SMS V188

SMS "V188" was a "S-138"-class large torpedo boat of the Imperial German Navy. She was built by the AG Vulcan shipyard at Stettin between 1910 and 1911 and launched on 8 February 1911.
"V188" took part the First World War. She was present at the Battle of Heligoland Bight in August 1914 and was sunk by the British submarine on 26 July 1915.
Construction and design.
The Imperial German Navy ordered 12 large torpedo boats ("Große Torpedoboote") as part of the fiscal year 1910 shipbuilding programme, with one half-flotilla of six ships ("V186"–"V191") ordered from AG Vulcan and the other six ships from Germaniawerft. The two groups of torpedo boats were of basically similar layout but differed slightly in detailed design, with a gradual evolution of design and increase in displacement with each year's orders.
"V188" was long overall and between perpendiculars, with a beam of and a draught of . The ship displaced design and deep load.
Three coal-fired and one oil-fired water-tube boiler fed steam at a pressure of to two sets of direct-drive steam turbines. The ship's machinery was rated at giving a design speed of , with members of the class reaching a speed of during sea trials. 136 tons of coal and 67 tons of oil fuel were carried, giving an endurance of at , at or at .
The ship was armed with two 8.8 cm L/45 guns, one on the Forecastle and one aft. Four single 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes were fitted, with two on the ship's beam in the gap between the forecastle and the ship's bridge which were capable of firing straight ahead, one between the ship's two funnels, and one aft of the funnels. The ship had a crew of 84 officers and men.
"V188" was laid down at AG Vulcan's Stettin shipyard as Yard number 306 and was launched on 8 February 1911 and completed on 20 May 1911.
Service.
First World War.
On 28 August 1914, the British Harwich Force, supported by light cruisers and battlecruisers of the Grand Fleet, carried out a raid towards Heligoland with the intention of destroying patrolling German torpedo boats. The German defensive patrols around Heligoland consisted of one flotilla (I Torpedo Flotilla) of 12 modern torpedo boats forming an outer patrol line about North and West of Heligoland, with an inner line of older torpedo boats of the 3rd Minesweeping Division at about . Four German light cruisers and another flotilla of torpedo boats (V Torpedo Boat Flotilla) was in the vicinity of Heligoland. "V188 ", a member of the 1st Half Flotilla of I Torpedo Boat Flotilla, formed part of the outer screen of torpedo boats. At about 06:00 on 28 August, , another member of the outer screen reported spotting the periscope of a submarine. As a result, the 5th Torpedo Boat Flotilla was ordered out to hunt the hostile submarine. At 07:57 "G194" was fired on by British warships, and was soon retreating towards Heligoland, pursued by four British destroyers. V Flotilla and the old torpedo boats of the 3rd Minesweeping Division also came under British fire, and were only saved by the intervention of the German cruisers and , with the torpedo boats , and "T33" damaged. On receiving a radio signal from "G194" that she was being chased by superior forces, "V188" set course at full speed towards Heligoland. She turned southwards to avoid British light cruisers, escaping to Heligoland and therefore avoided the fate of , leader of I Flotilla, the next ship to the north in the patrol line, which was trapped by cruisers and destroyers of the Harwich Force and sunk. The intervention of the supporting British forces resulted in the sinking of the German cruisers , and . The British light cruiser and destroyers , and were badly damaged but safely returned to base.
On the evening of 12 April 1915, the German airship "L7" sighted a British light cruiser and five surfaced submarines in the Heligoland Bight. I Flotilla was ordered out to attack the submarines, but "V188", and collided in thick fog, disabling the three ships and causing the sortie to be aborted. On 26 July 1915, the 2nd Half-flotilla of I Flotilla, including "V188" was escorting minesweepers when the British submarine spotted the torpedo boats and torpedoed "V188", blowing off the torpedo boat's stern and sinking her. Two of "V188"s crew were killed.