A Swedish torpedo boat marked T38 moves at high speed across open waters, with waves splashing high at the bow.
Photo: The Naval Museum

The Motor Torpedo Boat T38

Once upon a time, she was one of the world’s fastest warships, ready to deploy her torpedoes and depth charges during the Cold War era in Europe. The motor torpedo boat T38 is a powerhouse that made a comeback after spending over 40 years on land. During the summer, she is moored outside the museum.

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  • Three torpedo boats are escorted by a naval helicopter during a sea exercise, with T38 in the foreground.
    Foto: Unknown/The Naval Museum CC-BY
    Three torpedo boats are escorted by a naval helicopter during a sea exercise, with T38 in the foreground.
    Foto: Unknown/The Naval Museum CC-BY
  • Two Swedish Navy torpedo boats speed through an archipelago, leaving foaming wakes behind them.
    Foto: Unknown/The Naval Museum CC-BY
    Two Swedish Navy torpedo boats speed through an archipelago, leaving foaming wakes behind them.
    Foto: Unknown/The Naval Museum CC-BY
  • Several Swedish Navy torpedo boats, led by T38, speed across open water with crew members visible on deck.
    Foto: Unknown/The Naval Museum CC-BY
    Several Swedish Navy torpedo boats, led by T38, speed across open water with crew members visible on deck.
    Foto: Unknown/The Naval Museum CC-BY

    T38 is one of the Naval Museum’s smallest museum ships, but perhaps the most thrilling. She was built at Kockums Mechanical Workshop in Malmö and launched in July 1951. T38 was one of ten motor torpedo boats in the so-called T32 class, completed in the early 1950s.

    Weighing 40 tons, 23 meters long, and 5.5 meters wide, she was a small warship. But her three W18 engines produced a total of a powerful 4,500 horsepower. These engines were far from fuel-efficient, and T38 could store up to 10,000 liters of fuel in her tanks during her service with the navy.

    T38 was – and – still is incredibly fast. In a speed trial in April 1956, she reached an impressive speed of 51.6 knots, making her one of the fastest warships in the world at that time.

    A Serious Arsenal

    T38 was stationed at the fascinating and long-secret Gålö Base in the Stockholm archipelago. With a crew of 16, the vessel was prepared for various missions during the Cold War era of the 1950s. She was armed with torpedoes, depth charges, and occasionally mines. Her primary tasks included attacking ships and enemy ports, mine-laying, patrolling, and reconnaissance.

    T38 was also equipped with an anti-aircraft gun and two dual-mounted machine guns.

    Comeback After More Than 40 Years Ashore

    T38’s time in active naval service ended after only five years. A new, more powerful class of torpedo boats, the T42 class, entered the Swedish Navy, and T38 was left on land in Karlskrona for 22 years before being put on display at Malmö Museums in 1978. In the mid-1990s, the Naval Museum became her new owner. A major restoration project was then undertaken to return T38 to her original condition. The work was carried out by a group of dedicated torpedo boat enthusiasts, with support from the Naval Museum and the navy. In May 1997, a fully restored T38 set out to sea once again—for the first time in over 40 years.

    Today, T38 leads an active life. She is lovingly cared for by the association T38 Vänner (Friends of T38) and occasionally speeds through the waters around Karlskrona. T38 is moored at the Naval Museum’s quay from June 1 to August 31.