River Gunboats
Page 36
With the reallocation of the former Austro-Hungarian vessels, Hungary lost all the river monitors, being left with the majority of the small armoured river patrol boats, as described below.
Drava
On 12 April 1941 Drava, then in Yugoslav hands, was sunk by Stuka dive bombers. In 1943, in an attempt to recover one of their former river monitors, the Hungarians carried out salvage operations with the wreck of Drava suspended between two lifting barges. The first attempt failed when the German hospital ship Hebe passed at high speed and her wash broke the lifting cables, but at the second attempt Drava was successfully raised and taken to the shipyard in Pest. Repairs were however thwarted when the Újpest railway bridge was bombed and fell onto the hull of Drava. This time the damage was fatal, and she was broken up for scrap.
Drava seen after her successful salvage. (Photo by Hebime on Website: http://live.warthunder.com/post/544374/en/)
120-TON RIVER PATROL BOATS
Having assembled together five out of the six original Austro-Hungarian 120-ton armoured river patrol boats, the Hungarians undertook a programme of modernisation over several years. In particular the armament of the 120-ton boats was continually upgraded. It was planned to convert them to diesel propulsion, but in the event only Sopron received her new engines.
Patrol boats armed with the 8cm L/18 turret gun on the Danube early in the Second World War. (Photo from Website: http://militaryhistory.x10.mx/ww2colorphotos/unclassified_02.htm)
Twin Gebauer machine guns, named for their Hungarian designer, here seen in one of the gun tubs which replaced the enclosed twin Schwarzlose turret behind the funnel on the patrol boats.
Szeged
In December 1918, Wels was interned in Belgrade by the Serbs who in January 1919 renamed her Bregalnica. However, on 18 April 1920 she was reallocated to Hungary as Szeged. The Hungarians rearmed her turrets with single 8cm (actually 75mm) 18.M L/30 guns. She had three 8mm Schwarzlose MG, one of which was placed on top of an elevated square crow’s nest, known to the Hungarian sailors as a ‘stork’s nest’. Her twin MG turret aft was next replaced by a new turret armed with a 20mm cannon and twin Gebauer MG, and by 1945 this turret had in turn been replaced by a Nimród tank turret armed with a 40mm Bofors. By then she had also received on top of her bridge, a turret from a Csaba armoured car, armed with a 20mm cannon and twin Gebauer MG. Surrendered to American troops in May 1945, she was broken up in 1949.
Szeged in early 1944.
Szeged in November 1944.
Baja
Barsch was also interned in Belgrade, and was temporarily renamed Neretva by the Serbs. On 18 April 1920 she was allocated to Austria under her old name Barsch. On 30 July Barsch was sold to Hungary in exchange for Siofok, and was renamed Baja. She retained her original armament (two twin 66mm guns in turrets fore and aft) and took no part in combat during the Second World War. It was planned to convert her to diesel propulsion but the conversion was never finished, and she was towed to Germany. Surrendered to American troops on 8 May 1945, Baja was used as an icebreaker on the Danube during the 1950s.
Györ
Compo was in Hungary after November 1918. On 18 April 1924 she was allocated to Austria but never entered service. On 6 October 1927 the Austrians sold her to Hungary, and she was renamed Györ. In 1929 she changed her 8cm L/18 guns for longer 8cm L/30 models. One of her three 8mm Schwarzlose MG was placed on a ‘stork’s nest’. Her twin MG turret was replaced by a new turret armed with a 20mm cannon and twin Gebauer MG, and by 1945 this turret had in turn been replaced by a 20mm Flakvierling. During the Second World War her main turrets were rearmed with 80mm Bofors DP guns, and in late 1944 Györ shot down an American B-24 Liberator bomber. Surrendered to American troops on 8 May 1945, she was broken up in 1949.
Györ in 1929, showing her single 8cm L/30 main turrets. Note the offset pivot mounting for her foremast, to allow it to fold flat under bridges. (Drawing by László Benczúr)
Györ in October 1944.
The waterline drawings in this chapter, unless otherwise designated, have been cut down from original plans by László Benczúr.
The aft turret of Györ with her new 8cm Bofors L/50 main armament. Her old turrets were sent to be mounted on an armoured train. Note the recoil and runout cylinders to control this relatively massive piece of ordnance inside such a small turret. One has to imagine the thoughts of the gunners among the crew lined up opposite this turret: they must be wondering if they will fit inside.
Kecskemét in 1944.
Kecskemét
Viza was also in Hungary after the Armistice, and the redistribution of the former Austro-Hungarian vessels confirmed her as Hungarian, under the new name of Kecskemét. She was rearmed with two 8cm (75mm) L/18 guns, the standard ‘stork’s nest’ with a single MG, and her aft twin MG turret replaced by the 20mm cannon and twin Gebauer MG mounting. By 1945 the latter mounting had been replaced by a 20mm Flakvierling, and the ‘stork’s nest’ by a single 20mm Flak on the bridge roof. Taken over by American troops on 8 May 1945, she was broken up in 1945.
Sopron
Stör was renamed Komárom in Hungarian service in January 1919, but on 18 April 1924 she was allocated to Austria and commissioned on 14 May 1921 under her old name. On 6 October 1927 she was sold by the Austrians to Hungary and renamed Sopron. She underwent the standard rearmament with 8cm L/30 guns, the ‘stork’s nest’ and 20mm plus twin Gebauer MG mount. She was the only patrol boat to be converted to diesel power, receiving two 800bhp diesel engines in place of her steam powerplant. This conversion not only gave her a higher speed, but the lighter weight of the diesels enabled a heavier armament to be carried. By December 1944 she carried a Nimród tank turret with 40mm Bofors, plus a single 20mm Flak and a 20mm Flakvierling. Surrendered in 1945, in 1949 Sopron became the tugboat Hertha, and was finally scrapped in 1966.
Sopron refitted with diesel engines.
Sopron in December 1944.
Debrecen
Finally, Lachs went to Hungary in January 1919 as Pozsony. In 1924 she was renamed Debrecen. Rearmed with 8cm L/18 turret guns, she received the standard ‘stork’s nest’ and replacement aft turret with the 20mm plus twin Gebauer MG. By 1944 the ‘stork’s nest’ had been removed, and the 20mm/MG turret replaced by a 20mm Flakvierling. On 25 November 1944 she was destroyed in action with Soviet T-34 tanks at Tököl. Hit several times, her fuel tank caught fire and she was burned out.
Debrecen in 1941–2.
Debrecen on 25 November 1944.
60-TON RIVER PATROL BOATS
Gödöllö and Siofok
On 15 April 1924, Fogas was allocated to Austria. On 6 October 1927 she was sold to Hungary and renamed Gödöllö. In reserve in 1935, she was recommissioned in 1941. It was planned to convert her to diesel propulsion, but while the work was under way, she was bombed and sunk by Soviet aircraft in 1944 at Ujpest.
On 15 April 1920 Csuka was allocated to Hungary and renamed Siofok. On 24 July 1929 she was sold to Austria and renamed Birago. Taken over by the Kriegsmarine in 1938, she was scrapped at Linz on 7 October 1939.
60-ton patrol boat Gödöllö. She was never rearmed, and took no part in the Second World War. (Drawing by László Benczúr)
Csuka in Hungarian service before being sold to Austria and renamed Birago. She is armed with a 66mm L/30.
Honved. (Drawing by László Benczúr)
Honved, Hüszar and Tüzér
These three similar armoured motor patrol boats were Russian captures, brought back from Odessa by the Austro-Hungarian Flotilla at the close of the Great War. In the 1930s their old Stirling petrol engines were replaced by Ganz-Jendrassek engines giving a total of 140bhp, raising their maximum speed to 13.5 knots. All three survived in Hungarian service into the Second World War, when Hüszar was lost to an internal explosion in 1942. The remaining two were stricken in or soon after 1945.
Launched:
Honved 1910 by Revinskiy, Odessa.
Dimensions:
Displ: 18 t
ons; L: 15.2m/49ft 10in; B: 3.05m/10ft; D: 0.70m/2ft 3½in.
Crew:
9.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; Stirling petrol engines, total 100bhp/11.5 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 8mm Schwarzlose MG; 1 × twin Gebauer MG/Belt, Turret and Conning tower 7mm; Deck 5mm.
Fate:
Stricken circa 1945.
Tüzér in 1942. (Drawing by László Benczúr)
The slightly smaller Hüszar was originally named Maria in Russian service; her sister Tüzér was the Russian Magda, both built in 1910 and captured in 1918.
Launched:
Hüszar, Tüzér, 1910 by Revinskiy, Odessa.
Dimensions:
Displ: 15 tons; L: 16m/52ft 6in; B: 2.75m/9ft; D: 0.61m/2ft.
Crew:
9.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; Stirling petrol engines, total 100bhp/11.5 knots.
Guns/Armour:
3 × 8mm Schwarzlose MG/Belt, Turret and Conning tower 7mm; Deck 5mm.
Fate:
Hüszar lost 1942; Tüzér stricken circa 1945.
PM Class
The Magyar Királyi Honvéd Folyami Er k (Royal Hungarian Army River Forces) operated the Patrol Boat Regiment. During the Second World War, the Hungarians began construction of a series of armoured river patrol boats, the PM class, which were intended to replace the captured Russian patrol boats. PM stood for Páncélos Motorcsónak (‘Armoured Motorboat’), and the series would continue in production after the war.
The prototype of the series, PM-1, was completed in 1940 with circular open-topped gun positions while awaiting development of a suitable rounded turret, and thus armed it took part in the invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941. When finally it was decided that the special turret would take too long to develop, a pair of Turán tank turrets were fitted instead. The sponsons beside the forward turret were armed with a Schwarzlose MG, and several other MG and 20mm anti-material rifles were carried internally. During the fighting between Hungarian and Soviet forces in 1944–5, on 25 November near Tököl PM-1 was hit by two shells from a T-34 tank, which killed six crew and wounded three others. She managed to get away to safety, but repairs included removing her central engine and replacing the wing engines with more powerful units. PM-1 surrendered to Allied forces at the end of the war, and her hull is still in existence at the time of writing, used as a mooring pontoon on the Danube near Passau.
The aft turret of PM-1. Note the tilting mantlet mounting the twin Gebauer MG, which is similar to that on the Italian tankettes supplied to the Hungarian Army. The main gun is a 40mm 42.M L/43, as used on the Toldi IIA and Toldi III tanks.
Inside the armoured bridge of PM-1.
PM-1 as finally completed with tank turrets. (Drawing by László Benczúr)
Launched:
PM-1 1940 by Danubius shipyard, Budapest.
Dimensions:
Displ: 38 tons; L: 28m/91ft 10in; B: 3.7m/12ft 1½in; D: 0.60m/1ft 11½in.
Crew:
16.
Power/Speed:
Triple screws; 3 × 160bhp Junkers diesel engines/20.5 knots. After November 1944: Twin screws; 2 × 210bhp diesel engines/13.5 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 40mm L/43 Škoda tank guns; 4 × 8mm MG/Belt: 13mm; Deck: 20mm; Turrets and CT: 40mm.
Fate:
Hulk still in existence.
The next two units, PM-2 and PM-3, were built to a slightly modified design, somewhat longer than the prototype, with only two shafts. One problem found with PM-1 was that the bows tended to rise at speed, obscuring the view from the low bridge. To overcome this, the following units were built with a high bridge tower behind the front turret. On top of this tower was placed the turret from a Csaba armoured car, armed with a 20mm cannon and a single Gebauer MG, similar to the turret fitted to the PAM-21 armoured minelayer. On 20 September 1944, during a test run, PM-2 was sunk by a bomb from an American plane. PM-3 sank in January 1945, but was raised in 1948. After repairs she entered service with the Hungarian Army Flotilla in 1949 under the designation PN-11, surviving until 1973. Of the planned sextet, sisters PM-4 and PM-5 were towed to Germany in an uncompleted state, and PM-6 was never laid down. It is possible that PM-4 and PM-5 were completed some years after the war as PN-21 and PN-22.
PM-2 with an additional turret, from a Csaba armoured car. Note the 82mm mortar in the well in the rear deck, echoing the howitzer arrangements on the old Austro-Hungarian monitor designs PAM-21.
Launched:
PM-2 and PM-3, Autumn 1944 by Danubius shipyard, Budapest.
Dimensions:
Displ: 38 tons; L: 32m/105ft; B: 3.7m/12ft 1½in; D: 1.10m/3ft 7in.
Crew:
16.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × 210bhp diesel engines/13.5 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 40mm L/43 Škoda tank guns; 1 × 20mm; 6 × 8mm MG; 1 × 82mm mortar/Belt, Deck, Conning tower, Csaba turret: 30mm; Turán turrets: 40mm.
Fate:
PM-2 bombed 1944; PM-3 rebuilt 1949 as PN-11, stricken 1973.
PN-21 and PN-22
It is possible these two vessels were the incomplete PM-4 and PM-5 towed away to Germany in 1945 and recovered after the war. During trials, PN-21 capsized and was lost in 1951 due to excessive topweight. Also it is probable the design was less stable following the deletion of the central engine. They carried 37mm Russian AA guns. PN-22 was stricken in 1973.
PN-31, PN-32 and PN-33
These were developments of the wartime PM-1 design, substantially heavier at 92 tons full load. Their two Endracek diesels producing a total of 900bhp drove them at 13.4 knots. They carried a pair of 37mm Russian AA guns apiece plus a 12.7mm HMG. All three were stricken in 1973.
PAM-21
To complement the PM class, Hungary also embarked on construction of a series of armoured minelayers, the PAM class. PAM stood for Páncélos Aknász Motorcsónak (‘Armoured Minelaying Boat’). Eight were laid down but only two would be completed.
PAM-21.
PAM-21 bridge and turret.
PAM-21 and PAM-22. (Drawing by László Benczúr)
These armoured minelayers bore a close family resemblance to the much larger PM series gunboats. Whereas the PM-1 mounted two Turán tank turrets, the PAM series had only one turret, from a Csaba armoured car. Another similarity was the wing embrasures each armed with a Schwarzlose MG. Both surrendered to American troops in May 1945, and both were sold into mercantile service.
Launched:
1944 by Danubius shipyard, Budapest.
Dimensions:
Displ: 28 tons full load; L: 21.6m/70ft 10in; B: 3.6m/11ft 9¾in; D: 0.80m/2ft 7½in.
Crew:
11.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × Mercedes-Lang diesel engines total 180bhp/16 knots.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 20mm 36.M; 4 × 8mm MG; 8 mines/Belt: 11mm; Deck: 8mm; Conning tower: 35mm; Turret: 9mm.
Fate:
Sold into commercial service 1945.
AN-1 Class
The first two of these small aluminium-hulled dual role minelaying/minesweeping boats were salvaged after the end of the Second World War, and commissioned in 1948 as AN-1 and AN-2. A further series of forty-five were built from 1953–6. Virtually all have now been stricken.
The hulk of either PAM-21 or PAM-22 photographed ‘somewhere in Hungary’ on 22 December 2016. (Photo by Péter Kosztolicz)
No 542-054 Baja seen during the Lajta inauguration ceremony in 2011. (Photo courtesy of Erwin Sieche)
Launched:
AN-1 and AN-2, 1948; 45 additional boats from 1953 to 1956, by Balatoni Hajozasi, Balatonfüred.
Dimensions:
Displ: 12 tons full load; L: 13.4m/43ft 11½in; B: 3.8m/12ft 5½in; D: 0.60m/1ft 11½in.
Crew:
7.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × 110bhp diesel engines/9 knots. Baja and Ercsi: 2 × Volvo Pen
ta Diesels total 380bhp/19 knots.
Guns/Armour:
1 × twin 12.7mm HMG or 1 × single 12.7mm HMG; 2 to 4 ground mines.
Fate:
All disposed of.
Neštin Class
To operate as part of the Home Defence Pyrotechnician and Warship Battalion, Hungary purchased six vessels of the Neštin class from Serbia. For details, see SERBIA.
TAILPIECE
Lajta ready to come home. For details, see AUSTRIA-HUNGARY. (Photo courtesy of Erwin Sieche)
IRAQ
Iraq was a British protectorate between the World Wars, but nominally a kingdom. The Iraqi Navy possessed only four small symbolic gunboats, suitable for work on the Tigris and Euphrates.
Much later, when Iraq had gained its independence, the Soviet Union supplied five of the Grif/Zhuk class patrol boats. Yugoslavia sold to Iraq three Neštin class vessels, nominally river minesweepers, but being armed with six 20mm cannon, they could double as gunboats.
One Iraqi gunboat was destroyed during the Iraq-Iran War, but most fell victim to Allied air attack during the Gulf War. After 1991 the survivors were mainly deployed guarding Saddam Hussein’s palaces on the Tigris. By the end of the invasion of Iraq in 2003, all had gone. Since then, the Iraqi Navy has been rebuilt with US aid, primarily to guard offshore oil installations, and has no riverine force.