HMS E49
HMS "E49" was an E-class submarine built by Swan Hunter, Wallsend for the Royal Navy. She was laid down on 15 February 1915 and was commissioned on 14 December 1916. "E49" was mined off the Shetland Islands on 12 March 1917. The minefield was laid by the German U-boat on 10 March 1917. There were no survivors. "E49" lies down with her bows blown off. Design. Like all post-"E8" British E-class submarines, "E49" had a displacement of at the surface and while submerged. She had a total length of and a beam of . She was  powered by two Vickers eight-cylinder two-stroke diesel engines and two electric motors. The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a submerged speed of . British E-class submarines had fuel capacities of of diesel and ranges of when travelling at . "E49" was capable of operating submerged for five hours when travelling at . "E49" was armed with a 12-pounder QF gun mounted forward of the conning tower. She had five 18 inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes, two in the bow, one either side amidships, and one in the stern; a total of 10 torpedoes were carried. E -Class submarines had wireless systems with power ratings; in some submarines, these were later upgraded to systems by removing a midship torpedo tube. Their maximum design depth was although in service some reached depths of below . Some submarines contained Fessenden oscillator systems. Memorial. A memorial to the 31 submariners lost in the sinking of E49 was unveiled in Baltasound, Unst, on 12 March 2017. The memorial was organised by retired local police constable Harry Edwards. The unveiling was attended by members of the crew of Royal Navy submarine HMS Vengeance (S31) and descendants of E49 First officer Basil Beal and  second-in-command Reay Parkinson.