| Category. | Data. |
|---|---|
| Type. | Prototype conventional Cold War Torpedo. |
| Nationality. | British. |
| Made in. | Entered service in the 1971 although already obsolescent, serving only as an interim before Tigerfish entered service. |
| Retired. | Left service in the 1971 although already obsolescent, serving only as an interim before Tigerfish entered service. |
| Designer. | N\A. |
| Manufacturer. | N\A. |
| Variants. | Non. |
| Diameter. | 21 inches. |
| Speed. | N\A, but probably typical of it's date and class. |
| Warhead. | N\A, probably TNT or torpex. |
| Operational range. | 10,000 meters. |
| Guidance system. | Controle wire. |
| Launch platform. | Frigates, ASW frigates and escort frigates. |
| Weight. | N\A, but probably akin to those of comparable role, configuration and era. |
| Sources. | https://www.wikiwand.com/en/British_21_inch_torpedo. |
A wireguided version of the Mark 20. Entered service in the 1971 although already obsolescent, serving only as an interim before Tigerfish entered service.
The MK23 was fitted with a 10,000M outboard dispenser that contains a control wire to guide the weapon, During 1973, all of the RN torpedoes had to be taken out of service as the control system was failing at extreme range.
After months of investigation, it was discovered that the fault lay in the Guidance Unit made by GEC. A germanium diode in the AGC circuit had been replaced by a silicon diode, following an instruction by RN stores that all germanium diodes had to be replaced by silicon diodes. Unfortunately, the silicon diode's different characteristics caused the automatic gain control circuit to fail. Once the mistake was found replacing the diode with the original type cured the problem.