PAPANIKOLIS submarine

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PAPANIKOLIS submarine

Post by shipstamps » Fri Oct 10, 2008 10:51 pm

Built as a submarine by Atelier et Chantiers de La Loire, Nantes for the Hellenic Navy.
3 November 1926 launched under the name PAPANIKOLIS, she was named after the naval hero of the War of Independence Dimitris Papanikolis, one sister the KATSONIA.
Displacement 576/775 tons surfaced/submerged. Dim. 65 x 5.4 x 3.6m. (draught).
Powered by two 2-cyl. Schneider-Carels diesels, 1.300 bhp. speed 14 knots. Twin electric motors 1.000 bhp. speed 9.5 knots.
Range surfaced 3.500 miles by a speed of 10 knots, submerged 100 miles by a speed of 5 knots.
Armament 1 – 4 inch, 1 – 3 pdr. AA gun, 6 – 21 inch torpedo tubes, four in the bow and two in the stern. Carried 7 torpedoes.
Diving depth 73 meters.
Crew 30
21 December 1927 commissioned in Toulon under command of Comdr. Vandoros.

When war broke out between Greece and Italy on 28 October 1940 she was not so old but she lacked any modern equipment and frequently experienced electrical and mechanical difficulties.
After taking on board torpedoes and stores she sailed under command of Lieut. Comdr. Miltos Iatridis from the Greece naval bases Salamis at 16.00 on 28 October 1940.
By sailing out late she avoided the daylight trip under water, without sighting she reached her patrol area in the Gulf of Patras. Did not see or make enemy contact and returned to base a week later.

On her second war patrol she sighted the Italian sailing ship ANTOINETTA on 22 December 1940, she rammed the ship but it did not sink, the crew boarded the vessel captured the six men crew and set the sailing vessel on fire.
From this crew they got the information that a large convoy headed for the coast of Albany.
Christmas eve the convoy was spotted in the Adriatic near the island Saseno, the convoy was escorted by destroyers and aircraft.
When the PAPANIKOLIS was in a good firing position she fired her torpedoes, which hit the Italian troopship FIRENZE (3.952 gross) after she sunk in position 40 34 N 19 02 E.
Very quickly the submarine was attacked by destroyers who launched the next hours depth charges, but she escaped undamaged, and sailed to the navy bases where she was greeted by a navy band and high ranking officers.
She made four war patrols more in the area she but did not sink another enemy ship.
After Greek was occupied by the German troops, the PAPANIKOLIS escaped to Alexandria, Egypt.
Under British operational control and command changed to Comdr. Athanasios Spanidis.

And under his command she took part in two war patrols in 1942 in the Aegean Sea. In the first she sank six small sailing vessels between 11 and 14 June, she disembarked SOE agents in Crete and 15 New Zealand commandos embarked on her.
On her second war patrol between 11 and 14 June she was not so lucky; an attack on an 8.000 ton tanker was unsuccessful. Off Rhodos she landed two mixed British Greek commandos, who succeeded to attack the two airfields on the island, and destroying many Axis aircraft.

Command was taken over by Lt. Nikolaos Roussen. Under his command she landed men and equipment at Crete.
30 November 1942 on this war patrol west of Rhodos she sighted three Italian torpedo boats, a sailing vessel and a steamer of about 8000 ton at anchor in a cove on Alimnia islet, Roussen was waiting till the ships would sail out. When he did not see any activity on the ships to heave in the anchors he fired at 16.35 at the steamer, which was hit and sunk.
Thereafter he escaped unharmed.

17 January 1943 after landing agents and equipment at Hydra, he seized the 200 ton sailing vessel AGIOS STEFANOS, put a prize crew on board who sailed her to Alexandria.
18 January he sank an other 150 ton sailing vessel.
In the following patrols in March and May he sank four sailing vessels with a total tonnage of 450 tons.
Altogether she carried out nine war patrols from Alexandria.

After the war she returned to Greece and was decommissioned 1945.
Her hull was sold for scrap in 1946, her conning tower initially preserved at the submarine Naval Base, later placed in front of the Hellenic Maritime Museum in Piraeus, where it still is today.

On Greece 1978 2d50 sg 1442, scott 1275.

Source: Wikipedia. Jane’s Fighting Ships of World War II
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1442.jpeg

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