Whilst it has been stated that the designed diving depth of the L Class was 250 feet, the officially used maximum diving depth, in 1925, was 150 feet - based on the age of the boats, their wartime construction, etc. However, depths, in service, of more than 250 feet have been recorded and, on one occasion, L2 accidentally submerged to 300 feet and, except for minor faults, withstood the pressure.
Of the L Class, only one was lost during the war - L10, in the North Sea. In August 1923, L9 foundered in Hong Kong harbour in a typhoon and was later salvaged, but was not refitted. In January 1924, L24 was accidentally rammed and sunk off Portland by the battleship HMS Resolution. At the time, prolonged efforts were made to salvage her, and a team of German divers, with a new type of diving suit that enabled them
