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First self-propelled torpedo

First self-propelled torpedo
Who
Robert Whitehead, Whitehead torpedo
What
First
Where
Austria (Fiume,)
When
1866
The first self-propelled underwater torpedo capable of being used as a weapon was that developed by the British engineer Robert Whitehead in 1866, capitalizing on a design by Austrian engineer Johannes Luppis. The torpedo was fired underwater by compressed air. Whitehead developed a hydrostatic plate to drive a depth rudder to keep it below the surface, and it could hit a target at 700 yards at a speed of 7 knots with an 18-lb charge of explosive. The torpedo was ordered by the then Austrian Navy and, by 1881, customers included Great Britain, Russia, France, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Argentina and Belgium.