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h) surfaced; 11 knots (20 km/h) submerged
• Bunkerage: 185 tons oil fuel^[20]
• Range: 5,000 nautical miles (9,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced
• Test depth: 200 ft (61 m)
• Armament (as built): four 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (bow, 12 torpedoes); 1 × 4 in (102 mm)/50 caliber deck gun
• Crew: 42 officers and men
• Boats in Group: S-42 through S-47

• Displacement: 903 tons surfaced; 1230 tons submerged
• Length: 240 ft (73.2 m) waterline, 266ft (81 m) overall^[21]
• Beam: 21 feet 9 inches (6.6 m)^[22]
• Draft: 13 feet 6 in (4.1)^[23]
• Propulsion: 2 x Busch Sultzer diesels, 900 hp (670W) each; 2 x Ridgway motors, 750 hp(550 kW) each;^[24] 120 cell Exide battery;^[25] two shafts
• Bunkerage: 177 tons oil fuel^[26]
• Speed: 14.5 knots (27 km/h) surfaced; 11 knots (20 km/h) submerged
• Range: 8,000 nautical miles (15,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced
• Depth: 200 ft (61 m)
• Armament (as built): five 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (four forward, one aft, 14 torpedoes)^[27]; 1 × 4 in (102 mm)/50 caliber deck gun
• Crew: 42 officers and men
• Boats in Group: S-48 through S-51

All S-boats were scrapped after World War II except those listed below.

• S-4 (SS-109) - later raised, recommissioned, and served for a further three years before being finally scrapped
• S-5 (SS-110)
• S-51 (SS-162)

• S-2 (SS-106)
• S-3 (SS-107)
• S-6 (SS-111)
• S-10 (SS-115)
• S-19 (SS-124)
• S-50 (SS-161)

• S-1 (SS-105) to RN as P 552 in 1942, removed from service Jan 1944
• S-21 (SS-126) (as P 553)
• S-22 (SS-127) (as P 554)
• S-24 (SS-129) (as P 555)
• S-25 (SS-130) (as P 551, later transferred to the Polish Navy as Jastrzab)
• S-29 (SS-134) (as P 556)

• S-26 (SS-131) was destroyed in a collision with SC-460 in the Gulf of Panama 24 January 1942^[28]
• S-27 (SS-132), S-36 (SS-141), and S-39 (SS-144) were wrecked when they ran aground
• S-28 (SS-133) was wrecked 4 July 1944^[29] by a flooding casualty off Pearl Harbor
• S-44 (SS-155) was lost to enemy action
• S-49 (SS-160) foundered and sank in the Patuxent River; stricken and sold in 1931 for scrap company; reduced to hulk 1936; 1943 hulk reaquired by US NAVY for "experimental purposes".

• A picture

v • d • e S-class submarine
Prototypes	S-1 (Holland design) - S-2 (Lake design) - S-3 (Government design)
Government (S-3) Group	S-4 - S-5 - S-6 - S-7 - S-8 - S-9 - S-10 - S-11 - S-12 - S-13 - S-14 - S-15 - S-16
Holland (S-1) Group	S-17 - S-18 - S-19 - S-20 - S-21 - S-22 - S-23 - S-24 - S-25 - S-26 - S-27 - S-28 - S-29 - S-30 - S-31 - S-32 - S-33 - S-34 - S-35 - S-36 - S-37 - S-38 - S-39 - S-40 - S-41
Third (S-42) Group	S-42 - S-43 - S-44 - S-45 - S-46 - S-47
Fourth (S-48) Group	S-48 - S-49 - S-50 - S-51
List of submarines of the United States Navy | List of submarine classes of the United States Navy