Naval Weaponry: Italy’s MAS Torpedo Boats

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On the night of September 6, 1916, the two boats, escorted by some French destroyers, attacked Austrian shipping anchored near Durazzo (now called Dubrovnik) Harbor. Despite the noise from the roaring gasoline engines, the Austrians were taken by surprise, and the attack was a success. Both MAS boats escaped unharmed after sinking the 924-ton steamer Lokrum. A few weeks later, the MAS boats, this time escorted by Italian destroyers, sank the steamer Sarajevo (1,100 tons).

To solve noise problems reported in the early MAS boats, electric motors were fitted to MAS.20 and MAS.21, and on November 1, MAS.20 was launched on a daring attack against an Austrian battleship lying at anchor in the port of Pola (now called Pula) on Cape Kamenjak, south of Trieste. Finding a gap in the net guarding the approaches to the battleship, the tiny torpedo boat slipped inside and advanced toward the anchorage. But the battleship had left, and the boat spent two hours looking for the giant ship without success. With daylight approaching, the crew members of MAS.20 consoled themselves by sinking the old harbor defense ship Mars before slipping away.

The MAS boats scored the first major success for torpedo boats on the night of December 9, 1917. The two old Austro-Hungarian battleships Wien and Budapest had been bombarding Italian shore positions when MAS.9 and MAS.13, under the command of Commander Luigi Rizzo, crept into the Trieste roadstead where the two capital ships were anchored. This time everything went perfectly. Both MAS boats got within 200 meters of the Austrian ships without being detected, after using hydraulic shears to cut through three protective 21ž2-inch hawsers. Maneuvering into position, MAS.9 fired two torpedoes. Both hit Wien amidships, and in a few minutes the old battleship rolled over and sank. Although MAS.13’s torpedoes missed their target, both Italian boats were able to escape unseen.

By then, the MAS crews had perfected their operations. Two or three boats would be towed by larger boats and destroyers to the starting point, thereby saving fuel and avoiding premature engine breakdowns. The destroyers could also provide covering fire and smoke to aid in the getaway.

Convinced of the value of MAS boats, the Italian navy launched into a program to build literally hundreds, and by the end of the war would have over 400 of them.

In January 1917, Orlando of Liverno produced an interchangeable motor torpedo boat/gunboat. MAS.91 could be armed either with two 18-inch torpedoes or a 47mm quick-firing gun. Most important, speed was increased to 27 knots.

The MAS.204­217 series was capable of conversion from a torpedo boat to a gunboat with the addition of a 57mm gun, and in 1918 the Italian navy acquired the Baglietto-built ‘D’ type MAS.397­400 series boats, which were 28-knot strike craft of formidable capability.

It was two of the older designs, however, that gave the MAS boats their finest hour. In the spring of 1918, the new Austro-Hungarian naval chief, Admiral Miklos Horthy, conceived a daring plan to transfer two mighty Austrian dreadnoughts, Szent István and Tegetthoff, escorted by seven destroyers, to the lower Adriatic. There, the fleet would force its way through the Allied minefields across the Strait of Otranto and sail out into the Mediterranean, where it would catch Allied ships by surprise.

On June 9, the Austro-Hungarian fleet set out. The next day, just after dawn, the dreadnoughts were seen by two MAS boats, 15 and 21, again commanded by the indomitable Luigi Rizzo. As the Austrian ships neared Premuda Island, the two MAS boats roared into attack, cut through the Austrian destroyer screen and fired a salvo of torpedoes. The torpedoes missed Tegetthoff, first in line, but two of those fired by MAS.15 struck Szent István, which listed to starboard. Her smaller consorts made frantic efforts to take her in tow, but after a 21ž2 -hour struggle, the ship capsized. Hundreds of sailors scrambled over the keel, providing one of the most dramatic scenes — captured on motion picture film–of World War I. Incredibly, only 89 lives were lost on the Austro-Hungarian ship.

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