Z44 was a German naval

Kriegsmarine

The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...

 warship

Warship

A warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way from merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuvrable than merchant ships...

 which operated for a short time during the latter period of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. She was a Type 1936B destroyer

Type 1936B destroyer

The Type 1936B class of destroyers was a class of five destroyers built for the German Kriegsmarine between 1941 and 1942, of which only three - Z36, Z35, and Z43 - were commissioned and saw service...

, laid down during 1942 at Deschimag in Bremen

Bremen

The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...

 and launched on 20 January 1944. She was heavily damaged in an air attack on 29 July 1944, prior to the planned date of her commissioning in August 1944. Z44 was eventually scrapped between April 1948 and February 1949.

Design

The Z44 was a Type 1936B destroyer class, which meant that the twin 15.9 cm (6.3 in) turret positioned on the bow and stern of the ship were removed. This was because the older Type 1936A class of destroyers were deemed less stable. The two twin turrets, which were planned to have been used on the O class battlecruisers but diverted due to time constraints were removed and replaced with five single 12.7 centimetres (5 in) turrets, along with more anti-aircraft defences. Besides that, the ship retained the main characteristics of the 1936A class. They displaced 2527 tonnes (2,487.1 LT), and were manned by 321 sailors and officers. Although they had a maximum speed of 38 knots (20.7 m/s), their range was 6200 metres (6.2 km) at 19 knots (10.3 m/s). Her main armament of five 12.7 cm SK C/34 naval gun

12.7 cm SK C/34 naval gun

The 12.7 cm SK C/34 was a German medium-caliber naval gun deployed on destroyers from 1934 through the Second World War. Some of these guns remained in service until 2003 in the coastal defense units of Norway.-Characteristics:...

s could be depressed to -10° and raised to 30°. They had an arc of fire of 360°, meaning that they could rotate a full circle, able to fire at any given point. The guns fired 28 kilograms (61.7 lb) high-explosive shells at a muzzle velocity of 830 metres per second (2,723.1 ft/s) to a range of 17400 metres (19,028.9 yd). The destroyer also carried four 3.7 cm (1.5 in) anti-aircraft guns

3.7 cm SK C/30

The 3.7 cm SK C/30 was the German Kriegsmarine's primary anti-aircraft gun during the Second World War...

and six 2 cm (0.78740157480315 in) anti-aircraft guns in pairs. She had eight 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes and, when fitted as a minelayer, could carry 76 mines.