French submarine Ondine (1931)
# French submarine Ondine (1931)

The French submarine Ondine was a submarine built for the French Navy between 1928 and 1931. Ordered in December 1927, it was laid down in August 1929, launched in May 1931 and commissioned in July 1932. On 3 July 1940, it was seized by the British while in Portsmouth. Ondine was stricken in April 1943 and dismantled for spare parts.

## Design

67 m (219 ft 10 in) long, with a beam of 6.2 m (20 ft 4 in) and a draught of 4.4 m (14 ft 5 in), Orion-class submarines could dive up to 80 m (260 ft). The submarine had a surfaced displacement of 558 tonnes (549 long tons) and a submerged displacement of 787 tonnes (775 long tons). Propulsion while surfaced was provided by two 1,400 hp (1,044 kW) diesel motors and two 1,000 hp (746 kW) electric motors. The submarines' electrical propulsion allowed it to attain speeds of 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) while submerged and 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) on the surface. Their surfaced range was 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) with a submerged range of 82 nautical miles (152 km) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h).

