Whitehead Mark 1 torpedo

The Whitehead Mark 1 torpedo was the first Whitehead torpedo adopted by the United States Navy for use in an anti-surface ship role after the E. W. Bliss Company of Brooklyn, New York secured manufacturing rights in 1892. The US Navy made an initial acquisition of 100 Mark 1s, which, by the time they entered American service, were faster, had longer range and carried a larger warhead than Robert Whitehead's earlier models.[2]

Whitehead Mark 1 torpedo
Whitehead torpedo mechanism, published 1891
TypeAnti-surface ship torpedo[1]
Place of originAustria-Hungary
Service history
In service1894–1913[1]
Used by United States Navy[2]
Production history
DesignerRobert Whitehead
Designed1892[1]
ManufacturerTorpedofabrik Whitehead & Co.[3]
E. W. Bliss Company
No. built100[4]
VariantsWhitehead Mk 1B[5]
Specifications
Mass845 pounds[6]
Length140 inches (3.55 meters)[6]
Diameter17.7 inches (45 centimeters)[6]
Effective firing range800 yards[1]
Warheadwet guncotton[6]
Warhead weight118.5 lbs[6]
Detonation
mechanism
War Nose Mk 1 contact exploder[1]
Engine3-cylinder reciprocating
Maximum speed 26.5 knots[1]
Guidance
system
depth control[1]
Launch
platform
battleships, cruisers, and torpedo boats[1]

Characteristics

The Mark 1 was ordinarily assembled into three sections: the warhead, the air flask and the after-body. The warhead's charge of dry guncotton weighed 98 3/4 pounds plus 20% water. The Mark 1 was what was known as a "cold-running" torpedo.[1] The three-cylinder reciprocating engine ran on cold, compressed air which was stored in the air flask, which had a capacity of 7.154 cubic feet at 1350 pounds per square inch. The after-body carried the engine and the tail, which contained the propellers.[6]

The Mark 1 guidance component included the Pendulum-and-hydrostat control device which was called the "Whitehead Secret". This version of the Whitehead torpedo lacked the gyroscope gear designed by Ludwig Obry, which was incorporated in a later Whitehead model, the Mark 3.

The Mark 1 was launched from battleships and torpedo boats.

See also

References
  1. "Torpedo History: Whitehead Torpedo Mk1". Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  2. "Artifact Spotlight: Whitehead torpedo" (PDF). Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  3. "Chronology: Torpedo in Word and Picture". Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  4. "United States of America Torpedoes Pre-World War II". Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  5. Silverstone, Paul (2006). The New Navy, 1883-1922. Taylor & Francis Group. pp. xxiii. ISBN 0-415-97871-8.
  6. The Whitehead Torpedo:. Bureau of Ordnance, United States Navy. 1898.

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