SM U-16 (Austria-Hungary)
| History | |
|---|---|
| Austria-Hungary | |
| Name | SM U-16 |
| Ordered | 1 April 1915 |
| Builder | AG Weser, Bremen |
| Yard number | 233 |
| Laid down | April 1915 |
| Launched | 31 August 1915 |
| Completed | 30 September 1915 |
| Commissioned | 6 October 1915 |
| Fate | Sunk, 17 October 1916 |
| Service record | |
| Commanders: |
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| Victories: | |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | U-10-class submarine |
| Displacement | |
| Length |
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| Beam | 3.15 m (10 ft 4 in) |
| Draught | 3.03 m (9 ft 11 in) |
| Propulsion |
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| Speed |
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| Range |
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| Test depth | 50 m (160 ft) |
| Complement | 17 |
| Armament |
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SM U-16 or U-XVI was a U-10-class submarine or U-boat of the Austro-Hungarian Navy (German: Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine or K.u. K. Kriegsmarine) during World War I. U-16 was constructed in Germany and shipped by rail to Pola where she was assembled and completed in September 1915. She was commissioned in October 1915.
For most of her career, U-16 operated in the Adriatic out of Kotor patrolling off the Albanian coast. The U-boat sank one small sailing ship in November and seized another in December. U-16 carried Field Marshal Svetozar Borojević of the Austro-Hungarian Army as an observer while performing diving tests after engine repairs in January 1916. A water leak in March flooded U-16's batteries and put the U-boat out of action for about six weeks of repairs. While operating off Vlorë in mid-October 1916, U-16 sank an Italian destroyer acting as a convoy escort. U-16 was sunk in the ensuing action, but sources are not clear on the exact cause of her sinking. In all U-16 sank or captured three ships with a combined tonnage of 417. She was the only U-10-class submarine sunk during the war.