Soldati-class destroyer

Description

The Soldati-class were a group of 19 destroyers built for the Regia Marina.

Vehicles

Rank III

• RN Aviere - 1° Serie, 1940
• RN Geniere - 1° Serie, 1942
• RN Corazziere - 1° Serie, 1943

History

The Soldati-class destroyers brought to completion a series of attempts by the Regia Marina to build a type of destroyer that would be valid to operate together with battleships and cruisers in missions to counter adversary naval forces, and also to act jointly with the fast torpedo boats of the Spica-class in night torpedoing actions in the restricted waters of the Sicilian Channel.

The Regia Marina during the 1930s tried in various ways to create a more efficient class of destroyers than those already in service, and there were several attempts.

The first attempts were made in 1929 with the setting of the Freccia-class destroyers, which, although they were a step forward in comparison with the Turbine-class destroyers (especially from the point of view of autonomy and maneuverability) did not give the desired results, since they had to be made considerably heavier in the dead work to improve their lateral stability and seaworthiness.

In 1931 four Maestrale-class destroyers were set, which took the general characteristics of the Freccia-class, eliminated most of the defects of the previous class, resulting in a destroyer with satisfactory characteristics for the Regia Marina.

The most pronounced feature of these destroyers was their high speed, which, at trials, with light displacement, far exceeded 38 knots contracted to touch 41.3 knots with the RN Libeccio.

However, in practice, this speed proved to be entirely fictitious, as the Maestrale-class, with operating displacements on the 2,000-ton mark, failed to make more than 36 knots, and even in war, after the installation of new equipment and weapons, they did not exceed 32 knots.

Between 1935 and 1936, construction began on the 4 units of the Oriani-class, almost complete replicas of the Maestrale-class, but with greater installed power that enabled them not to register the marked decreases in speed of the previous class under practical operating conditions.

In 1937, the first 12 units of the Soldati-class were laid down, partly replicating the names of destroyers of 1905.

The first 12 units are Soldati-class 1°Serie.

Ship name	Builder	Setting	Launch	Entry in service	Final Destiny
RN Alpino	CNR Ancona	2 May 1937	18 September 1938	20 April 1939	9 April 1943	Sank from an aerial bombardment
RN Fuciliere	CNR Ancona	2 May 1937	31 July 1938	10 January 1939	31 January 1950	Disbarred and gave to the USSR, demolished in 1960
RN Granatiere	CNR Palermo	5 April 1937	24 April 1938	1 February 1939	1 July 1958	Disbarred and demolished in 1960
RN Bersagliere	CNR Palermo	21 April 1937	3 July 1938	1 April 1939	7 January 1943	Sank from an aerial bombardment
RN Carabiniere	CNR Riva Trigoso	1 February 1937	23 July 1938	20 December 1938	17 January 1965	Sank in March 1978 and demolished
RN Lanciere	CNR Riva Trigoso	1 February 1937	18 December 1938	25 March 1939	23 March 1942	Sank in a storm
RN Camicia Nera	OTO Livorno	21 January 1937	8 August 1937	30 June 1938	23 January 1949	Disbarred and given to the USSR, demolished in 1960
RN Aviere	OTO Livorno	16 January 1937	19 September 1937	31 August 1938	17 December 1942	Sank by HMS Splendid
RN Artigliere	OTO Livorno	15 February 1937	12 December 1937	14 November 1938	2 October 1940	Sank in combat
RN Geniere	OTO Livorno	26 August 1937	27 February 1938	15 December 1938	1 March 1943	Sank from an aerial bombardment, recovered and sank during towing in 1944
RN Corazziere	OTO Livorno	7 October 1937	22 May 1938	4 March 1939	9 September 1943 - 4 September 1944	Self-sank, recovered, sunk by air attack and demolished in 1953
RN Ascari	OTO Livorno	11 December 1937	31 July 1938	6 May 1939	24 March 1943	Sunk by mines

All 1°Serie Soldier-class destroyers were delivered between June 1938 and the last Soldati-class of 1°Serie (RN Ascari) in May 1939. After the outbreak of the conflict, it was decided to build a second series of seven units, bringing the overall total to 19.

The last 7 units are Soldati-class 2°Serie

Ship name	Builder	Setting	Launch	Entry in service	Final Destiny
RN Mitragliere	CNR Ancona	7 October 1940	28 September 1941	1 February 1942	15 July 1948	Disbarred and given to France and after demolished in 1956
RN Bombardiere	CNR Ancona	7 October 1940	23 March 1942	15 July 1942	17 January 1943	Sank by HMS United a torpedo
RN Legionario	OTO Livorno	21 October 1940	16 April 1941	1 March 1942	15 August 1948	Disbarred and given to France and after demolished in 1956
RN Corsaro	OTO Livorno	23 January 1941	16 November 1941	16 May 1942	9 January 1943	Sunk by mines
RN Velite	OTO Livorno	19 April 1941	31 August 1941	31 August 1942	24 July 1948	Disbarred and given to France and after demolished in 1956
RN Squadrista	OTO Livorno	4 September 1941	12 September 1942	No service	9 September 1943	Captured by germans, renamed TA 33, sunk from an aerial bombardment on 4 September 1944 before service
RN Carrista	OTO Livorno	1941	Never launched	No service	No date	Captured by germans, renamed TA 34, never completed and sunk by an aerial bombardment

The RN Carrista was never launched, as she had to give up her stern to the RN Velite and her bow to the RN Carabiniere, both of which were torpedoed by British submarines. The RN Squadrista, on the other hand, was in the process of being outfitted when, after the armistice, it was captured by the Germans who towed it to Genoa, but still failed to complete it because it was sunk during an Allied air raid.

The remaining five units entered service between February and the last Soldati-class of 2°Serie (RN Velite) in August 1942.

Technical Description

The Soldati-class ships featured an extremely honed hull, and relatively uncluttered superstructures, to allow for the development of high speeds. The Schooner-type bow, characteristic of destroyers of the Freccia-class onward, was about 5.3 meters high on the waterline, and allowed good seakeeping from the forward sectors.

Immediately forward of the bridge deck was a 120/50 mm twin-barrel rig placed directly on the hull, and with a firing range of about 270 degrees.

The bridge was quite massive, and included: wheelhouse (with 9 protected hatches), command bridge, operations room and radio rooms, as well as various accommodations. Also on the wheelhouse sky was the large main firing station, and abaft this was a small telemetry tower also equipped with a large reflector for night firing.

Finally, on the overhead of the structure, on either side, were two platforms with twin 13.2 mm complexes for close AA firing, which contributed to the decidedly massive appearance of the whole, but allowed the ship's forward sectors, which were otherwise completely uncovered, to be beaten with anti-aircraft fire. On the other hand, however, one was obliged to keep some ammunition in an extremely delicate spot.

Aft of the funnel, on a deckhouse, were two platforms reaching to the edges of the hull, with two twin 20/65 mm complexes. Immediately below the step, were two motolances (one on each side) and two small boats.

In the middle of the ship, elevated about 70 cm from the hull, were placed two trinated torpedo-launching complexes with their uncovered launching units, separated from each other by a wide plank on which the single 120-mm cannon or illuminating howitzer, and a machine gun were placed. Finally, towards the stern, the last deckhouse with the second 120-mm twin rig, the partially covered emergency wheelhouse, and, forward of this, the aft mast.

On some units (RN Carabiniere, RN Ascari, RN Aviere, and RN Lanciere) a secondary gunnery unit was also arranged behind the 120 mm aft, but in the course of the war it was disembarked.

Internal compartmentalization and weight arrangement, following experience with the earlier types, had been particularly careful, so as to allow for good embedding and endurance qualities without having to resort to ballasting as had to be done with the Freccia-class.

The rudder, centrally placed between the two propellers and connected to the hull with a strong fin, together with the angular shape of the hull, contributed greatly to the overall good maneuverability of the ship.