Panther (submarine)

"Panther" - a Russian submarine of the type "Bars" .

"Panther"
The modernized B-2 at the Admiralteyskaya embankment in Leningrad, 1935
Ship history
Flag state	Russia , RSFSR , the USSR
Port of registry	Revel , Kronstadt , Leningrad
Launching	1916
Withdrawn from the fleet	January 1940
Current status	cut into metal
Main characteristics
Type of ship	torpedo submarine
Project designation	type "leopard"
Chief Designer	I. G. Bubnov
Speed ​​(surface)	10 knots
Speed ​​(underwater)	8.5 knots
Working depth	46 m
Immersion depth	92 m
Crew	33 people
Dimensions
Surface displacement	650 tons
Underwater displacement	780 tons
The length is the greatest (on design basis)	68 m
The width of the body naib.	4.8 m
Average draft (on design basis)	3.8 m
Power point
Diesel-electric twin-shaft 2 diesel engines with a capacity of 250 hp 2 electric motors with a capacity of 450 hp
Armament
Artillery	1 gun of 75 mm caliber, 1 gun of 57 mm caliber
Torpedo mine weapons	2 bow and 2 feed TA 18-inch caliber (457 mm), 8 external TA systems Dzhevetskogo
Air defense	1 machine gun

It was launched at the beginning of 1916 , and on July 23 it entered service. During the years of the First World War, she made several campaigns, acting on sea lanes. During the February Revolution, the Panther’s crew, who was wintering in Reval, actively participated in rallies and mass demonstrations of workers, soldiers and sailors in the city streets. In February 1918, when the threat of capture by German forces hung over the ships of the Baltic Fleet, the submarine broke through from Revel to Helsingfors, and in April made the transition to Kronstadt.

As part of the current detachment of the Baltic Sea Fleet, the Panther repeatedly went to the Gulf of Finland during the Civil War to carry out reconnaissance and patrol services, and engaged in battles with ships of the English interventionists. July 23, 1919 went on reconnaissance of the Kopory Bay. At 11 hours 45 minutes she came to Koporye Bay and found there a large English submarine, which made trial dives. Soon a second smaller submarine was spotted. The Panther attacked the enemy submarines sequentially: first a torpedo was fired on the first, then on the second boat. From a large submarine, a Soviet boat was found and also a torpedo was fired at it ^[1] . After ascertaining the failure of the attack, the Panther commander repeatedly torpedoed a large boat, but again without effect. At 12.20 p.m. the Panther plunged, lost contact with the enemy and returned to Kronstadt on July 24 ^[2] .

The sharp activation of the British and Estonian naval forces forced the Red Baltic Fleet command to send submarines to the Koporskiy Bay area for operations against enemy surface ships. To accomplish this task, the Panther submarine was chosen under the command of the former Lieutenant of the Imperial Fleet, A. N. Bakhtin ^[3] . The former navigator of this submarine, the future academician and admiral A.I. Berg , was appointed commander of the Lynx submarine in August 1919, so the boat went on this campaign with a new navigator, A. I. Krasnov. On August 31, 1919 at 6 o’clock the Panther left Kronstadt harbor.

N. E. Bublikov and G.V. Gorshkov. “The submarine of the Baltic Fleet“ Panther ”sinking the English destroyer“ Vittoria ”off the island of Seskar. August 31, 1919 ”

At 14.30 a four-pipe destroyer was seen leaving the Kopory Bay from a submarine to the periscope. Bakhtin refused his attack, because he considered that the distance was too great and the Panther could be unmasked by a shot from a torpedo tube ^[2] . At 15.30, the destroyer disappeared from sight. By this time, the boat was already in the area of ​​the position provided for it by the plan of operations, and because of the hazy horizon plunged to great depths.

At 5 p.m. the Panther surfaced under the periscope, and Bakhtin noticed the same destroyer, which was moving at a slow speed; an hour later another English destroyer was discovered, this time a two-pipe ^[1] . Over the next hour, the boat made brief elevations to the periscopic depth, until both English ships anchored near the island of Cescar . Now Bakhtin decided to attack them and began a careful rapprochement with a goal.

At 21 hours 19 minutes two torpedoes from the nasal devices were fired one after another. To prevent the boat from being thrown to the surface, Bakhtin began an urgent dive. About half a minute after the first launch, a strong explosion was clearly heard on the boat, followed by shots. The boat departed from the attack site, literally drawing the bottom on the ground. At about one in the morning the Panther surfaced, but the rays of floodlights at Cescar made her immediately plunge. Only in the morning the boat was able to float unhindered. As reported by Bakhtin ^[2] :

By that time, the pressure in the boat had risen so much that the barometer needle went beyond the scale (over 815), the air was significantly spoiled, the match did not burn, the diesel engine was poorly taken and breathing was extremely difficult. The boat stayed under water for 28 hours without refreshing the air, which seems to be a record for our boats. About 75 miles were covered under water, therefore, almost the entire area of ​​the underwater passage was used.

By noon on September 1, the boat safely returned to base. The English fleet as a result of this attack lost the destroyer Vittoria , built in 1917 . The first torpedo passed the destroyer, the second hit the side of an English ship; “Vittoria” was enveloped in smoke and quickly went under water ^[4] . Its sinking was the first victory of the Soviet submariners ^[5] . The Revolutionary Military Council awarded 18 people from the crew of the boat with a nominal watch ^[4] . In 1923, A. N. Bakhtin was the first of the submariners to be awarded the Order of the Red Banner ^[4] .

On December 31, 1922 it was renamed the "Commissar", and on September 15, 1934 - in the "B-2". In 1920 and 1924 the boat got up on overhaul, and in 1933-1935. it was modernized. In January 1940, the Panther was withdrawn from service. But even after that, becoming a floating charge station, until 1955 she continued to serve. In 1955, the Panther was completely disarmed and commissioned for scrap metal.

At the request of the crew captain 2nd rank V.V. Mikhalchuk, with the assistance of the Council of Submarine Veterans, by order of the USSR Navy Commander-in-Chief V.N. Chernavin of October 10, 1990, in memory of the submarine, which opened the combat account of Soviet submariners in 1919, "Panther" assigned to the submarine K-317 .