Marconi-class submarine

The Marconi class was a class of six submarines built for the Royal Italian Navy (Italian: Regia Marina). The submarines were all launched between 1939 and 1940, and all but one, Luigi Torelli, were lost in the Atlantic during the Second World War.

Leonardo Da Vinci, the most successful Italian submarine in World War II
Class overview
Operators
In commission1940–1945
Completed6
Lost5
General characteristics
TypeSubmarine
Displacement
  • 1,195 long tons (1,214 t) (surfaced)
  • 1,490 long tons (1,510 t) (submerged)
Length76.5 m (251 ft 0 in)
Beam6.81 m (22 ft 4 in)
Draught4.72 m (15 ft 6 in)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 17.8 kn (33.0 km/h; 20.5 mph) (surfaced)
  • 8.2 kn (15.2 km/h; 9.4 mph) (submerged)
Range
  • Surfaced: 2,900 nmi (5,400 km; 3,300 mi) at 17 kn (31 km/h; 20 mph); 10,500 nmi (19,400 km; 12,100 mi) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph)
  • Submerged: 8 nmi (15 km; 9.2 mi) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph); 110 nmi (200 km; 130 mi) at 3 kn (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph)
Test depth90 m (300 ft)+
Complement57
Armament

Class members

Guglielmo Marconi

Guglielmo Marconi (pennant number MN) was launched 27 July 1939[1] and completed on 2 February 1940. On its first wartime patrol in the Mediterranean Sea, Marconi torpedoed the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Escort on 8 July 1940. Marconi sailed on 6 September 1940 and passed the Strait of Gibraltar on 11 September for an Atlantic patrol to Bordeaux on 29 September. En route Marconi sank the neutral Spanish fishing boat Almirante Jose de Carranza. Marconi sank one ship on its first BETASOM patrol from Bordeaux. After an unsuccessful patrol, Marconi sank three ships on its third BETASOM patrol and damaged a Yugoslavian freighter on the following patrol which was later sunk by U-126. Marconi was lost to unknown causes sometime after 28 October 1941 on its fifth BETASOM patrol.[2]

Ships sunk by Marconi[2]
Ship Flag Patrol Date Tonnage (GRT) Notes
HMS Escort  Royal Navy 1st 8 July 1940 — Destroyer; 2 killed
Vingaland  Sweden 3rd 9 November 1940 2,734 gross register tons (GRT) Freighter from Convoy HX 84
Cairndale  United Kingdom 5th 30 May 1941 8,129 Tanker; 4 killed
Baron Lovat  United Kingdom 5th 6 June 1941 3,395 Freighter from Convoy OG 63
Taberg  Sweden 5th 6 June 1941 1,392 Freighter from Convoy OG 63, 6 survivors from a crew of 22
Total: 17,055

Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci (pennant number LV)[1] was launched 16 September 1939. da Vinci sailed on 22 September 1940 and passed the Strait of Gibraltar on 27 September for an Atlantic patrol to Bordeaux on 31 October. After unsuccessful patrols from 21 December to 20 January 1941 and from 4 April to 4 May, da Vinci sank one ship on its third BETASOM patrol. After another unsuccessful patrol from 15 August to 24 September, da Vinci sank two ships during Operation Neuland and four ships on the following patrol. After being modified to carry a midget submarine, da Vinci sailed without the midget submarine and sank four ships. Sailing again without the midget submarine, da Vinci sank six ships on its last patrol. While attempting to return to Bordeaux, da Vinci was sunk on 23 May 1943 by the escorts of convoy KMF 15. There were no survivors. Leonardo da Vinci was the top scoring non-German submarine of the entire war.[3][4][5]

Ships sunk by da Vinci[3]
Ship Flag Patrol Date Tonnage (GRT) Notes
Auris  United Kingdom 4th 28 June 1941 8,030 Tanker; 27 survivors from a crew of 59
Cadebello  Brazil 6th 25 February 1942 3,557 Freighter; no survivors
Everasma  Latvia 6th 28 February 1942 3,644 Freighter from Convoy TAW 12 torpedoed at 16°00′N 49°00′W; 15 survivors
Reine Marie Stewart  Panama 7th 2 June 1942 1,087 Schooner
Chile  Denmark 7th 7 June 1942 6,956 Freighter; 39 survivors from a crew of 44
Alioth  Netherlands 7th 10 June 1942 5,483 Freighter; 8 survivors from a crew of 36
Clan Macquarrie  United Kingdom 7th 13 June 1942 6,471 Collier; 1 killed from a crew of 90
Empire Zeal  United Kingdom 8th 2 November 1942 7,009 Freighter
Andreas  Greece 8th 5 November 1942 6,566 Freighter
Marcus Whitman  United States 8th 10 November 1942 7,176 Liberty ship; no casualties
Veerhaven  Netherlands 8th 11 November 1942 5,291 Freighter; no casualties
RMS Empress of Canada  Canada 9th 14 March 1943 21,517 Troopship; 392 killed from 1,800 aboard
Lulworth Hill  United Kingdom 9th 18 March 1943 7,628 Freighter
Sembilan  Netherlands 9th 17 April 1943 6,566 Freighter
Manar  United Kingdom 9th 18 April 1943 8,007 Freighter
John Drayton  United States 9th 21 April 1943 7,177 Liberty ship
Doryessa  United Kingdom 9th 25 April 1943 8,078 Tanker; 11 survivors from a crew of 54
Total: 120,243

Michele Bianchi

Michele Bianchi (pennant number BH) was launched 3 December 1939.[1] Its first war patrol was in the Mediterranean Sea from 15 August to 3 September 1940. Bianchi sailed on 27 October 1940 and reached the Strait of Gibraltar on 3 November. The attempted transit to the Atlantic was detected by Royal Navy forces; and Bianchi took refuge in the neutral port of Tangier. Bianchi sailed from Tangier on 12 November and reached Bordeaux on 18 December 1940. Bianchi sank three ships on its first BETASOM patrol from Bordeaux; but the next patrol from 30 April to 30 May 1941 was unsuccessful. After sailing from Bordeaux on 4 July 1941, Bianchi was sunk with all hands by HMS Tigris on 5 July.[6]

Ships sunk by Bianchi[6]
Ship Flag Patrol Date Tonnage (GRT) Notes
Belcrest  United Kingdom 4th 14 February 1941 4,517 Freighter from Convoy SC 21; no survivors
Huntingdon  United Kingdom 4th 24 February 1941 10,946 Credit for sinking shared with U-96; no casualties
Baltistan  United Kingdom 4th 27 February 1941 6,803 Freighter; 18 survivors from a crew of 69
Total: 22,266

Luigi Torelli

Torelli (pennant number TI) was launched 6 January 1940.[1] After one short war patrol in the Mediterranean, Torelli sailed on 31 August 1940 and passed the Strait of Gibraltar on 8 September for an Atlantic patrol to Bordeaux on 5 October. Torelli sank four ships on its first BETASOM patrol; and, after an unsuccessful second patrol, sank one ship on a third patrol. After another unsuccessful patrol, Torelli assisted the three Calvi-class submarines on a rescue mission of 254 sailors from the sunken German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis in December 1941.

Torelli sank two ships during Operation Neuland. Torelli again sailed from Bordeaux on 2 June 1942, but was twice damaged by aircraft and sought refuge in the neutral Spanish ports of Avilés and Santander, Cantabria before returning to Bordeaux on 15 July. After an extensive refit, Torelli was again damaged at sea by aircraft on 16 March 1943 and returned to Bordeaux on 3 April.[7] Torelli was then selected for conversion to a "transport submarine" in order to exchange rare or irreplaceable trade goods with Japan. Cargo capacity of 160 tons reduced reserve buoyancy from 20–25% to 3.5–6%; and armament was reduced to defensive machine guns. Torelli sailed as a transport submarine on 18 June 1943 and reached Penang on 27 August 1943.[8]

UIT-25

Torelli was commissioned into the German Kriegsmarine as UIT-25 when Italy capitulated to the Allies in September 1943.

I-504

UIT-25 was taken over by the Imperial Japanese Navy and became I-504 when Germany surrendered in May 1945. I-504 shot down a B-25 Mitchell bomber while under Japanese flag near the very end of the war in the Pacific,[9] allegedly the last success of a Japanese naval vessel in that conflict.[10] It was found at Kobe when Japan surrendered and scuttled by the United States Navy in Kii Suido.[11]

Ships sunk by Torelli[7]
Ship Flag Patrol Date Tonnage (GRT) Notes
Nemea  Greece 3rd 15 January 1941 5,198 Freighter; 14 survivors from a crew of 31
Brask  Norway 3rd 15 January 1941 4,079 Freighter; 20 survivors from a crew of 32
Nicolas Filinis  Greece 3rd 16 January 1941 3,111 Freighter; 26 survivors from a crew of 29
Urla  United Kingdom 3rd 28 January 1941 5,198 Freighter; no casualties
Ida Knudsen  Norway 5th 21 July 1941 8,913 Tanker; 5 killed
Scottish Star  United Kingdom 8th 19 February 1942 7,224 Freighter; 4 killed from a crew of 73
Esso Copenhagen  Panama 8th 25 February 1942 9,245 Tanker; 1 killed from a crew of 39
Total: 42,968

Alessandro Malaspina

Alessandro Malaspina (pennant number MP) was launched 18 February 1940[1] and completed on 20 June 1940. Its first patrol was through the Strait of Gibraltar on 3 August for an Atlantic patrol. Malaspina sank one ship before reaching Bordeaux on 4 September. Admiral Karl Dönitz visited Malaspina on 30 September to welcome Regia Marina sailors to the German base. The first BETASOM patrols from 9 October to 9 November 1940, from 5 January to 28 February 1941 were unsuccessful; but during a third patrol Malaspina damaged the British liner Lycaon on 3 May 1941. Malaspina then sank two ships on the next patrol. Malaspina sailed from Bordeaux on 7 September 1941; and is believed to have been sunk on 10 September by No. 10 Squadron RAAF Short Sunderland "U".[12]

Ships sunk by Malaspina[12]
Ship Flag Patrol Date Tonnage (GRT) Notes
British Fame  United Kingdom 1st 12 August 1940 8,406 Tanker from Convoy OB 193; 3 killed from crew of 49
Lycaon  United Kingdom 3rd 3 May 1941 Passenger Liner. Damaged
Nikiklis  Greece 4th 14 July 1941 3,576 Freighter; 11 killed from crew of 28
Guelma  United Kingdom 4th 17 July 1941 4,402 Freighter; no casualties
Total: 16,384

Maggiore Baracca

Maggiore Baracca (pennant number BC) was launched 21 April 1940[1] and completed on 10 July 1940. Its first patrol was through the Strait of Gibraltar on 7 September for an Atlantic patrol. Baracca sank one ship before reaching Bordeaux on 6 October. Baracca sank one ship on its first BETASOM patrol from Bordeaux, but last four patrols were unsuccessful. On the final patrol, Baracca was sunk by HMS Croome on 7 September 1941. Thirty-two members of the submarine crew survived the sinking.[13]

Ships sunk by Baracca[13]
Ship Flag Patrol Date Tonnage (GRT) Notes
Aghios Nicolaus  Greece 1st 1 October 1940 3,687 Freighter
Lilian Moller  United Kingdom 2nd 18 November 1940 4,866 Freighter; no survivors
Total: 8,553

See also

Notes
  1. Kafka & Pepperburg p.791
  2. "Regia Marina Italiana". Cristiano D'Adamo. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  3. "Regia Marina Italiana". Cristiano D'Adamo. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  4. Clay Blair, Hitler's U-boat War: The Hunters, 1939-1942, p.740
  5. The US Navy's most successful submarine, USS Tang, sank 116,454 GRT, while HMS Upholder, the Royal Navy's most successful submarine, sank 93,031 GRT of shipping.
  6. "Regia Marina Italiana". Cristiano D'Adamo. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  7. "Regia Marina Italiana". Cristiano D'Adamo. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  8. Brice pp. 129–133
  9. Willmott p.276
  10. Rosselli, Alberto. "Italian submarines and surface vessels in the far east: 1940-1945".
  11. Taylor pp.118-119, 140, 163
  12. "Regia Marina Italiana". Cristiano D'Adamo. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  13. "Regia Marina Italiana". Cristiano D'Adamo. Retrieved 2012-08-11.

References
  • Marconi class at regiamarina.net
  • Bagnasco, Erminio (1977) Submarines of World War Two London, Cassell & Co, ISBN 1-85409-532-3
  • Brice, Martin (1981) Axis Blockade Runners of World War II Annapolis, MD, Naval Institute Press, ISBN 0-87021-908-1
  • Kafka, Roger & Pepperburg, Roy L. (1946) Warships of the World Cornell Maritime Press
  • Taylor, J.C. (1966) German Warships of World War II Doubleday & Company
  • Willmott, H.P. (2009) The Last Century of Sea Power: From Port Arthur to Chanak, 1894-1922 Indiana University Press, ISBN 0253352142
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