Name: HMS UNA
Builder: Chatham Dockyard; Laid down: 7 May 1940; Launched: 10 June 1941; Commissioned: 27 September 1941; Decommissioned: November 1945; Fate: sold to be broken up for scrap, 11 April 1949
General characteristics:
Displacement: Surfaced - 540 tons standard, 630 tons full load, Submerged - 730 tons, Length: 58.22 m (191 ft), Beam: 4.90 m (16 ft 1 in), Draught: 4.62 m (15 ft 2 in), Propulsion: 2 shaft diesel-electric, 2 Paxman Ricardo diesel generators + electric motors, 615 / 825 hp, Speed: 11.25 knots (20.8 km/h) max surfaced, 10 knots (19 km/h) max submerged, Complement: 27-31, Armament: 4 bow internal 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes - 8 - 10 torpedoes, 1 - 3-inch (76 mm) gun
She spent most of her career operating in the Mediterranean from early 1942, where she sank the Italian tanker LUCIANA, the Italian fishing vessel MARIA IMMACOLATA, and the Italian merchants NINETTO G. and PETRARCA. She also damaged two sailing vessels and the Italian merchant COSALA (the former Yugoslavian SERAFIN TOPIC). The damaged Italian ship was grounded, but declared a total loss and eventually sank during a storm.
She was unlucky on numerous occasions, unsuccessfully attacking the Italian merchant BRIONI, the Italian tanker PANUCO and the German merchant MENES. UNA also fired torpedoes against a merchant in Lampedusa harbour. The torpedoes however hit the rocks.
From April to August 1943, she was used for Anti-Submarine training after undergoing a refit in the UK.
HMS UNA was placed in Reserve after the end of hostilities with Japan and laid-up at Lishally, Ulster. She was placed on the Sales List in 1949 and sold to BISCO on 11th April for demolition by E Rees at Llanelly, Wales. The boat arrived at the breaker’s yard in June that year.
Sources: Wikipedia. http://www.naval-history.net/xGM-Chrono ... 9U-Una.htm.
Information Mr P Crichton