THE SUBMARINE SPRINGEREN

The DELFINEN class was coastal-submarines, designed for operations in Danish waters and in the Baltic. They have, however, participated in NATO exercises in the Atlantic. Their displacement was 575 ton surfaced and 646 ton submerged. They were 53.9 meters long, had a beam of 4.7 meters and a draught of 4.2 meters. The periscope depth was 11 meters. Max. diving depth in peacetime was 100 meters which during time of war could be extended to 200 meters. The reason for diving restrictions in peace time was that the submarine was more exposed to corrosion when diving at greater depths. Surfaced the boat was propelled by 2 B&W diesel engines and submerged by two Brown Boveri battery powered electric engines.
The speed was 16 knots, surfaced as well as submerged. She had two propellers. A snorkel, operated like a periscope, made it possible to run on diesel-engines if the boat was just below surface.
The DELFINEN-class were the first Danish submarines not to be supplied with guns and designed - literally - as submarines, meaning that they were designed to operate submerged. The submarines operating during World Wars I and II were designed to operate surfaced, and only dived in order to escape a counter-attack.
The SPRINGEREN was armed with eight torpedoes which could be fired through
Her crew consisted of 33 men: 8 officers and 25 petty officers and sailors.
To give our guests an impression of the life on board a submarine, all the technical installations on board the SPRINGEREN have been preserved with the exception of the 224 batteries (weighting 100 ton). The illusion of being in an operational submarine is supported by a soundtrack of the noise and communication normally occurring in a submarine. Every 15 minutes the diving alarm is sounded, the lights are extinguished, and the red night lighting is turned on.
Entering the submarine visitors come into the forward torpedo room, which also served as sleeping and living quarters for the crew. For the comfort of our guests, we have removed several bunks, tables and benches. Normally there would be 13 bunks (2 men shared one bunk, as half of the crew was on duty) and tables/benches for 26 men. In the room you will also see the equipment for emergency-supply of oxygen, to be used if the boat was wrecked, and flooded, ready for crew-escape.
Passing through a watertight door you enter a passage with the wardroom for 8 officers on the port side. The toilets and the galley are on the starboard side.

During your visit you will have gained a first-hand impression of daily life on board a submarine. You have seen the rough and cramped conditions under which the crew had to live and work – sometimes for weeks. It requires a special attitude of mind and a lot of adaptability to work in a submarine, and the crew had to be very skilled and familiar with all installations. Training of submarine-officers and –commanders took considerably time.
It is obvious why we consider the SPRINGEREN to be the main attraction of the museum. With this submarine Springeren – Maritimt Oplevelsescenter has preserved a splendid example of Danish shipbuilding know-how. An expertise and know-how now disappearing, since the political defense agreements from 2005 definitively abolish the submarines from the Danish navy – regardless of the fact, that our coastal submarines have proved to fulfill the requirements of NATO´s fight against terror.