Loading torpedoes through cramped submarine hatches

Moving a 21-inch torpedo required block and tackle or dedicated machinery, despite film depictions of sailors casually pushing weapons into tubes. U-class submarines carried four reloads, one for each tube, with a system to push them forward. Additional reloads would require further arrangements to move torpedoes through the boat. A preserved British-built submarine in Tallinn illustrates the steep route through a loading hatch. Maneuvering roughly two tons of weapon and machinery along that route with six sailors and block and tackle left very little room for error.