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The Vanished Golden Submarine’s Final Journey and Fate

Khalid Elhassan December 8, 2024 14 min

I-52 - Underwater wreckage of the Golden Submarine — Underwater wreckage of the Golden Submarine. National Geographic

8. What Could Have Been: Japanese Snorkel-Equipped Submarines

I-52 - The I-52 — The I-52. Combined Fleet

While docked, the I-52 was to also get fitted out with the latest in underwater technology: a snorkel. That device, a revolutionary advancement at the time, allowed submarines to operate underwater indefinitely while using their diesel engines. Before, using the diesel engines underwater would have suffocated the crew. With a snorkel, however, diesel engines could be used underwater. Thus, snorkel-equipped submarines would no longer have to rely solely on batteries of limited duration. The Japanese intended to reproduce the German snorkel when the I-52 got back, and to reequip their entire submarine fleet with the device.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.