Daily Kennebec journal., 1912-02-03
British Submarine 'A3'
Sinks off Portsmouth,
After Being in Collision With
The GunbOat Hazard.
Craft Lies on Princess ShoaI, Scene
OF Similar Tragedy.

Portsmouth, Eng, Feb. 2.-Another
OF the unfortunate Class A subma-
rines in the British navy, two of
which have sunk in recent years and
on board two others of which various
members of their crews have been
killed or injured by explosions, went
to the bottom of the sea, today, at
the entrance to Spithead, with a loss
OF II lives-four lieutenants and 10 of
the crew. Not one of the ships COM
pany escaped.
The catastrophe was the result of a
collision with the British gunboat
Hazard, which rent a hole in the side
of submarine A3. The submarine was
engaged with a fiotilla of sister ships
in praeticing evolutions and was COM
ing 70 the surface after a dive when
the Hazard, proceeding at good rate
OF speed. struck her.
The submarine filled and sank in
stantly. Plenty of assistance was
speedily at hand by means of WIRE
less calls from the Hazard, but from
the first moment of the collision there
was no hope of saving any of the
men on board the A3. Under admiral
ty regulat tions only the bare official re-
port Cf the sinking of the submarine
is available and it Is not known yet
where the blame, If there be blame,
for the accident lies None of those
who witnessed the disaster will be per-
mitted to speak of it until after the
official inquiry.
Late, today, the salvagers located
the sunken submarine lying on the
sandy bottom off Spithead some 40
feet down. Owing to the darkness,
however. they suspended operations
for the night. Tomorrow morning, they
viii make an effort to raise the little
vessel.
A3 belonged to the early type of
submarines which is practically obso-
lete except for coast and harbor de-
fence work.
King George and Emperor William
sent kilograms of regret and sympa-
thy to the families of the victims, this
evening.
Portsmouth, Eng, Feb. 2.-The to-
tai loss, this morning, of the British
submarine "A3" with the whole of her
crew, after collision with the gunboat
Hazard, adds another to the long list
of similar accidents which in recent
years have thrown the British navy
and nation into mourning. The crew
of IL men on board the little vessel.
which is one of the older class, was
composed of volunteers from the men
of the fleet as is the case with the
compliments of all submarines. The
men, in spite of the hazardous nature
of the service, like the work and vol
unteer in large numbers to be detail-
ed to the submarine fiotillas.
Many submarines are stationed at
Portsmouth from which port they con-
stantly go out for diving and torpedo
practice in the roads and a number of
fatal accidents have occurred in the
vicinity.
Besides the regular crew of 10 men.
and a lieutenant, who were on board
the "A3e, the admiralty states that
three other lieutenants were on the
vessel going through course of in
struction and were drowned, making
a total of IA deaths.
Torpedo practice had been in prog
ress for some time and the submarine
"A3" was partially submerged when
she came into collision with the gun
boat Hazard. The gunboat was steam
ing at fairly high rate of speed and
when she struck the submarine her
bows cut big rent in the little ves-
sells side. AS the "A3" settled down.
which she did in few moments and
then disappeared, air and gas bubbles
appearing on the surface, told the
crew of the Hazard that she was fill
ing with water.
1t was practically certain that the
fate of the two officers and nine men
of whom her crew was composed, was
sealed. The Hazard launched boats
in case any of the men should succeed
in escaping but none of them came to
the surface.
The submarine lies on the Princess
Shoal, almost ON the spot where the
submarine "A1" was lost with ALI