Motortorpedbåt T46, T42 class
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The T46 was a Motor torpedo boat of the T42 class in the Swedish navy built and delivered in 1957. She was the fifth ship in her class and was equipped for rushing in with torpedoes at high speeds and escaping with ease. She served until 1984 where she was sold to His Majesty Carl XVI Gustaf, the King of Sweden. Now she is preserved as a museum ship as she was donated by the King in 2020 to the Maritime Museum. I am suggesting the T46 specifically due to her royal ownership as well as her being the only ship of her class that is still around.
History and related info
The T42 class were a series of motor torpedo boats developed as a result of the need to replace the aging motor torpedo boats already present in the navy since ww2 like the T21 class. Using what they learned from the T32 class, the T42 class were to be the most advanced motor torpedo boats in the navy.
The T46 in all her glory.
Using the T32 classes experimental ship “T41”, the ships of the T42 class used the same upgraded v-bottom hull without steps for the crew and were as such slower but general more stable than the previous class. They also kept the armament heavy like the T32’s while upgrading the capabilities of both torpedoes and guns as they were equipped with a torpedo radar and an AA radar.
As a museum ship.
Coming into service in 1957, the T46 was the fifth ship of her class and was put into the peace armed units and as you can imagine, she never saw any combat. She served alongside her sisters into the 70’s until she and her sisters was decommissioned and was put out of service in the early 80’s. While several of her sisters were turned into picket boats before they went out of service, she had a very different fate. On the 23 of may of 1987, the King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf, went on to buy the T46 and restored the ship to its original form, it was taken out on trips and enjoyed fully. In 2020, His Majesty donated the ship to the Maritime Museum where it remains to this day.
The king and crew on his new ship.
Armament and stats
Displacement: 40 tons
Length: 23 meters
Breadth: 5.9 meters
Draft: 1.4 meters
Speed: 45 knots
Crew: 16
The main armament consisted of two 53.3 cm torpedo tubes m/47 on either side of the ship.
The AA and general purpose cannon was a 40mm Bofors m/36.
The secondary armament and general purpose guns were two 8 mm machine guns m/36.
She also carried one 57 mm illumination shell launcher in the front and six depth charges in the back.
She carried a Scanter 009 radar to help her navigate.
I would put a pictures section but ive already used the best pics in the “History and related info” section so enjoy them there!