Italian submarines in World War Two
Italian Commanders
Giorgio Viani
Tenente di Vascello
| Born | 2 Sep 1909 | Venice | |
| Died | 1982 | (72) | Florence |
| Ranks
Decorations
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Career information
DOMENICO MILLELIRE (T.V. First Officer): from 14.04.1939 to ?DOMENICO MILLELIRE (T.V. C.O.): from 01.02.1941 to 06.03.1941.
MAGGIORE BARACCA (T.V. C.O.): from August 1941 to 08.09.1941 (sunk, Viani survived as PoW).
Commands listed for Giorgio Viani
| Submarine | Type | Rank | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domenico Millelire (MI) | Ocean going | T.V. | 20 Jul 1940 | 27 Jul 1940 |
| Domenico Millelire (MI) | Ocean going | T.V. | 1 Feb 1941 | 6 Mar 1941 |
| Maggiore Francesco Baracca (BC, I.10) | Ocean going | T.V. | Aug 1941 | 8 Sep 1941 |
Ships hit by Giorgio Viani
No ships hit by this Commander.War patrols listed for Giorgio Viani
| Submarine | Date | Time | Port | Arr. date | Arr. time | Arr. port | Miles | Description | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domenico Millelire (MI) | 20 Jul 1940 | Pola | 27 Jul 1940 | Pola | In Pola. | |||||
| Domenico Millelire (MI) | 18 Feb 1941 | 0900 | Brindisi | 18 Feb 1941 | 1240 | Brindisi | 24 | Exercises. | ||
| Domenico Millelire (MI) | 6 Mar 1941 | 0845 | Brindisi | 6 Mar 1941 | 2115 | Taranto | 166,5 | Passage Brindisi-Taranto. | ||
| 1. | Maggiore Francesco Baracca (BC, I.10) | 31 Aug 1941 | Bordeaux | 31 Aug 1941 | La Pallice | Passage Bordeaux-La Pallice. | ||||
| 2. | Maggiore Francesco Baracca (BC, I.10) | 2 Sep 1941 | Evening | La Pallice | 8 Sep 1941 | 0800+ | Sunk | Sailed for patrol in 40°25'N, 14°25'W then to 40°15'N, 17°25'W. At 2240 hours on the 6th, she was ordered to 41°05'N, 17°45'W then 40°25'N, 20°45'W, northeast of the Azores. Was northernmost of a barrage of five submarines. Carried only four reserve torpedoes (2 x 533 mm and 2 x 450 mm) instead of eight. At 1040 hours on the 6th, she reported that she was in 40°25'N, 20°35'W. Depth-charged by the destroyer HMS Croome, brought to the surface, then rammed and sunk. Thirty-four survivors (the captain, five officers and twenty-eight ratings), twenty-eight ratings killed. | ||
| 8 Sep 1941 | 0730 (e) | (e) 40° 31'N, 21° 15'W | At 0200A hours, the escort destroyer HMS Croome (Lieutenant Commander John D. Hayes) of the 13th Destroyer Flotilla had left convoy H.G. 72 in 40°00' N, 22°32' W to join convoy O.G. 73 at 0800 hours. She was to sweep an area ahead of it. At 0730A hours, the starboard lookout spotted an object on the starboard beam at 8,500 yards. It was identified as a submarine steering south. This was Maggiore Baracca. Speed was increased to 20 knots. The submarine dived immediately. At a range of 1,100 yards, she was detected by ASDIC. A first pattern of depth was released, it caused only minor damages such as putting out the depth gauge. This was followed by a second one set deeper as the submarine had reached a depth of 90 metres. This time all the lights were put out, the engines stopped, the steering gear disabled and flooding fore and aft. Baracca surfaced astern the destroyer. Very quickly, HMS Croome reverted course and opened fire with all her guns. The submarine replied with her gun but her shooting was wild. Lewis gun fire quickly silenced her and the crew was seen to abandon ship as the destroyer rammed her just abaft the conning tower. The submarine sank. The destroyer was flooded as far as the central stores and her ASDIC was put out of action. She had to proceed at 8 knots to Gibraltar for repairs. There were thirty-four survivors (T.V. Viani, five officers and twenty-eight ratings), twenty-eight ratings were killed. | |||||||
5 entries. 5 total patrol entries (2 marked as war patrols) and 1 events.