Bliss-Leavitt Mark 1 torpedo

The Bliss-Leavitt Mark 1 torpedo was a Bliss-Leavitt torpedo adopted by the United States Navy for use in an anti-surface ship role after the E. W. Bliss Company of Brooklyn, New York, which had been building Whitehead torpedoes for the US Navy, began designing and manufacturing their own torpedoes in 1904.[1]

Bliss-Leavitt Mark 1 torpedo
TypeAnti-surface ship torpedo[1]
Place of originUnited States
Service history
In service1904–1922[1]
Used by United States Navy
Production history
DesignerFrank McDowell Leavitt
Designed1904[1]
ManufacturerE. W. Bliss Company
No. built250[2]
VariantsMod 1[2]
Mod 2
Specifications
Massapproximately 1500 pounds[1]
Length197 inches (5.0 meters)[1]
Diameter21 inches (53.34 centimeters)[1]
Effective firing range4000 yards[1]
Warheadwet guncotton[1]
Warhead weightapproximately 200 pounds[1]
Detonation
mechanism
War Nose Mk 1 contact exploder[1]
EngineSingle, vertical turbine[1]
Maximum speed 27 knots[1]
Guidance
system
gyroscope[1]
Launch
platform
battleships, torpedo boats and cruisers[1]

Characteristics

The air flask pressure of the Bliss-Leavitt Mark 1 was 2,250 pounds per square inch (15,500 kPa); the earlier Whitehead models had a lower flask pressure of 1,500 psi (10,000 kPa). The air in the Mark 1 was heated by burning alcohol in a chamber upstream from the engine; the increased air flask pressure and heated air served to increase the range of the Bliss-Leavitt Mark 1 to 4,000 yards (3,700 m) at 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph). However, it used a single vertical turbine wheel rotating about the torpedo's longitudinal axis and driving a single propeller. This caused an unbalanced torque that was sufficient to cause the Mark 1 to have a tendency to roll.[1]

The Bliss-Leavitt Mark 1 was launched from battleships, torpedo boats and cruisers.

See also
  • American 21 inch torpedo

References
  1. "Torpedo History: Bliss-Leavitt Torpedo Mk1". Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  2. "United States of America Torpedoes Pre-World War II". Retrieved 24 June 2013.

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