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Swimming into Pula
Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 7:04 am
by fredleander
While serving with the UNPROFOR in Former Yugoslavia in 1994/95 I had the opportunity to see the ancient naval base in Pula. Then came to mind a story I vaguely remembered of an Italian naval officer actually swimming into the Austro-Hungarian base with a torpedo or explosive device. That must have been one of the most extraordinary military feats of all time!
Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 8:20 am
by Vincent Biondi
Hi Fredleander
You are talking about the sinking of the Viribus Unitis battleship.
Viribus Unitis was sunk by a limpet mine planted by frogmen of the Italian Regia Marina on November 1 1918.
The two men of the Regia Marina, Raffaele Paolucci and Raffaele Rossetti, rode a primitive manned torpedo (nicknamed the Mignatta or "leech") into the Austro-Hungarian naval base at Pola. Using limpet mines, they then sank the Viribus Unitis as well as the freighter Wien.
Vincent.