Battle of Cape Passero
1940 CE.
Shown on the map at 36.250°, 15.750°.
The Action off Cape Passero, was a naval engagement in the Second World War between the British light cruiser HMS Ajax, three torpedo boats and seven destroyers of the Italian Regia Marina, in the central Mediterranean, to the south-east of Sicily, on the night of 11/12 October 1940. In Operation MB 6, the Mediterranean Fleet covered Convoy MF 3 from Alexandria to Malta and Convoy MF 4 from Malta to Alexandria. Supermarina had prepared the Strait of Sicily Device (Dispositivo del Canale di Sicilia) with torpedo boats, MAS (Motoscafo armato siluranti, torpedo-armed motorboats), minefields and submarines against ships trying to pass the Sicilian Narrows at night. The Dispositivo was implemented on the night of 11/12 October and ships were sent to the east of Malta in case the British returned to Alexandria. Three torpedo boats and four destroyers attacked the cruiser Ajax which suffered minor damage. Two torpedo boats were sunk and several torpedo boats and destroyers were damaged. The next morning, Artigliere, a damaged destroyer, was sunk by HMS York. Supermarina was dismayed by the superiority of the British in night-fighting against some of their best ships and crews.
Text from the Wikipedia article Action off Cape Passero, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.