Wreck of a British submarine found after 73 years! - gallery

In Italian waters near the tiny island of Tavolara, divers have found the wreck of a British World War II submarine at a depth of about 90 metres. The vessel sank 73 years ago in early 1943. The Royal Navy ship went down after it ran aground on a mine during operations conducted as part of Operation Principle.

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HMS P311 was one of the most wanted British ships in the Mediterranean. Attempts to locate the vessel have been carried out virtually since her disappearance in January 1943. Inside the wreck are still the remains of 71 crew members, so the wreck is certain to be declared a war grave and thus subject to a total diving ban.

Among the wreck diving enthusiasts appearing in the region, the submarine HMS P311 was practically a myth. Everyone wondered what happened to the vessel and where on the map it was when it went down.

Massimo Domenico Bondone – a diver from Genoa who has already managed to find many wrecks in the Mediterranean waters – came across the trace of P311 a month ago. He then went to Sardinia armed with the necessary equipment and years of experience. Logistical support was provided by the local diving centre The Bear Poltu Quatu diving club.

HMS P311 Tutankhamen

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After several unsuccessful approaches thwarted by the weather, it finally happened! Last Sunday, during a dive at a depth of about 80 metres, Bondone spotted the wreck of a submarine.

“My thoughts are now focused on those who died serving on HMS P311. They shared the terrible fate of many submarine crews,” Massimo Bondone commented warmly.

In November 1942, ship P311 arrived in Malta, where she joined the 10th Submarine Flotilla. She was lost between 30 December 1942 and 8 January 1943, during a cruise to the port of La Maddalena in Sardinia, where, with the use of Chariot vehicles, she was to carry out an attack on two Italian cruisers as part of Operation “Principle”. These plans were foiled by a mine strike, which resulted in the sinking of the ship.

The wreck is almost intact and rests on a hard sandy bottom. The ship rested evenly on its keel and remains so to this day. Only the bow shows signs of damage caused by a mine explosion. After a preliminary examination it seems that the ship maintained its integrity after the explosion and the crew died from lack of oxygen.

HMS P311 was built for the Royal Navy in 1940-42 at the Vickers-Armstrong shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness, as a ‘T’ class submarine. She was the only unit of this class to remain unnamed. Although it was Winston Churchill’s decision that all submarines should be given names in addition to their numbers, P311 sank before she received her intended name of “Tutankhamun”.

The ship measured 84 metres long and 8 metres wide. She entered service on 5 March 1942 and served under the command of Lieutenant Richard Douglas Cayley. The P311 was equipped with two Chariot-type submersible vehicles, the so-called “living torpedo”, measuring 6.8 metres in length and intended for sabotage actions in enemy harbours. She was also one of the two “T” class ships that were not equipped with a 20 mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun, which was also a characteristic element that made it easier to identify the wreck.

Source: lanuovasardegna.gelocal.it