page_title: SM UB-6
section_title: Design and construction
hierarchical_section_title: SM UB-6 / Design and construction
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: SM UB 13, in mehrere Teile zerlegt und auf Waggons verladen zum Versand nach Amsterdam
context_page_description: SM UB-6 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine was interned after running aground in neutral Dutch waters, and was scuttled by her crew at Hellevoetsluis.
  UB-6 was ordered in October 1914 and was laid down at the Germaniawerft shipyard in Kiel in November. UB-6 was a little more than 28 metres in length and displaced between 127 and 142 tonnes, depending on whether surfaced or submerged. She carried two torpedoes for her two bow torpedo tubes and was also armed with a deck-mounted machine gun. UB-6 was broken into sections and shipped by rail to Antwerp for reassembly. She was launched in March 1915 and commissioned as SM UB-6 in April.
  UB-6 spent her entire career in the Flanders Flotilla and sank HMS Recruit, the first warship credited to the flotilla in May 1915. Through September 1916, the U-boat accounted for fourteen additional ships sunk, two ships damaged, and one ship seized as a prize. On 12 March 1917, UB-6 ran aground near the Maas River in the Netherlands due to a navigational error by her commander; the submarine and crew were interned by the neutral country and taken to Hellevoetsluis.
context_section_description: After the German Army's rapid advance along the North Sea coast in the earliest stages of World War I, the German Imperial Navy found itself without suitable submarines that could be operated in the narrow and shallow seas off Flanders. Project 34, a design effort begun in mid-August 1914, produced the Type UB I design: a small submarine that could be shipped by rail to a port of operations and quickly assembled. Constrained by railroad size limitations, the UB I design called for a boat about 28 metres (92 ft) long and displacing about 125 tonnes (123 long tons) with two torpedo tubes. UB-6 was part of the initial allotment of eight submarines—numbered UB-1 to UB-8—ordered on 15 October from Germaniawerft of Kiel, just shy of two months after planning for the class began.
  UB-6 was laid down by Germaniawerft in Kiel on 22 November. As built, UB-6 was 28.10 metres (92 ft 2 in) long, 3.15 metres (10 ft 4 in) abeam, and had a draft of 3.03 metres (9 ft 11 in). She had a single 59-brake-horsepower (44 kW) Daimler 4-cylinder diesel engine for surface travel, and a single 119-shaft-horsepower (89 kW) Siemens-Schuckert electric motor for underwater travel, both attached to a single propeller shaft. Her top speeds were 6.47 knots (11.98 km/h; 7.45 mph), surfaced, and 5.51 knots (10.20 km/h; 6.34 mph), submerged. At more moderate speeds, she could sail up to 1,650 nautical miles (3,060 km; 1,900 mi) on the surface before refueling, and up to 45 nautical miles (83 km; 52 mi) submerged before recharging her batteries. Like all boats of the class, UB-6 was rated to a diving depth of 50 metres (160 ft), and could completely submerge in 33 seconds.
  UB-6 was armed with two 45-centimeter (17.7 in) torpedoes in two bow torpedo tubes. She was also outfitted for a single 8mm MG 08 Deck gun. UB-6's standard complement consisted of one officer and thirteen enlisted men.
  After work on UB-6 was complete at the Germaniwerft yard, UB-6 was readied for rail shipment. The process of shipping a UB I boat involved breaking the submarine down into what was essentially a knock down kit. Each boat was broken into approximately fifteen pieces and loaded onto eight railway flatcars. In early 1915, the sections of UB-6 were shipped to Antwerp for assembly in what was typically a two- to three-week process. After UB-6 was assembled and launched sometime in March, she was loaded on a barge and taken through canals to Bruges where she underwent trials.
caption: Railtransport of UB-I class U-Boat
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