NOTES ON THE WAR

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVI, Issue 65, 14 September 1943, Page 6

NOTES ON THE WAR

ITALIAN NAVY SOME USEFUL SHIPS The Allied campaigns in Italy, Russia, and the Pacific continue to progress favourably on the general plans indicated in the news. Meanwhile, vessels of the Italian fleet, surrendered under the. terms of the Armistice, are still arriving in Allied ports. - On paper, and actually in design and construction, the Italian navy at the entrance of Italy into the war in June, 1940, was a formidable, wellbalanced instrument of sea-power, with at least four first-class battleships in commission and others in the course of construction, five 10,000-ton cruisers, and about a dozen" lighter ones, with many others building, and a full complement of destroyers, motor torpedo-boats, submarines, and fleet auxiliaries. Boldly used it might have made our hold of the Mediterranean even more precarious than it was. The fleet was specially designed for use in the Mediterranean, all the modern vessels being designed' for speed first, with armour and range a more or less secondary consideration. Admiral Cunningham, C.-in-C. Mediterranean, has commented on them very favourably: "These ships, which are now added to our strength, are first-class. The battleships are very good and the cruisers are all good, too, especially the two new ones." The actual identity of the surrendered vessels is not clear from the news. It is stated that there are now four Italian battleships at Malta, the Italia (formerly-Littorio), the Vittoria Venets (both 35,000 tons), and the Caio Duilio and Andrea Doria (23,662 tons, modernised). The 35,000----ton Roma was sunk by German bombers in the flight from Spezia. There is another 35,000-tonner, the Impero, which was launched from the Ansaldo yards at Genoa in 1939 and should be complete by now, still unaccounted for. She may have been damaged in the .British heavy naval and air bombardments of Genoa. The Eugenio di Savoia was described in one message as a battleship; she is placed in "Brassey's Naval Annual" in the Attendolo class of 7283-ton cruisers, the other two being the Emanuele Filiberto . and the Duca d'Aosta. It is uncertain what were the two new cruisers Admiral Cunningham meant. They may be two of 8000 tons of the Ciano class—the Ammiraglio Costanzo Ciano and the Venezia. These were described in "Jane's Fighting Ships" as "building, but no progress made recently." Heavy Losses. Though the Italian fleet never fought a pitched battle as a fleet, it suffered heavy losses in the three years of war from various causes. The first big i losses were in the bombing of Taranto harbour by British naval aircraft on November 11, 1940, when the 23,000----ton battleship Conte di Cavour was torpedoed from the air and believed to have been damaged beyond repair. She was a sister ship of the Caio Duilio and the Andrea Doria, and the Giulio Cesare, this last mentioned in the news, according to one message, as having arrived at Malta from Taranto. It is possible that there has been some confusion between the ships of this class, only two, not three, of which are said to be at Malta. In the Battle of Matapan, March 28, 1941, three 10,000-ton cruisers of the Trento class were sunk, as well as the destroyer Maestrale. The 10,000-ton cruiser Gorizia was torpedoed and sunk by a British submarine, June 29, 1941. The following light cruisers were lost: Alberico da Barbiano, Alberto di Giussano (torpedoed by British destroyers, December 13, 1941), Armando Diaz (torpedoed by submarine, March 8, 1941), Bartolomeo ColleoneXsunk by H.M.A.S. Sydney off Crete, July 19, 1940), and three others, names unknown, sunk by submarines at different dates. Some 25 destroyers were sunk at various times, and 12 submarines. The old cruiser San Giorgio " was wrecked by air attack at Tobruk, JuneDecember, 1940. Twelve motor tor-pedo-boats were destroyed in the attack on Valetta Harbour, July 26, 1941. What will be done with the Italian navy in our hands? Admiral Cunningham speaks of them as "added to our strength." General Eisenhower says: "The implications, of its possession are very broad. Its service disposition is | a matter for decision by the Allied Governments." On the other hand, a British correspondent says the action of the Italian fleet, is "technically not a surrender." There the matter stands.