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In 1904, work began at the German shipyard of Schichau-Werke, Elbing (now Elbląg, Poland) on a class of six torpedo-boats for the Italian Navy. They were 50m (160feet) long between perpendiculars and 51.07m (167.55feet) overall, with a beam of 6m (20feet) and a draught of 1.6m (05.2feet). Two Coal-fired Schultz-Thornycroft boilers fed Vertical triple-expansion steam engines rated at 3000ihp3100ihp, giving a rated speed of, which corresponded to an in-service sea speed of about . Sufficient coal was carried to give a range of 598nmi at 23kn or 1920nmi at 8kn.[1] Displacement was 210t.
Three 4501NaN1 torpedo tubes were fitted, with a gun armament of three 47 mm guns. The ships had a crew of 38 officers and men.
On delivery, the ships of the class equipped the 1st Squadron of High Seas Torpedo Boats, based first at La Spezia and then at Messina. The ships of the class were active during the Italo-Turkish War of 1911–1912, with Spica leading four Pegaso-class torpedo boats on a reconnaissance of the Dardanelles on the night of 18/19 July 1912, penetrating under fire about 11miles before being stopped by a boom across the straits, and then escaping with little damage and no casualties.[2] Two ships, Scorpione and Serpente, were lost following collisions during the First World War, with the remaining ships being rearmed, with two 76 mm anti-aircraft guns replacing the 47 mm guns. A third ship, Saffo was lost after running aground off Turkey on 2 April 1920. The surviving ships were disposed of in 1923.
| Ship | Laid down | Launched | Completed | Operational History | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 December 1904 | 13 May 1905 | 29 September 1905 | Discarded 4 March 1923 | ||
| 20 December 1904 | 31 May 1905 | 3 November 1905 | Discarded 4 January 1923 | ||
| 14 January 1905 | 15 July 1905 | 22 November 1905 | Discarded 4 March 1923 | ||
| 17 January 1905 | 14 September 1905 | 13 December 1905 | Sank following collision with French gunboat Surveillente 15 May 1917 | ||
| 1905 | 30 October 1905 | 12 February 1906 | Sank after collision with Italian merchant ship Citta di Bari 28 June 1916 | ||
| 1905 | 30 November 1905 | 1 March 1906 | Lost after running aground Scalanova Bay, Turkey, 2 April 1920 |