Military Power

Please list your thoughts on the top 10 Subs of all time. Please tell what criterion you used in the determining of your top 10.

Let's see if I can make a decent list here. This is the way I'll have to go...

10) Type XXI U-boat - The Allies were fortunate that the Type XXI U-boat arrived too late to see combat. Had it been deployed before the end of war, it could have had a devastating impact on the Battle of the Atlantic. The Type XXI had numerous advanced features for its time, including high-capacity batteries that enabled it to remain underwater for days, a streamlined hull, and a snorkel to recharge the batteries while underwater. The fact that it came too late to see combat causes it to only make #10.

9) Sentoku Class - A submarine that's an aircraft carrier seems like mating a fish and an elephant, but that didn't stop several navies from trying. The IJN's Sentoku Class of World War II were 6,500 tons. The three Sentoku boats each carried three torpedo-equipped floatplanes that would be launched by catapult, and then ditch in the water upon their return. The very small number and ultimate dismissal of the entire idea cause this one to come in at #9.

8) Typhoon Class - Soviet-built Typhoons are the largest submarines in the world, weighing in at 48,000 tons (a U.S. Ohio-class ballistic missile sub weighs less than 20,000 tons). Despite its size, the six Typhoons that were built were surprisingly quiet and hard to detect. They carried 20 ballistic missiles equipped with multiple nuclear warheads, as well as anti-ship guided missiles and torpedoes. They also featured multiple pressure hulls for greater strength. The fact that there were only 6 ever built puts it low on the list.

7) Seawolf Class - At more than $4 billion each, they were the most expensive in history. But they were designed for a mission that brooked no failure; stalk and destroy Soviet ballistic missile subs before they could launch their weapons. Designed to be extremely fast and extremely quiet, the high price tag and diminished Soviet submarine threat with the end of the cold war caused the program to be cancelled after the first three boats were delivered.

6) H. L. Hunley - Though not the first military submarine, H. L. Hunley was the first submarine to successfully sank another ship, though it sank in the same engagement shortly after signaling its success. Submarines did not have a major impact on the outcome of the American Civil War, but did portend their coming importance to naval warfare and increased interest in their use in naval warfare.

5) T Class - Known also as the Triton Class, these boats formed the backbone of the British submarine force during World War II. Displacing about 1,500 tons, T Class subs packed a heavy punch of 10 torpedo tubes. However, they all fired forward, compared to other subs that could fire torpedoes with both bow and stern tubes. T-class boats exacted a heavy toll of Axis shipping supplying Rommel's Afrika Korps, but also suffered heavy losses in the narrow, shallow waters of the Mediterranean.

4) USS Nautilus - The USS Nautilus was the world's first nuclear-powered submarine. Until the Nautilus, submarines were powered by diesel engines that could not be used underwater. Subs would either expose themselves on the surface when using their diesel generators, or run submerged on batteries that had limited power, but a nuclear-powered submarine could spend its entire voyage submerged and hidden. In 1955, for her maiden voyage, the Nautilus traveled 1,100 nautical miles (the longest submerged cruise in history at that time). Though only one ship, the innovation and effect of such in future subs, causes the USS Nautilus to rate #4.

3) Ko-hyoteki class - Fifty were built. They were given the name "A Target" which was assigned as a ruse (if their design was prematurely discovered by Japan's foes, the Japanese Navy could insist that the vessels were battle practice targets). Five of these boats participated in the Pearl Harbor attack, with at least one actually making it into the harbor. A photograph taken from a Japanese plane during the Pearl Harbor attack appears to show a midget submarine inside the harbor firing torpedoes at Battleship Row. According to analysis conducted by the United States Naval Institute in 1999, the midget submarine may well have scored a direct hit on West Virginia.

2) Gato Class - American Gato Class submarines were the bane of Japanese merchant ships during World War II. Fast, well-armed and with good range, they were well-suited for the undersea war against Japan. Gatos displaced about 1,500 tons, and were armed with six bow and four stern torpedo tubes.

1) Type VII U-Boat - Perhaps the ultimate symbol of the deadly underwater predator, the Type VII U-boat may be the most famous submarine class in history. It was also the most numerous, serving as the workhorse of the German submarine forces in World War II. At around 900 tons displacement, and armed with five torpedo tubes, the Type VII was smaller than the big American fleet boats, but it came perilously close to winning the Battle of the Atlantic.