Russian submarine Delfin
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| Missing image Russian_submarine_Delfin.jpg "Our first submarine -- N. Apostoli postcard #112." | |
| Career | Missing image Russian_Naval_Ensign.png Russian Naval Ensign |
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| Launched: | 1902 |
| Commissioned: | 1903 |
| Decommissioned: | 1917 |
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| Complement: | 37 officers and men |
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Дельфин (Delfin, meaning "dolphin") was the first Russian battle submarine. She was designed by Captain M. Beklemishev and Bubonoff, laid down by Krupp AG at St. Petersburg, launched in 1902, and entered service in 1903, training officers and sailors.
On 29 June 1904 the submarine sank in the Neva River by the wall of the Baltic shipyard during a test dive. The captain and 24 crewmen were killed. Twelve men were rescued.
Delfin was salvaged and transferred to the Siberian flotilla, arriving in Vladivostok in the fall of 1904. She served until 1917, seeing action in the Russo-Japanese War.
The centennial anniversary of Delfin’s sinking -- the first Russian submarine accident -- was marked by the St. Petersburg Submariners Club with wreath-laying, a mourning service, and by guards of honor and an orchestra marching at the Smolenskoye Orthodox cemetery.