Italian submarine fates

Ships hit by Italian submarines

Type	Cargo ship
Country	Greek
Built	1922	GRT	3,781

Date of attack	13 Jun 1941	Time	0536-0538 0335 (e)
Fate	Sunk by submarine Benedetto Brin (C.C. Luigi Longanesi Cattani)
Position of attack	38° 40'N, 24° 00'W
Complement	31 (31 dead, no survivors)
Convoy	SL 76
Notes	From 0536 to 0538 hours, Benedetto Brin launched four stern torpedoes aimed at three merchant ships in convoy SL. 76. Longanesi Cattani claimed that all four hits and the three merchant ships immediately sank. In fact two had been hit, the Free French *Djurdjura* (3460 GRT, built 1922), carrying iron ore from Pepel to Oban, and the Greek *Eirini Kyriakides* (3781 GRT, 1922) carrying iron ore from Lourençô Marques to Adrossan. Both sank. *Djurdjura* had a crew of thirty-eight, only five were saved. *Eirini Kyriakides* had a crew of thirty-one, none survived. The submarine then dived for eight hours to reload tubes and lost contact with the convoy. At that time, it was the only instance of an Italian submarine penetrating a convoy for a successful attack.