The LM boote of the Kaiserliche Marine were the forerunners of the later and better known S-Boats. During the Great War Germany, Like Britain, requisitioned many private and corporately owned boats for military and naval use (some of which are great subjects in their own right). Amongst the fishing boats, motor launches, yachts, passenger boats, barges and steamers to name but a few the motor boats pressed into service were to be used to destroy the submarine nets and other obstacles put along the coast of Flanders to stop U-boats getting into the open sea. These defences were patrolled by the Royal Navy and the German motor boats were too small to mount any significant weapon and had only their speed to protect them. By 1916 however not even this was sufficient and faster boats that were armed were needed both to carry out the work of the motor boats and be a threat to some of the patrolling anti submarine craft. The LM boote were built for this purpose and were capable of over 30 knots. Three Maybach CX straight six engines drove three propellers, the engines used in airships hence the name. The first production batch LM1-6 had four boats armed with a 37mm cannon and two with 450mm torpedo tubes. The latter had the torpedoes bow mounted, a disadvantage being they couldn't be fired above the speed of 20 knots or they could run into them (and that could end very badly). These entered service in 1917. The second batch LM7-21 were all torpedo armed. The third and final production batch LM22-33 were to have two armed with cannons to replace two lost and the rest torpedoes but not all were completed due to the Armistice. They were manufactured by Nalgo, Roland, Friedrich Lurssen and Oertz. Probably the most notable action by the LM boote was when seven of them raided a group of ships anchored off Dunkirk during the night of August 22-23, 1917. Two torpedoes stuck a destroyer leaving it on fire and listing heavily but remaining afloat.
I am just finishing one project and was about to crack on with the Praga I have, with embarrassment, not touched for a while despite starting a thread. The poor old Praga will have to wait a bit longer now. Six months is one hell of a challenge for me as I am probably the slowest modeller on the site but I will try. There's very little information on the LM Boot so if anyone has any further information, in particular photos or pictures, they would be really appreciated. So far I have made photocopies of the GA's and next I will built a plastic card and filler hull. Sorry it's not a Pfalz or SE5a but I hope Dave would like it all the same if he were to be ably to see it where he is now.
