Italian Submarines
Class ARGO and TRITONE

by Cristiano D'Adamo

	Main Page
Design and Construction	Propulsion	Air Systems
Crew Quarters	Blueprints	Radio, Navigation, etc.
Periscope	Controls	Weapons
Technical Specifications	Operational Activity	List of all Boats

Weapons

Torpedoes

All ARGO and TRITONE were fitted with two torpedo tubes aft and four forward. All tubes were loaded before leaving port and six extra torpedoes were stowed aboard giving the ARGO and TRITONE a total of 12 torpedoes. Torpedoes were loaded through a special hatch and the operation was very laborious. Once at sea, torpedoes could be removed from the tubes for limited maintenance (fuel topping).

One of the boats of the TRITONE class at the shipyard.
(Photo Turrini )

Range, speed and direction of the weapons could be configured while they were inserted in the tubes. The tubes, produced by Tosi, could take a variety of 21’ (533 mm) torpedoes produced both by Whitehead and “Silurificio Italiano”. Similar to the Royal Navy, the Regia Marina did not experience the kind of massive torpedo failure which plagued the U.S. Navy and the Kriegsmarine. Italian weapons were reliable, but left a visible trail thus making them easy to spot. Toward the end of the war (1943), the TRITONE received electric torpedoes from the Germans which proved quite effective.

Smaller Weapons

Each boat was equipped with a small armory containing rifles and side arms and located in the hydrophone room.

Deck Guns

The ARGO and TRITONE were fitted with the newer 100 mm caliber 47, and carried 149 shells. A well-trained gunnery team could fire eight shells per minute.

The ARGO and TRITONE had a single gun mounted forward of the cunning tower. Shells were loaded from the stowage area below onto the main compartment and from there pushed up to the deck through a tube. Since there are no specifications for a mechanical or hydraulic hoisting system, it is assumed that the shells were pushed by hand. The gunners also had access to a ready storage area built into the cunning tower and secured by a watertight hatch. The ammunition stowage was located on the lower deck between the forward battery hold and the quick dive tank.

The MAREA (Left) in Bermuda along with the ONICE in summer 1944.
(Photo courtesy Erminio Bagnasco and Achille Rastelli)

Due to the nature of the conflict in the Mediterranean, the deck gun of the ARGO and TRITONE was of very limited use.

Machine Guns

All ARGO and TRITONE classes were equipped with the famous Breda Model 1931 13.2 mm anti-aircraft machinegun. These guns were mounted on a single support on the ARGO and on double mounts on the TRITONE. The guns were installed on a retractable mount, which would recede into a watertight tube protected by a small hatch. Upon emerging, the gunners had to simply release the hatch, lift the guns out of the enclosure, and install the clip and fire. Each clip contained 30 rounds and the gun could fire up to 400 rounds per minute at a range of 2,000 meters. The ARGO had a reserve of 3,000 rounds, later increased to 10,000 on the TRITONE. As with all Italian submarines, toward the end of the conflict it was discovered that the 13.2 mm guns were insufficient in downing large American bombers protected by a thick armor.



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Italian Submarines Class ARGO and TRITONE