HMS A5

HMS A5 was an early Royal Navy submarine. She was a member of Group Two of the first British A class of submarines (a second, very different A-class submarine appeared towards the end of the Second World War). Like all members of her class, she was built at Vickers Barrow-in-Furness.

Service history

Immediately after commissioning she and her tender HMS Hazard travelled to Queenstown, (now Cobh) Ireland. On 16 February 1905 at 10:05 whilst tied up alongside Hazard an explosion occurred on board.

Six of the crew were immediately killed by the explosion or died shortly afterwards:

The captain, Lieutenant H G J Good, and the other four crew members survived.

Sub-Lieutenant Skinner's remains were buried with military honours in his home town of Bedford, Bedfordshire whilst the other five dead crewmen were interred in Old Church Cemetery near Cobh on 20 February 1905. The town virtually closed down for the funeral as a mark of respect, and bands and pipers from HMS Emerald, the Gordon Highlanders and that of Rear Admiral McLeod, the commanding officer of Haulbowline Naval Base.