Trivia!

Would it be the secret Base for frogmen set up on board the interned italian tanker Olterra?

 

correct:
July 1942 Italian frogmen set up a base in the Italian cargo ship Olterra which was interned in Algeciras near Gibraltar. All materials had to be moved secretly through Spain thus limiting operations.

July 13, 1942 12 Italian frogmen swam from the Olterra into Gibraltar harbour and set explosives, sinking four ships

December 17, 1942 Six Italians on three torpedoes left the Olterra to attack the British warships HMS Nelson, Formidable, and Furious. A British patrol boat killed one torpedo's crew (Lt. Visintini and Petty Officer Magro) with a depth charge. Their bodies were recovered, and their swimfins were taken and used by two of Gibraltar's British guard divers; Sydney Knowles and Commander Lionel Crabb. A British patrol boat detected another torpedo, and pursued and shot at it, capturing its two crewmen. The remaining torpedo returned to the Olterra, having lost its rear rider.

May 8, 1943 Three Italian manned torpedoes left the cargo ship Olterra to attack Gibraltar in bad weather and sank three British ships.

August 3, 1943 Three Italian manned torpedoes left the Olterra to attack Gibraltar, and again sank three ships.

Not bad for a bunch of "Pigs"

Your up Darren Scott

 

The "Guns of Navarone" are fictional.

 

Here is a little more detail.
* July 1942: Italian frogmen set up in a secret base in the Italian cargo ship Olterra interned in Algeciras near Gibraltar. All materials had to be moved secretly through Spain and this limited operations.
* July 13, 1942: twelve Italian frogmen swam from the Olterra into Gibraltar harbor and set explosives, and then returned safely. They sank four ships.
*August 29, 1942: El Daba, Egypt. The Hunt class destroyer HMS Eridge is torpedoed at close range by a MTSM, a torpedo-carrying version of the MTM. With the loss of 6 of her complement, the warship is towed to Alexandria, but soon after is declared a CTL (Constructive Total Loss), being finally scrapped in 1946[2].
* December 4, 1942: The Ambra left La Spezia to attack Algiers, carrying frogmen and two manned torpedoes. Ten frogmen carrying limpet mines swam with the torpedoes, but because of the distance they did not reach the harbor, but attacked ships outside it, sank two and damaged two others.
* December 17, 1942: six Italians on three torpedoes left the Olterra to attack the three British warships HMS Nelson, HMS Formidable, and HMS Furious in Gibraltar. A British patrol boat killed one torpedo's crew with a depth charge. Another British patrol boat spotted another torpedo. The parol boat pursued and shot at the torpedo and captured the two crewmen. The remaining torpedo returned to the Olterra without its rear rider.
* May 8, 1943: three Italian manned torpedoes left the Olterra to attack Gibraltar in bad weather and sank three British ships. All returned safely to the Olterra.
This drawing shows a norwegian tanker broken in two by Olterra manned torpedos, August 1943

* July 25, 1943: Mussolini was replaced by Pietro Badoglio as the head of the Italian government.
* July 1943: This site says that the Xª MAS sank or crippled the ship Kaituna (10000 tons) at Mersin in Turkey.
* August 3, 1943: in the evening, three Italian manned torpedoes left the Olterra to attack Gibraltar and sank three ships and returned to the Olterra, but one of their men was captured.
* August 1943: This site says that the Xª MAS sank or crippled the norwegian cargo ship Fernplant (7000 tons) at Iskenderun in Turkey.
* September 8, 1943: Italy signed an armistice with the Allies and changed sides. The Olterra was towed into Gibraltar, and the British found what had happened in it.

 

What remarkable feat was performed by the trawler Moonstone?

 

I'd answer this one, but I don't have any new question ready. Her feat is quite remarkable.

 

An Italian submarine of 800 tons, with a surface speed of 18 knots, the Galileo Galilei (named after the astronomer), was operating in the Red Sea when Italy entered the war. On her first cruise after hostilities begin she was sighted by a British destroyer, which dropped depth charges near her. Slight leakage resulted, but much more serious was the dislocation of the air conditioning plant. So humid did the air become that ultimately the submarine was forced to break surface at frequent intervals. On one of these occasions she was spotted by aircraft, and the Moonstone, an anti-submarine trawler based on Aden, was detailed to deal with her. Depth charges induced the Galilei to break surface, and perceiving the small size and light armament of the trawler, the Italian captain made the decision to fight it out on the surface. Mr. William Moorman, Boatswain, R.N., in command of the Moonstone, opened fire almost simultaneously with the submarine, but with better aim. Her captain killed, the Galilei surrendered, and was brought proudly into Aden with the White Ensign flying over the Italian colours. This was the first enemy submarine captured in the War.

 

Due to the primitive nature of Italian airconditioning the Galileis crew was either killed in the attack or poisoned by gas. The boat was found by Moonstone
drifting aimlessly and her "order of operation" was found which gave her cruising area away to the British. Later the British located Torricelli which was disabled and
forced to travel on surface only, a running gun battle resuled with three British distroyers and two gunboats chasing the Italian sub on the surface. The sub had one 100mm gun and four machine guns agaist eighteen 120mm and four 102mm guns and several score machine guns. The British fired 700 shells and 500 rounds of
machinegun ammunition and were not able to sink the disabled Italian Torricelli. Great demo of British gunnery.

 

Correct.

 

6-13-1942
Centruion left Alexandria with 10 merchant ships, 8 cruisers, and 27 destroyers in convoy.
What was her purpose?

 

I have an answer but don't have a question, so I'll pass.

 

Centurions purpose was to simulate a commisioned battleship.

--Chase

 

correct

 

This german submarines guns came from a battleship. Name the submarine.

 

WW1:
U 139 with 150mm guns?

 

HMS M1 - armed with a 12" gun kept as spares for the Formidable class.

 

Whoops Missed the German bit

 

Whoops Missed the German bit

 

Whoops Missed the German bit

 

TheGeek,
u139 wasn't the sub I was thinking of, but if you can provide a source that states its guns came from a battleship than I'll give it to you.

--Chase