Tuman (Soviet patrol boat)

History
Soviet Union
Name: Tuman
Builder: Danzig
Launched: 1931
Acquired: 19 October 1939
Fate: Sunk, 10 August 1941
General characteristics
Type: Naval trawler
Displacement: 1,218 long tons (1,238 t)
Length: 55 m (180 ft)
Beam: 9 m (30 ft)
Speed: 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph)
Range: 4,500 nmi (8,300 km; 5,200 mi)
Armament:

The Tuman (Russian: Туман, meaning Mist) was a Soviet patrol boat that achieved lasting fame in a battle fought in Arctic waters of the Barents Sea in 1941.

Ship history

The Tuman was built in 1931 in the Free City of Danzig (now Gdańsk) as a seagoing fishing trawler, with a displacement of 1,218 tons, a length of 55 metres (180 ft) and width of 9 metres (30 ft), a speed of 9 knots, and a range of 4,500 miles (7,200 km).

On October 19, 1939, just before the commencement of the Soviet-Finnish War, the trawler was called into the navy as DC-10 (Patrol Ship Number 10). In a list dated March 4, 1940, it is listed in the category of escort ships. It was provided with an armament of two dual purpose 45 mm guns, two light 7.62 mm caliber machine guns, and depth charges.

Sinking

On August 10, 1941, the ship was on patrol under the command of Lieutenant L. Shestakov on the line Tsyp-Navolok—Kildin Island when it encountered three German destroyers (Z4 Richard Beitzen, Z10 Hans Lody, and Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt).[1] The ship reported this sighting to Northern Fleet Command, which fulfilled its mission instructions.

The Tuman then laid down a smoke screen and began evasive action. The German destroyers, which had a massive superiority in armament, closed to within 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) and begin hitting the craft. The Tuman sustained eleven direct hits from 5-inch (130 mm) shells and the captain and commissar were killed. Damage to the aft gun prevented the Tuman from returning fire. The German fire shot the ship's flag from the mast, but a wounded sailor (K. D. Semenov) and the senior radio operator (V. K. Blinov) raised it again.

Opening late due to poor interoperability, fire from Soviet shore batteries drove off the German destroyers (Z-4 suffered some damage by near miss). Together with the smoke screen, this allowed the lives of 37 of the 52 crew members to be saved from the Tuman, which sank. That evening, surviving crewmen were presented with tributes from the workers of Murmansk.

To this day, Russian naval vessels passing Kildin Island dip their flags and sound a long blast on their horns in tribute when passing over the site where the Tuman sank, at position 69°33′06″N 33°40′20″E / 69.55167°N 33.67222°E / 69.55167; 33.67222Coordinates: 69°33′06″N 33°40′20″E / 69.55167°N 33.67222°E / 69.55167; 33.67222, about 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Kildin. A capsule of seawater from this point was embedded in the giant statue Defenders of the Soviet Arctic during the Great Patriotic War.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Z10 Hans Lody". feldgrau.com. 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  2. ↑ Maria Dmitrash. "'Алеша' – мемориал защитникам Заполярья" ['Alyosha' – memorial to the defenders of the Arctic]. Seven Wonders of Russia. Retrieved October 18, 2011. (in Russian)
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