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HMS ''Thetis'' (N25) was a Group 1 T-class submarine of the Royal Navy which served under two names. Under her first identity, HMS ''Thetis'', she commenced sea trials on 4 March 1939. She sank during trials on 1 June 1939 with the loss of 99 lives. She was salvaged, repaired and recommissioned as HMS ''Thunderbolt'' serving in the Atlantic and Mediterranean theatres until she was lost with all hands on 14 March 1943.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 work= uboat.net )〕 This makes ''Thetis'' one of the few military vessels that have been lost twice with her crew in their service history. ==HMS ''Thetis''== ''Thetis'' was built by Cammell Laird in Birkenhead, England and launched on 29 June 1938. After completion, trials were delayed because the forward hydroplanes jammed, but eventually started in Liverpool Bay under Lieutenant Commander Guy Bolus. ''Thetis'' left Birkenhead for Liverpool Bay to conduct her final diving trials, accompanied by the tug ''Grebe Cock''. As well as her normal complement of 59 men she was carrying technical observers from Cammell Laird and other naval personnel, a total of 103 men. The first dive was attempted at about 14:00 on 1 June 1939. The submarine was too light to dive, so a survey of the water in the various tanks on board was made. One of the checks was whether the internal torpedo tubes were flooded. Lieutenant Frederick Woods, the torpedo officer, opened the test cocks on the tubes. Unfortunately, the test cock on tube number 5 was blocked by some enamel paint so no water flowed out even though the bow cap was open. Prickers to clear the test cocks had been provided but they were not used. This combined with a confusing layout of the bow cap indicators — they were arranged in a vertical line with 5 at the bottom (2,1,4,3,6, and then 5) and the "Shut" position for tube 5 on the dial was the mirror image of tube 6 above it — led to the inner door of the tube being opened. The inrush of water caused the bow of the submarine to sink to the seabed below the surface. How the outer door (bow cap) to Tube 5 became open to the sea is a question that will probably never be answered, Woods maintained that until at least 10 minutes before he opened the tube all the indicators were at "Shut".〔Booth, Tony "Thetis Down - The Slow Death of a Submarine, 2008〕 An indicator buoy was released and smoke candle fired. By 16:00, ''Grebe Cock'' was becoming concerned for the safety of ''Thetis'' and radioed HMS ''Dolphin'' submarine base at Gosport. A search was immediately instigated.〔(Submarine losses 1904 to present day ), RN Submarine Museum, Gosport〕 Although the stern remained on the surface, only three RN personnel (Lieutenant Woods, Captain Oram and Leading Stoker Arnold) and one Cammell Laird man escaped before the rest were overcome by carbon dioxide poisoning caused by the crowded conditions, the increased atmospheric pressure and a delay of 20 hours before the evacuation started. Ninety-nine lives were lost in the incident: 51 crew members, 26 Cammell Laird employees, 8 other naval officers, 7 Admiralty overseeing officers, 4 Vickers-Armstrong employees, 2 caterers and a Mersey pilot.〔Booth, Tony "Thetis Down - The Slow Death of a Submarine, 2008〕 The crew waited before abandoning the vessel until it had been discovered by the destroyer , which had been sent to search for it and which indicated her presence by dropping small explosive charges into the water. In order to effect an escape from the stricken vessel, the escaping crew were required to enter the submarine’s only escape chamber, which can only accommodate one person at a time. As the pressure outside the submarine is greater than the pressure inside, this must be equalised before the outer door of the escape chamber is opened. The escape chamber is flooded with the occupant having to wait until the chamber is completely full of water. Only then will the pressure within the escape chamber be equal to the outside sea pressure. In the case of HMS ''Thetis'', 4 members of the ship’s company, three RN personnel (Lieutenant Woods, Captain Oram and Leading Stoker Arnold) and one Cammell Laird’s employee successfully used the escape chamber. During the 5th attempt to escape the occupant of the chamber panicked and tried to open the outer escape hatch before the chamber had completely flooded. As a result, the increased pressure outside the submarine caused an in-rush of sea water, thus drowning the escapee. Because the outer escape hatch remained partially open it rendered the escape chamber inoperative, preventing the escape of any other crew members. The incident attracted legal action from one of the widows, who brought a claim of negligence against the shipbuilders, for not removing the material blocking the valve.〔Duncan v Cammell Laird () AC 624〕 Unfortunately for her the Admiralty successfully invoked Crown Privilege (now termed Public Interest Immunity) and blocked the disclosure of, amongst other items, 'the contract for the hull and machinery of ''Thetis as evidence in court, on the basis that to do so would be 'injurious to the public interest'.〔Roberts, David '' HMS ''THETIS'' - Secrets & Scandal''〕 The case is one of interest in English law, as the judges in this case accepted the Admiralty's claim on face value with no scrutiny, a ruling later overturned. The Liverpool & Glasgow Salvage Association were commissioned to salvage the sunken submarine. On completion of the salvage operation the bell from ''Thetis'' was presented to the Liverpool & Glasgow Salvage Association by the Admiralty. One further fatality occurred during salvage operations, when Diver Petty Officer Henry Otho Perdue died from "the bends" on 23 August 1939. On Sunday 3 September, ''Thetis'' was intentionally grounded ashore at Traeth Bychan, Anglesey. It was the same day that war was declared. Human remains that had not already been removed by the salvage team were now brought out to a Naval funeral, with full honours. The loss went beyond that of a submarine's crew. Among the dead were two naval constructors and several of the submarine team from Cammell-Laird; experienced designers and builders of submarines who would have been needed during the war.〔Brown DK, ''Nelson to Vanguard'' p113〕 The ''Thetis'' disaster was in marked contrast to the successful rescue of the survivors of , which had sunk off the coast of New Hampshire just a week previously. Frederick Woods remained in the Royal Navy as an officer in the surface fleet. He was killed in a car accident in 1947.〔BBC Northwest TV documentary "Death in the Bay" (2000)〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「HMS Thetis (N25)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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