Inside the History of the Barbel-Class Submarines
Getting deeper into the history of diesel The United States Navy championed a small fleet of three diesel-electric attack submarines spanning from 1956 all the way until 1990 when the USS Blueback, the last diesel sub, was decommissioned. Dubbed the Barbel Class, USS Blueback, USS Bonefish, and USS Barbel were the Navy’s first commissioned teardrop-shaped submarines and were of a double-hull construction that featured 1.5-inch thick HY80 steel. Their shape allowed for very low drag and could essentially maximize the speed potential of the diesel-electric setup. Strapping three Fairbanks-Morse 38D8-1/8 diesel motors together (around 3,150 hp total) with two General …