Z40

History: The order for several scout cruisers was given out in February of 1941 in place of cancelled destroyers Z40 through Z42 of the 1936A(Mob) type. These ships were nevertheless named Z40-42 until December, 1941, when they were renamed as SP1-3 (Spähkreuzers or scout cruisers). Priority for building these ships was lowered after the British air raid on Kiel in spring 1941. Effectively, only SP1 was laid down. Her building was suspended in mid-1942 and the hull was broken up on the stocks next year. Ordered for Germaniawerft, SP2 and 3 were never laid down but some preparation work was conducted. SP4 through SP6 were planned but never ordered. The only progress was the order for the main turbines.

Class: Although called Spahkreuzer - Reconnaissance Cruiser - those ships were basically large destroyers capable for Atlantic Operations. Based on traditional destroyer design, several project studies started in 1938 to develop a large destroyer of the size of a CL. Like most German CLs, those ships were planed to get a mixed propulsion system, geared turbines for high speed and diesel engines for long cruises. It was planed to use this ships in combinations of the new battleships of the Z-Plan in the North Atlantic where the Spahkreuzer should be the eyes of a larger battle fleet.

With the lessons learned by the first naval actions in World War II, the plans for the Sp?hkreuzer were modified several times, after the "Spahkreuzer 38" later designs were called "Spahkreuzer 39" and "Spahkreuzer 40" which had improved range, armor protection and a float plane on board.

The first three ships (SP1, SP2, and SP3, formerly named Z40, Z41, Z42) were ordered in February 1941 at the Germania Shipyard in Kiel. In December of 1941, the engines for the next three ships (SP4, SP5, SP6) were ordered too, but not the ships themselves.

Nationality: Germany is a Western European country with a landscape of forests, rivers, mountain ranges and North Sea beaches. It has over 2 millennia of history. Berlin, its capital, is home to art and nightlife scenes, the Brandenburg Gate and many sites relating to WWII. Munich is known for its Oktoberfest and beer halls, including the 16th-century Hofbräuhaus. Frankfurt, with its skyscrapers, houses the European Central Bank.