35-016 SCHWERTWAL-I GERMAN MIDGET SUBMARINE WWII

Schwertwal I was a prototype German miniature submarine from the Second World War. The only prototype of this ship was built at the turn of 1944/1945 or at the beginning of 1945. The estimated underwater maximum speed was to be a minimum of 20 knots. The ship was armed with two G-7 torpedoes. The idea to create a ship, which was later created as a prototype Schwertwal I, was born in 1943. It assumed the creation of the fastest possible miniature U-boat designed to fight enemy submarines. Originally, the project was codenamed U-bootjäger. It was also intended to use a drive based on solutions developed by Helmut Walter based on the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. Finally, a prototype of a ship with good hydrodynamic properties was created, with a drive based on Walter solutions and a crew consisting of two people. However, the unit was not used in combat, and its only specimen was intercepted by the British, who subjected it to extensive testing before being scrapped.