144-021 PERAL - WORLD'S FIRST ELECTRIC-POWERED SPAIN SUBMARINE

Peral was a Spanish submarine from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The keel for the vessel was laid in 1887, and its launch took place a year later. The entry into service took place in 1890. The length of the ship was 22 meters and a width of 2.9 meters. The underwater displacement reached approx. 85 tons, and the maximum speed underwater was approx. 3 knots. The on-board armament, at the time of launching, consisted of one 356 mm torpedo tube and two torpedoes on the so-called Schwarzkopf booms. The unit was constructed by the Spanish engineer Issac Perala, from whom it also took its name. The ship used ballast tanks and a vertically positioned propeller to change and stabilize its position on and under the water. The power was transferred to two propellers located in the aft part. It is fairly commonly accepted that Peral was one of the first or even the first electric submarine. She was also one of the first submarines to successfully launch a torpedo from an underwater position. Despite the fact that the Peral was a generally successful ship, and certainly met most of its constructor's assumptions, it was withdrawn from the Spanish Navy very quickly. Since 2013, it has been a museum ship.