French submarine Narval (1925)

The French submarine Narval was a Requin-class submarine built for the French Navy in the mid-1920s. Laid down in March 1923, it was launched in May 1925 and commissioned in July 1926. It joined the Free French naval forces at Malta at the time of the French surrender. On or around 15 December 1940, Narval sank after striking a mine in the same minefield off the Kerkennah Islands that sank her sister ship Morse six months later.

Design
78 m long, with a beam of 6.8 m and a draught of 5.1 m, Requin-class submarines could dive up to 80 m. The submarine had a surfaced displacement of 1150 t and a submerged displacement of 1441 t. Propulsion while surfaced was provided by two 2900 hp diesel motor built by the Swiss manufacturer Sulzer and two 1800 hp electric motors. The submarines' electrical propulsion allowed it to attain speeds of 9 kn while submerged and 15 kn on the surface. Their surfaced range was 7700 nmi at 9 kn, and 4000 nmi at 12 kn, with a submerged range of 70 nmi at 5 kn.