SMS S33 (1914)
SMS "S33" was a V25-class large torpedo boat of the Imperial German Navy that served during the First World War. She was built by the Schichau-Werke shipyard in Elbing, East Prussia, being launched on 4 April 1914 and was completed in October that year. "S33" served with the German High Seas Fleet in the North Sea during the First World War, taking part in the Scarborough raid on 16 December 1914, the Lowestoft Raid on 24–25 April 1916 and the Battle of Jutland on 31 May–1 June 1916. She was sunk by the British submarine  in the North Sea on 3 October 1918. Construction and design. In 1913, the Imperial German Navy decided to build larger and more seaworthy torpedo boats in place of the smaller s that had been ordered in 1911 and 1912, which had not proved successful. The new, larger, designs would, as well as being more seaworthy, carry a heavier armament and would be oil-fueled only, rather than use the mix of oil- and coal-fueled boilers that German torpedo boats had used up to then. As was normal, orders were placed for a flotilla of 12 torpedo boats in  the 1913 fiscal year, with 6 each ordered from AG Vulcan ("V25"–"V30") and Schichau-Werke ("S31"–"S36"). The two groups of torpedo boats were of basically similar layout but differed in detailed design. The 1913 Schichau torpedo boats were long overall and at the waterline, with a beam of and a draught of . displacement was design and deep load. Three oil-fired water-tube boilers fed steam at at two sets of Schichau direct-drive steam turbines. The machinery was rated at and gave a design speed of . 220 t of oil was carried, giving a range of at . The ship  was armed with three 8.8 cm (3.4 in) L/45 guns and six 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes, with two single tubes forward and two twin tubes aft of the ship's funnels, with the twin tubes angled out by 15 degrees. Up to 24 mines could be carried. The ship had a crew of 83 officers and men. "S33", yard number 908, was launched on 4 April 1914 and was completed on 4 October that year. Service. On 15 December 1914 the German battlecruiser squadron under the command of Franz von Hipper set out on an attack on the  British east coast towns of Scarborough, Hartlepool, West Hartlepool and Whitby, with the intent of drawing out parts of the British Grand Fleet where it could be defeated in detail. "S33" was part of the escort for Hipper's heavy ships, but became detached from her flotilla, and after asking by radio (and failing to receive) a course to rejoin Hipper's force, turned back and set course for home at about 2:00am on 16 December. At about 4:00am, "S33" was approaching the Dogger bank when she encountered four British destroyers at close range (). "S33" was turned onto a parallel  course to the British destroyers with the hope that she would be mistaken for another British ship. She was not spotted by the British ships, and after 20 minutes steaming a parallel course, broke away and signaled by radio her sighting of the British ship. On 23 January 1915, a German force of Battlecruisers and light cruisers, escorted by torpedo boats, and commanded by Admiral Franz von Hipper, made a sortie to attack British fishing boats on the Dogger Bank. "G9", part of the 10th Half-Flotilla, formed part of the escort for Hipper's force. British Naval Intelligence was  warned of the raid by radio messages decoded by Room 40, and sent out the Battlecruiser Force from Rosyth, commanded by Admiral Beatty aboard and the Harwich Force of light cruisers and destroyers, to intercept the German force. The British and German Forces met on the morning of 24 January in the Battle of Dogger Bank. On sighting the British, Hipper ordered his ships to head south-east to escape the British, who set off in pursuit. The armoured cruiser was disabled by British shells and was sunk, but the rest of the German force escaped, with the German battlecruiser  and the British battlecruiser badly damaged. On 24–25 April 1916, Hipper's battlecruisers carried out another raid on the British coast, this time against Yarmouth and Lowestoft. "S33", as part of IX Torpedo Boat Flotilla, was part of the escort for Hipper's force. "S33" sailed as part of the 18th half-flotilla of IX Torpedo Boat Flotilla during the Battle of Jutland, again escorting Hipper's battlecruisers. IX Flotilla took part in a torpedo attack on the British battlecruisers during the "run to the south", which was disrupted by a simultaneous attack by British destroyers on the German battlecruisers . "S33" launched two torpedoes in this attack, both of which missed, and was in turn near missed by a British torpedo. After the battlecruiser was badly damaged by British shells, "S33", together with , , and screened "Lützow". "Lützow", sinking as a result of flooding, was scuttled during the night of 31 May/1 June. "S33" was again part of IX Flotilla when it took part in the action of 19 August 1916. Loss. On 3 October 1918, "S33" was on patrol in the North Sea off Terschelling with , and when "S34" struck a mine and sank. The other three torpedo boats went  to rescue the survivors of "S34"s crew, but these rescue operations were observed by the British submarine . "L10" torpedoed "S33", but inadvertently surfaced immediately afterwards and was engaged and sunk with all hands by "V28" and "V29". "S33" also sank, with the loss of five of her crew.