DISCOVERY OF
WWII ITALIAN SUBMARINE WRECK JANTINA IN GREECE
The research and identification team included: Alexiades Platon, Vougidis Spyros, Thoktaridis Agapi Oceanis, Thoctarides Kostas, Koumarianos Nikos, Maganas Giorgos, Sippl Ricardo.
The Jantina is the fourth submarine that has been located and identified by Kostas Thoctarides and Planet Blue - ROV Services in the Greek archipelago. South of Mykonos at a depth of 103 m, the Italian submarine that was sunk by a British sub on July 5th , 1941 - was found and identified by Thoctarides and the team. The discovery comes after the most recent submarine shipwreck, the Greek vessel Katsonis, was discovered in 2018 by Planet Blue - ROV Services at a depth of 253 m, using the same technology.
HISTORY OF SINKING AND THE FATAL ATTACK The Jantina was launched in 1932 in La Spezia, Italy. An Argonauta class submarine, the Jantina was 61.5 m long with a width of 5.65 m, and had a diving displacement of 810 tons. On the surface it had a maximum cruising speed of 14 knots, and was able to dive at 8 knots to a maximum operational depth of 80 m. Its armament consisted of 4 torpedo tubes in the bow and 2 in the stern, in addition to a 102/35 naval gun. On the afternoon of July 5th, 1941, the Jantina sailed on the surface, south of Mykonos and heading west. It had sailed from Leros – a nearby island that was an Italian naval base in WWII – heading back to Italy for repair, and it was carrying a crew of 48. The vessel was travelling on the surface as it had recently suffered technical problems and was unable to dive.
The Italian submarine JANTINA was launched in 1932 in La Spezia, Italy and was of the ARGONAUTA class. Its length was 61.5 meters, width 5.65 meters. (Source: Giorgio Parodi)
The Italian submarine JANTINA. Source: Italian Naval History Service (MARINA MILITARE UFFICIO STORICO).
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