The Spica class was a class of torpedo boats of the Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) during World War II. These ships were built as a result of a clause in the Washington Naval Treaty, which stated that ships with a tonnage of less than 600 could be built in unlimited numbers. Thirty-two ships were built between 1934 and 1937, thirty of which entered service with Italy and two of which were sold to the Swedish Navy in 1940. The two units in Swedish service were classified as destroyers until 1953, then re-classified as corvettes. Although commonly referred to as torpedo boats due to their smaller displacement, the Spica class armament was similar to destroyers (their design was influenced by the then in development) and were intended for anti-submarine operations but had to fight aircraft and surface forces. Twenty-three vessels were lost during the war.
The design work started in 1932, and two prototypes, Spica and Astore, were built. The hull was long, and displacement was around 720ST standard rather than the 600ST permitted by the Washington treaty. Propulsion consisted of a two-shaft, geared turbine layout with two Yarrow–type boilers.
The gun armament consisted of three 100abbr=onNaNabbr=on/47 caliber dual-purpose guns in single mountings in 'A', 'X', and 'Y' positions and three or four twin 13.2mm anti-aircraft machine guns, later replaced by 6 to 11 Breda 20/65 modello 35 20 mm cannons in various configurations. (Lupo, for example, replaced her eight machine-guns by 1941 with three twin 20 mm guns; two abreast the bridge and one between the funnel and second main gun, leaving the former MG platform immediately abaft the funnel vacant.)
They also carried four 450abbr=onNaNabbr=on torpedo tubes; two single tubes for each side in the first group, with later groups having varying configurations including a centreline twin and two single beam mounts, before settling on two centreline twin mounts in the last vessels. Some earlier ships were reportedly refitted with the all-centreline arrangement during the war. This weapon had a shorter range and a smaller warhead than the 533abbr=onNaNabbr=on torpedoes in use on destroyers.
| Ship | [1] | Builder | Completed | Operational history | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airone | AO | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 10 May 1938 | Sunk 12 October 1940 in the battle of Cape Passero by British cruiser . She scored three hits from her main guns on the British cruiser before being disabled; 59 seamen went down with the ship. Ajax herself was hit by seven shells that destroyed one of her whalers, caused severe damage to the bridge and radar installation and 35 casualties, including 13 killed.[2] | |
| Alcione | AC | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 10 May 1938 | Sunk 11 December 1941 by submarine . | |
| Aldebaran | AL | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 6 December 1936 | Sunk 20 October 1941 in the Saronic Gulf, by mines laid by submarine . | |
| Altair | AT | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 23 December 1936 | Sunk 20 October 1941 in the Saronic Gulf, by mines laid by submarine . | |
| Andromeda | AD | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 6 December 1936 | Sunk 17 March 1941 at Valona, Albania, torpedoed by British bombers. | |
| Antares | AN | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 23 December 1936 | Sank Greek submarine Proteus by ramming on 29 December 1940. Sunk 28 March 1943 at Livorno by USAAF bombers. | |
| Aretusa | AU | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 1 July 1938 | On 2 December 1942, while escorting a three ship convoy, Aretusa shot down one of three Fairey Albacore that torpedoed the merchants south of Kerkennah Islands. One of the ships in the convoy was sunk by the aircraft, and one of the escorts, Lupo, was sunk by British destroyers while recovering survivors at night. The remaining ships reached destination next morning. Heavily damaged by airstrike on 13 April 1943, repaired a few months later.[3] Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1 August 1958. | |
| Ariel | AE | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 1 July 1938 | Sunk 12 October 1940 in the battle of Cape Passero by British cruiser, with the loss of 98 seamen between officers and ratings. | |
| Astore | AS | BSN, Naples | 30 May 1935 | Sold to Sweden as in 1940. Decommissioned 1958. | |
| Calipso | CI | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 16 November 1938 | Sunk 5 December 1940, by mines east of Tripoli. | |
| Calliope | CP | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 28 October 1938 | Up to September 1943, she provided 117 escort missions to merchant ship convoys and took part in 21 various combat missions covering a total of more than 77,500 miles. Shot down six British aircraft in different actions while escorting convoys to Libya.[4] Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1 August 1958. | |
| Canopo | CA | CT, Riva Trigoso | 31 March 1937 | Sunk 3 May 1941 by British bombers at Tripoli. | |
| Cassiopea | CS | CT, Riva Trigoso | 26 April 1937 | Sank British destroyer in battle southeast of Marettimo island, on 16 April 1943, while escorting a transport ship to Tunis. Heavily damaged, she managed to limp away, taken in tow by Climene. Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1959. | |
| Castore | CT | CNR, Ancona | 16 January 1937 | On 13 January 1942, she led a convoy from Tripoli to Taranto that outmanoeuvred British destroyers HMS,, and . The convoy, composed of the transports Monginevro and Monviso, had been previously spotted and attacked by Swordfish of the 830 Squadron.[5] Castore fought off several British motor boats and small vessels attempting to land at Tobruk as part of Operation Agreement. She later rounded up a number of British survivors and small amphibious craft from the sea. Sunk 2 June 1943 by Allied destroyers and while escorting a convoy of two small freighters from Taranto to Messina, which reached destination safely.[6] | |
| Centauro | CO | CNR, Ancona | 16 June 1936 | Sunk 4 November 1942, bombed in Benghazi harbour. | |
| Cigno | CG | CNR, Ancona | 15 March 1937 | She was part of the screen of destroyers and torpedo boats escorting a four-freighter convoy to Tripoli on 26 May 1941,[7] when two Blenheim bombers were shot down. Cigno rescued hundreds of Italian survivors after the Battle of Cape Bon, where she dodged four torpedoes launched by the Dutch destroyer . Sunk in battle 16 April 1943 southeast of Marettimo island, by British destroyers and, while escorting a transport ship to Tunis. Pakenham was also sunk in the same engagement. | |
| Circe | CC | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 4 October 1938 | Attempted to ambush a British convoy along with Vega south of Pantelleria in January 1941. Vega was sunk and the British cruiser was damaged in the exchange of fire.[8] Sank submarines,, and . Sunk by collision 27 November 1942. | |
| Climene | CE | CNR, Ancona | 24 April 1936 | She took part in the shooting down of three Beaufort bombers and a Beaufighter while escorting a convoy between 20–21 August 1942.[9] Sunk 28 April 1943 by submarine . | |
| Clio | CL | Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente | 2 October 1938 | Sank submarine in December 1940. Clio shot down a Swordfish torpedo bomber from the aircraft carrier [10] while escorting a four ship convoy off Sfax on 21 December 1940.[11] She also participated in the battle of Skerki Bank, on 2 December 1942. Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1959. | |
| Libra | LB | CNQ, Fiume | 19 January 1939 | Assisted her sister ship Lupo in the attack on the convoy AN 14 on the night of 31 January 1941 in the Kasos Strait. Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1964. | |
| LC | CNQ, Fiume | 1 April 1938 | Along with Lupo, she landed troops during the reconquest of Kastelorizo, in February 1941. Grounded and later torpedoed and destroyed on 28 August 1943 by submarine . | ||
| Lira | LR | CNQ, Fiume | 1 January 1938 | Scuttled 9 September 1943, recovered by the Germans, and served as TA49, sunk by bombing 4 November 1944. | |
| LP/LU | CNQ, Fiume | 28 February 1938 | Along with Libra, torpedoed the British tanker Desmoulea (8120 tn) in the Kasos straits on 31 January 1941 at the position 35.5589°N 25.5706°W disabling her for the rest of the war.[12] [13] [14] The tanker was part of the convoy AN.14, and had departed Alexandria for Piraeus.[15] Captained by Francesco Mimbelli during the reconquest of Kastelorizo and the Battle of Crete, where she survived a battle against three cruisers and five destroyers, saving half of a small ships convoy. Sunk 2 December 1942 by destroyers,, and while picking up survivors from the Italian cargo ship Veloce, sunk by torpedo bombers en route to Tripoli. Two other steamers, part of the same convoy, eventually reached home. | ||
| Pallade | PD | BSN, Naples | 5 October 1938 | Sunk 5 August 1942 by air attack in Naples. | |
| Partenope | PN | BSN, Naples | 26 November 1938 | Shot down two Blenheim bombers while escorting a two-steamer convoy from Tripoli to Bengasi on 11 July 1941. Damaged after hitting a mine off Preveza on 26 July 1943. Scuttled while on drydock at Naples on 11 September 1943 when German forces occupied the city.[16] | |
| Perseo | PS | CNQ, Fiume | 1 February 1936 | Sunk 4 May 1943 off Cape Bon by, and, while escorting the freighter Campobasso, also sunk in this action. Another one-ship convoy, escorted by the, witnesses the destruction of Perseo and Campobasso but was able to outrun the British destroyers and reached Tunis unscathed. | |
| Pleiadi | PL | BSN, Naples | 4 July 1938 | Wrecked on 31 May 1941 outside Tripoli harbour after a fire onboard, definitively lost on 14 October 1941 to airstrike while in the process of being refloated.[17] | |
| Polluce | PC | BSN, Naples | 8 August 1938 | Sank submarine in June 1940, in company with Circe, Clio and Calliope. Sunk by torpedo bombers, 4 September 1942. | |
| SG | CNQ, Fiume | 8 October 1936 | Successfully protected a German convoy of caïques during the Battle of Crete against a British squadron of three cruisers and four destroyers, inflicting minor damage to the destroyer, according to Italian claims.[18] Sank British MTB 639 off Tunis, on 28 April 1943 whilst escorting a steamer off Kelibia. Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1964. | ||
| Sirio | SI | CNQ, Fiume | 1 March 1936 | She was the first Italian unit to spot the enemy in the battle of Cape Spartivento, and on 16 February 1943, Sirio led the escort of a four-ship convoy that detected by sonar[19] and fought off three British MTBs (MTB 77, MTB 82 and MTB 62) south of Marettimo. Survived the war and served in the post war Marina Militare. Decommissioned 1959. | |
| Spica | SP | BSN, Naples | 30 May 1935 | Sold to Sweden as in 1940. Decommissioned 1958. | |
| Vega | VG | CNQ, Fiume | 12 October 1936 | Shot down a Swordfish torpedo bomber from HMS Illustrious off Sfax on 21 December 1940, after two steamers she was escorting were torpedoed and lost. Sunk by destroyer 10 January 1941 in the strait of Sicily while attempting to ambush a British convoy to Malta. |