by: Author Unknown,
A former Coast Guard cutter which joined the Royal Navy last year was honored as the single-handed victor over one and possibly two submarines.
The Admiralty in a special announcement told how the one-time Chelan, now called the Lulworth, threw her 1,983 tons into a ramming attack on the 1,332-ton Italian submarine Pietro Calvi after bringing the submersible to the surface with depth charges.
With the impact, the Pietro Calvi turned on her side, dumped part of her crew into the water and sank before a boarding party could reach her.
A second submarine surfaced nearby the Admiralty said, and the Lulworth’s gunners scored direct hits on the conning tower before the craft could dive. Hours were spent searching but it could not be confirmed that the submarine had been sunk.
There was one humorous touch to the whole engagement.
The Pietro Calvi’s navigation officer identified as a former Olympic swimmer, churned his way so rapidly toward the Lulworth that he was mistaken originally for a torpedo.
The Admiralty in a special announcement told how the one-time Chelan, now called the Lulworth, threw her 1,983 tons into a ramming attack on the 1,332-ton Italian submarine Pietro Calvi after bringing the submersible to the surface with depth charges.
With the impact, the Pietro Calvi turned on her side, dumped part of her crew into the water and sank before a boarding party could reach her.
A second submarine surfaced nearby the Admiralty said, and the Lulworth’s gunners scored direct hits on the conning tower before the craft could dive. Hours were spent searching but it could not be confirmed that the submarine had been sunk.
There was one humorous touch to the whole engagement.
The Pietro Calvi’s navigation officer identified as a former Olympic swimmer, churned his way so rapidly toward the Lulworth that he was mistaken originally for a torpedo.
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