The New York herald., 1921-01-15

! CopWi0hf, iySI, w lHE NEW YORK nbRALD.
New York Herald Bureau.
Berlin, Jan. Ia.
A new principle in stability which
makes possible the protection of sub
marines with armor plate has been
discovered by Oswald Flamm, pro-
! fessor ordinarius in Charlottenburg
Technical College and one of Ger
many's foremost authorities on sub
marine construction.
It is anticipated by German naval
experts that Prof F1amm's discovery
| will lead to the building of submersible
armored warships of 10000 tons, with
| gun turrets on deck, torpedo tubes and
having a speed of twenty five nautical
miles an hour, with a cruising radius
of 10000 miles. Should these expecta-
tions be realized. naval warfare would
be revolutionzed and the building of
capital ships uperdreadnoughts and
battle cruisers--probably would be dis
continued.
An important English ship building
company has already taken out English
patents on Prof Flamms discovery and
| 1t also has been patented in both Hol-
land and Italy.
The invention was first offered to the
| United States, but the Americans de-
1 layed taking action.
Prof. Flamm received THE NEW YORK
| HERALD correspondent in his Office In the
Charlottenburg Technical College, but
declined to give an inkling OF his stabil-
| ity secret.
! .'It Is very simple and has nothing to
do with the gyroscope." he said. II do
not regard the gyroscope as serviceable,
because as device II is disastrous un-
less 1t runs pereptually, and there is no
way of guaranteeing this.
Removes Depth Bomb Peril.
! THE development of the submarine is
! bound up with the problem OF using
armor plate An armored submarine
would be immune to the guns of 81 mer-
chant vessel and even to those of light
cruisers Neither would II be 80 endan-
gered by depth bombs as Is an unar-
morcd underseas craft. Too, il could
risk breaking through a destroyer de-
fence with which dreadnoughts are now
| guarded in battle.
But an armored submarine would
| turn turtle unless stabilized. and. besides
! the gyroscopc. there has hitherto been
only one method Of stabilization known
that of balancing weight above the
water with weight below. However
this method must be eliminated because
ii cuts down speed"
Prof. Flamm made his discovery in
1918, and. therefore, he said IL had
been impossible to try 1t out in the Ger
man navy.
81 first offered my secret to America,
approaching persons in position to
deal authoritatively," he continued. "t
would have preferred that America ben
eft from It, I fail to understand why
nothing was ever done. Now patents
! have been taken out for me In three
! countries. / am too poor TO pay with
| German currency for my own patents
| abroad. a start with America might
! have been made with a few hundred
/ dollars, but that was more than l had
/ TO spend I feel that America, having
I the Philippines to defend. must see the
| Importance Of keeping abreast with all
| new experimentation, especially along
/ lines which may reduce tho cost OF her
navy and lead to change In naval
! methods
Completes Submarine Design.
Prof Flamm has finished detailed de-
signs for submarine of 1.I43 tons, ar
mored with thirty-five millimeter u 1-3
/ inch) plates. weighing 13i tors. and with
/ a protective expanse of $50 square me-
/ ters. The plans call for two l0la CEN
/ timeter @ inch) guns In turrets. one ut
/ each end OF the vessel, and with NOV
/ able deck torpedo tubes Us we'll as sta
I tionary tubes under the water line. This
I design calls for q surface speed or lihs
nautical miles an hour.
Also he has partially worked out
plans for the construction or supma-
rine OF 4,S70 tons and 121 meters long,
carrying two or four twenty -one cent?
meter (S inch) guns and with speed
of twenty-five nautical miles an hour.
He said he did not wish TO give exact
figures because OF the difficulty in esti-
mating net results before the problems
OF construction were solved. But he
said he hoped to build boat OF S.400
tons and one OF $500 tons with speed
OF twenty-eight nautical miles. armored
with plate sixty to seventy millimeters
(2b inches) thick and carrying -four
guns OF twenty-one or twenty-five cent?
meters
Z Prof Flamm makes no precise claim
for his invention. "All submarine devel-
opments are enriched by actual expe-
rience." he said. "and I must walt for a
service test before ! can be sure or the
success Of the designs as they are now
worked out"
Prof. Flamm is cooperating with lead
ing electrical and armament experts o'
such|flrms as the Krupps and Siemens
and Halslse in completing his designs.