Pintle upper rudder
The wreck could have been a rare type of German submarine lost under tow after 1918 , but then Tim ’ s photograph of the enclosed propeller shafts changed everything . That was not a feature of German design - it had to be British . Perhaps a D or E Class vessel – but which one ? The British end of the team went to the pub in Brixham to celebrate an exhilarating day ’ s diving .
Finally , an answer ...
While the rest of us slept , Michael found the answer – HMS D1 . A hugely significant boat and arguably the Royal Navy ’ s first modern submarine .
Before D1 , British submarines were short range and defensive vessels . D1 was the prototype long range attack boat , the first intended to patrol in enemy waters . She was the first to be designed with diesel engines from the outset , with saddle tanks for buoyancy and a stern torpedo tube . Later , she was also the first to have a transmitting wireless fitted . So what was she doing in Lyme Bay ?
D1 was launched in great secrecy in 1908 , but by 1918 the Royal Navy had many more capable boats . On 23 October , she was towed out to sea and sunk as a training target for airships to practice antisubmarine warfare . Then , it seems she was
PHOTO : RICK AYRTON
PHOTO : TIM WALLIS
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The scrubbed propeller