Filippo Corridoni was a minelaying submarine of the Bragadin-class (displacement of 965 tons on the surface and 1,068 tons submerged).
During the interwar period, the boat carried out normal training activities and short cruises in Italian waters. A unit of mediocre characteristics, it did not carry out a single mine-laying mission throughout the conflict, instead it was used – thanks to the large spaces it had for the transport of mines, which could also be used as “holds” to store supplies – for transport tasks, carrying out 15 missions of this type during the 1940-1943 period, bringing gasoline, ammunition and other materials to North Africa and later also to Lampedusa.
During the same period, the boat also completed 23 patrols and seven transfer missions, covering a total of 20,960 miles on the surface and 2,172 submerged. After the armistice it was again employed in a resupply suction, this time to Leros (Greece), and then underwent major maintenance work in Taranto and later it was sent to Aden, where it was employed in the anti-submarine training of British air and naval units, carrying out 56 missions of this type until the end of the war. Altogether it completed 180 assignments of all types during the 1940-1945 conflict, covering a total of 38,219.52 nautical miles.
The boat’s motto was “With the people for the fatherland”.
Brief and Partial Chronology
July 4th, 1927
Setting up was started at the Franco Tosi shipyards in Taranto.
March 30th, 1930
The boat was launch at the Franco Tosi shipyard in Taranto, with the blessing of the bishop of Taranto. Present at the launch, among others, was Oreste Bovini, mayor of the town of Pausula, the birthplace of the eponymous patriot of the submarine (which a few months later would be renamed Corridonia in his honor). Subsequently, a delegation of the submarine’s crew, including its commander, Lieutenant Commander Ignazio Castogiovanni, visited Corridonia.
The blessing of the Filippo Corridoni
November 17th, 1931
The submarine officially entered service and it was assigned to the IV Submarine Squadron, based in Taranto, which it formed together with Fratelli Bandiera, Luciano Manara, Ciro Menotti and Santorre Santarosa.
Corridoni while being fitted
June 13th, 1932
In Ancona, the boat received the combat flag, and the godmother was Mrs. Maria Luchetti. The flag was blessed by the bishop of Ancona and placed in a bonnet designed by the Ancona sculptor Filandro Castellani.
1933
Placed under the “Scuola Comando” a training facility.
1934
Corridoni was assigned to the VIII Submarine Squadron of Taranto, together with her boat of the same class Marcantonio Bragadin and the submarines Settembrini, Settimo, Salpa, and Serpente.
Corridoni entering Taranto’s inner harbor
1935
Due to the mediocre seaworthiness (little stability and strong pitching in rough seas), shortly after completion Corridoni underwent modification works that saw the raising of the tip of the bow (thus giving a “nose”, then eliminated in 1943) and the application of side counter hulls (saddles). The stern was also shortened and modified, due to the mediocrity of the mine-laying equipment. After the changes, the length decreases from 71.5 to 68 meters, the width increases from 6.15 to 7.10 meters and the draft decreases from 4.98 to 4.30 meters.
1935-1940
During the Spanish Civil War, the second lieutenant of the Naval Engineers Danilo Stiepovich, future Gold Medal for Military Valor, served on Corridoni.
1936
Corridoni was sent to Tripoli for a short time.
1938
Corridoni and Bragadin form the XLV Submarine Squadron (part of the IV Grupsom of Taranto), which includes all the minelaying boats of the Regia Marina: the much older X 2 and X 3 and the more modern Pietro Micca, Foca, Atropo and Zoea.
June 4th, 1940
The command of Corridoni was assumed by the Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci, 36 years old, from Radda in Chianti.
June 10th, 1940
When Italy entered the war, Corridoni (Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci) was undergoing works in Taranto. It was part of the XLIX Submarine Squadron of the IV Grupsom, based in Taranto, together with the more modern minelayer submarines Atropo and Zoea.
Corridoni departing for a patrol
June 16th through June 23rd, 1940
Corridoni sailed from Taranto under the command of Lieutenant Commander Minucci, for end-of-the-work trials.
June 26th, 1940
At 1.40 AM, Corridoni (Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci) sailed from Taranto bound for Naples, where it had to embark some material to be urgently taken to Libya on a transport mission.
June 28th, 1940
The boat arrived in Naples at 06:00 PM, after having travelled 480 miles.
June 30th, 1940
Corridoni left Naples at 05.20 PM, bound for Tobruk with 15 tons of ammunition and materials for the Regia Aeronautica on board destined for the Tobruk air base, as well as crates with publications, documents, and hydrographic material for that naval base (another source speaks of a total of 27 tons of cargo, materials for the Navy and the Air Force).
July 3rd, 1940
After passing through conventional point C (32°13’40’N, 23°51’E) and covering 772 (or 852) miles, it arrived in Tobruk at 09:00 PM, four hours behind schedule, after a smooth crossing. Providential delay: the British secret services were in fact able to learn of the expected arrival of Corridoni in Tobruk at 05:00 PM on July 3rd, and had sent a Short Sunderland anti-submarine seaplane (the “R” aircraft of the 228th Squadron of the Royal Air Force) to the scene with the express task of sinking it. However, when the Sunderland arrived in Tobruk, it did not find Corridoni since it had yet to arrive.
During the stop of Corridoni in Tobruk, the Libyan port was the object of three air attacks, on July 5th, 13th, and 15th.
July 16th, 1940
Corridoni left Tobruk at 06:45 AM bound for Leros, carrying materials including other crates of documents, publications, and hydrographic material for that base.
July 19th, 1940
The boat arrived in Leros at 03.30 PM, after having covered 426 miles.
July 24th, 1940
The boat left Leros at 4.20 PM, with the order to patrol between Crete and Sapienza and then return to Taranto.
August 8th, 1940
The boat arrived in Taranto at 03.15 PM, after a mission without any major events. It traveled 1,235 miles.
August 9th through September 24th, 1940
In the shipyard in Taranto.
September 25th through October 3rd, 1940
Corridoni (Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci) completed several end-of-the-work trials.
October 9th and 10th, 1940
The boat was in Taranto during two British air attacks, participating in the anti-aircraft reaction with the machine guns.
October 13th, 1940
At 4.20 PM Corridoni (Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci) left Taranto for a transport mission to Rhodes and Leros, with food and materials from the Army and Air Force on board. The Royal Navy’s secret service was aware of the mission, thanks to the interception and deciphering of Italian messages by the “ULTRA” organization. On October 15th, the command of the Mediterranean Fleet was first informed that a submarine loaded with supplies would reach Rhodes, docking in the conventional areas “Antonio” and “Luigi”, and that the submarine in question was Corridoni, which would enter the Aegean on the afternoon of October 16th, reaching Rhodes on the morning of the 18th.
October 15th, 1940
From 09.30 AM to 02.02 PM Corridoni was hunted, in position 37° 50’N and 19° 50’E, by a destroyer that tried to locate it with sonar, launching depth charges at 09.48 and 10.35. The boat did not suffer any damage.
October 19th, 1940
Corridoni arrived in Rhodes at 09.25 AM, after having covered 820.5 miles (according to another source 706).
October 20th, 1940
The boat left Rhodes at 11.25 pm, bound for Leros.
October 21st, 1940
The boat arrived in Leros at 11:45 AM, having covered 820.5 miles.
October 27th, 1940
The boat left Leros at 05.55 PM for a patrol in the Aegean, still under the command of Lieutenant Commander Minucci.
November 6th, 1940
The boat returned to Leros at 07.50 AM after having covered 1,072 miles, without having detected anything to report.
November 13th, 1940
The boat left Leros at 04.35 PM to return to Italy. The British were aware of this voyage through “ULTRA”, which on November 12th had learned from intercepted messages that “the date of departure of Corridoni from Rhodes has been postponed and will be communicated to Rome“, and two days after that Corridoni was assigned the route conventionally called “Ebro” and that the submarine was to leave on the evening of the 13th, unless it would receive different orders later.
November 18th, 1940
The boat arrived in Taranto at 03.45 PM, after having covered 681.5 miles. This was followed by a period of work in drydock.
December 28th and 31st, 1940
Corridoni set sail from Taranto for two training sorties, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci.
January 6th, 1941
Under the command of Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci, Corridoni sailed from Taranto at 07.30 AM for a patrol south of the Otranto Channel, at 38°40′ N and 20°00′ E, to protect traffic with Albania. During the mission, it failed to spot any enemy units or detect anything strange, except for explosions in the distance.
January 17th, 1941
The boat returned to Taranto at 05.30 PM, after having covered 1,251 miles.
February 4th, 1941
Lieutenant Commander Minucci handed over command of Corridoni to Lieutenant Lodovico Grion, 31 years old, from Trieste.
February 6th, 1941
Under the command of Lieutenant Lodovico Grion, Corridoni sailed from Taranto at 10.25 AM for a short training patrol, returning to base at 20.45 PM.
February 7th, 1941
Another exercise from Taranto, from 08.05 AM to 01.10 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Lodovico Grion, with the escort of the minesweeper RD 13. Followed at 08.15 PM by a hydrophone patrol in the Gulf of Taranto under the command of Lieutenant Commander Manlio Minucci.
February 8th, 1941
The boat returned to Taranto at 10.40 AM, after having covered 99 miles without any major events.
February 12th, 1941
Going out to sea for exercise, under the command of Lieutenant Lodovico Grion, from 08.15 AM to 03.45 PM., followed at 09.14 PM by hydrophone patrol.
February 13th, 1941
The boat returned to Taranto at 10.15 AM, after covering 88.5 miles.
February 21st through 26th, 1941
The boat set sail from Taranto for several cinematography sessions.
Picture taken from the Corridoni by operator of the “Istituto Luce”
March 7th, 1941
The boat set sail from Taranto at 08.15 PM for a hydrophone patrol, under the command of Lieutenant Grion.
March 8th, 1941
The boat returned to Taranto at 10.40 AM, after having covered 99 miles.
March 18th, 1941
Departure from Taranto for exercise from 06.35 AM to 04.59 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Grion and with the escort of the tugboat Palmaria. The boat traveled 63.5 miles.
March 19th, 1941
Another trip to sea for exercise, from 06.48 AM to 04.46 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Grion and with the escort of the torpedo boat San Martino.
April 23rd, 1941
Lieutenant Grion relinquished command of Corridoni to 39-year-old Ugo Gentili from L’Aquila.
June 15th, 1941
Under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili, Corridoni set sail from Taranto at 10:00 AM for a training patrol returning at 11.50 AM after covering 3 miles.
June 16th, 1941
Another exercise outing, under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili, from 08.18 AM to 04.35 PM, together with the old submarine H 2 and with the escort of the auxiliary escort ship F 46 Limbara. The boat traveled 41 miles.
June 17th, 1941
Another exercise from Taranto, from 12:00 PM to 05.12 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili. Also participating in the exercise were the submarines H 2 and H 8 and the torpedo boat Arethusa; traveled 35.5 miles.
June 21st through June 25th, 1941
Corridoni departed from Taranto for training patrols.
June 29th, 1941
The boat set sail from Taranto at 09.35 AM, under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili, for a transport mission to Derna.
July 1st, 1941
Recalled before reaching his destination, at 03:00 AM in the morning Corridoni met the submarine Atropo off Capo Santa Maria di Leuca, exchanging recognition signals. It arrived in Taranto at 01.10 PM, after having traveled 390 miles.
July 2nd, 1941
It set sail again from Taranto at 02.45 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili, to transport 53 tons of ammunition to Derna.
July 6th, 1941
Corridoni arrived in Derna at 8:20 PM (or 8:50 PM), after a smooth crossing.
July 7th, 1941
The boat left Derna at 02:00 AM.
July 10th, 1941
The boat arrived in Taranto at 12.20 PM, after having covered 1,166.5 miles, of which 1,077 on the surface and 89.5 submerged.
July 19th, 1941
The boat set sail from Taranto at 08.35 AM under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili, to transport 58 tons of ammunition to Derna.
July 22nd, 1941
Arrived in Derna at 9.13pm.
July 23rd, 1941
The boat left Derna at t03:00 AM to return to Taranto.
July 26th, 1941
The boat arrived in Taranto at 12.55 PM, after having covered 1,181 miles (1,110 on the surface and 62 submerged).
August 8th, 1941
Corridoni set sail from Taranto at 11.10 AM, under the command of Lieutenant Ugo Gentili, to transport 13,735 tons of diesel (in 859 cans) and 48 tons of ammunition to Bardia.
The use of Corridoni in the transport of supplies to this port was decided by Supermarina following pressure from the Afrika Korps Command (General Rommel attaches great importance to the supplies transported by submarines in the ports near the front line, although these quantities are derisory compared to what arrived with the convoys of much larger merchant ships in the much more distant ports of Tripoli and Benghazi) and Admiral Eberhard Weichold, Kriegsmarine liaison officer in Italy.
On 6 July, Admiral Weichold wrote a letter to his Italian colleagues (“The following considerations of the Seekriegsleitung are submitted to the General Staff of the Italian Royal Navy, with a request for examination and reply. The general situation of maritime transport, especially in the central Mediterranean area, including the unloading capacity of the ports of Tripoli and Benghazi, was not satisfactory, given the supply needs for the war in North Africa. (…) The transport of ammunition and, in part, also spare parts for weapons and vehicles with the submarines ATROPO and ZOEA was greeted with great satisfaction by the Afrika Korps and the Quartermaster General of the German Army.
Despite the relatively small quantities transported by submarines to the port of Derna so far, these quantities already represented a great relief of supplies for the front, since the road to the front was much shorter than that from the ports of Benghazi and Tripoli, for example. Taking this into account, the General Staff of the Regia Marina had already arranged for the use of two other submarines (Corridoni and Micca) for direct supply to Derna. This measure was greeted with special gratitude by the Seekriegsleitung and, of this was convinced by the Liaison Staff, especially by the Afrika Korps.
Seekriegsleitung was convinced that the General Staff of the Regia Marina was also of the opinion that the possibility of refueling with submarines in a port close to the front, which has been so successfully initiated, can be extended. The absolute necessity of strengthening precisely this direct supply to the front results from the above-mentioned transport needs, as well as from the situation of the front and its further development…”) with which it proposed, among other things, the intensification of the traffic of transport submarines with the use of additional units in this task, and also advocated the use of Porto Bardia for the disembarkation of supplies, this source being even closer than Derna to the front line.
Porto Bardia was a poorly equipped and poorly defended marina, and its use was full of problems and unknowns; nevertheless, Supermarina agrees to use it as a landing place for some transport missions carried out with submarines.
August 12th, 1941
At 03:00 AM, Corridoni sighted in position 32°00′ N and 25°40′ E a submarine that was identified on board as the Zoea. For this reason, and because Maricosom has issued orders not to attack submarines sighted east of the 22nd meridian East, no attack maneuver was performed. It was later revealed that the submarine was not actually the Zoea, but in all probability an enemy unit.
At 07:38 PM, Corridoni arrived in Bardia, where he was visited on board by General Erwin Rommel. At 10:15 PM, while at anchor in Bardia intent on unloading supplies, Corridoni was attacked by an aircraft during a raid by three Fairey Albacores of the 826th Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm (one of which was armed with a torpedo, while the other two carried two 227 kg bombs). The plane, having taken the submarine’s crew by surprise, dropped four bombs (evidently, they were both Albacores armed with bombs and not just one as believed on board), which fell into the sea about twenty meters on the starboard side of the Corridoni, which was violently shaken by the explosions, although without suffering damage, except for the loss of the gyrocompass. The Albacores spotted a slick of oil and mistakenly believe they have damaged the submarine. Four hours later, a second “wave” of two Albacores armed with torpedoes arrived, causing no damage.
At 11.40 PM the submarine left Bardia to return to Italy. (Four days later, Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers of 826th Squadron conducted a new raid on Bardia in an attempt to hit the Corridoni, not knowing that he had left in the meantime. According to a source, at 10:15 PM the Corridoni, while finishing unloading its cargo in Bardia, was targeted by six cannons fired from the direction of the open sea, probably from a submarine, without suffering any damage).
August 15th, 1941
At 02:33 PM an enemy submarine was sighted at a distance of 5,000 meters, in position 35°00′ N and 21°10′ E: it was the British H.M.S. Torbay (Lieutenant Commander Anthony Cecil Capel Miers), who in turn had sighted Corridoni forward, from five miles away. Both submarines dove to attack, but in doing so they lost contact with each other.
August 17th, 1941
The boat arrived in Taranto at 12.48 PM, after having covered 1,516 miles (1,431 on the surface and 85 submerged).
The performance of this mission (and of the almost simultaneous ones of the Atropos and the Zoea) was described by Supermarina in memo no. 141 of 27 August as follows: “The units have carried out their task with considerable skill, brilliantly managing to overcome the difficulties and risks inherent in the operation. The navigation conducted on the surface until one day before the arrival continued submerged during the daylight hours of the day of the arrival to avoid sighting by the enemy. Entry into Bardia was generally made after sunset, due to the danger presented by air attacks on the locality, which were always frequent and strong. Entering the port in such conditions presents some nautical difficulties due to the lack of light signals and the configuration of the coast which does not offer special characteristics for recognition. In the port, the disembarkation operations, carried out during the night by means of rafts and rubber floats, provided by the German army, lasted an average of 4 hours, and were carried out by the ship’s personnel with the cooperation of German soldiers. It should be noted that during unloading operations in the event of aerial bombardment, the unit cannot dive as the doors are open for the unloading of the material and was surrounded by numerous barges (up to 6 at a time) loaded with exceptionally flammable material and without any effective fire-fighting means. In addition, a possible maneuver to leave the port was long and laborious given the narrowness of the stretch of water. All the difficulties were brilliantly overcome by the commanders and crews of the submarines, who noted with deep pride the satisfaction expressed to them by the German Command of Bardia for the transport of essential material to the expeditionary corps for the conduct of war operations.”
August 28th, 1941
Lieutenant Giovanni Cunsolo, 30, from Palermo, took command of the Corridoni, replacing Lieutenant Gentili.
September 4th, 1941
Under the command of Lieutenant Commander Giovanni Cunsolo, Corridoni left Taranto at 06.15 AM for exercise, returning at 12.58 PM, after having covered 32 miles.
September 10th, 1941
Another exit from Taranto for exercise, from 11.02 AM to 06:00 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Giovanni Cunsolo. The boat traveled 39 miles.
September 12th, 1941
Under the command of Lieutenant Commander Giovanni Cunsolo, Corridoni sailed from Taranto at 10.25 AM to transport 55 tons of supplies to Bardia. As early as September 9th, as a result of the decryptions of “ULTRA”, the British were aware of this journey.
September 13th, 1941
At 09.50 PM a destroyer was sighted 800 meters away, with a course of 340° and a speed of 22 knots, and it attacked Corridoni. The submarine dove to a depth of 70 meters and felt a “metallic” jolt, and then descended to 130 meters. The boat resurfaced at 10:12 PM, finding that the destroyer had disappeared. Since the submarine does not respond well to commands, Commander Cunsolo decides to abort the mission and turn back, considering the failures too serious to continue.
September 14th, 1941
At 05:00 PM a drifting mine, of the Italian-made P 200 type, was sighted in position 38°18′ N and 18°20′ E. The device was destroyed by machine gun fire.
September 15th, 1941
The boat arrived in Taranto at 02.50 PM, after having covered 667 miles. A long period of maintenance followed.
October 22nd, 1941
During the works, Commander Cunsolo handed over the reins to Lieutenant Alberto Longhi, 28, from Naples.
December 2nd, 1941
Lieutenant Longhi left the command of the Corridoni, still under repairs, to return it to Commander Cunsolo.
January 21st, 1942
Once work was completed, Corridoni set sail from Taranto at 09.25 AM for sea trials, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Cunsolo returning to port at 06:06 PM, after having covered 31 miles.
January 24th and 25th, 1942
Two training sorties from Taranto
January 29th, 1942
The boat left Taranto at 03.16 PM to move to Brindisi, still under the command of Lieutenant Commander Cunsolo. At 05:30 PM, 4.2 miles by 264° from Torre Ovo (near Santa Maria di Leuca), Corridoni accidentally launched a torpedo following an error during an exercise. Later, a torpedo was sighted, which was reported by radio, believing that it was launched by an enemy unit. Later, however, it was concluded that it was indeed the torpedo launched by the Corridoni.
January 30th, 1942
The boat arrived in Brindisi at 09.25 AM, after covering 156.2 miles.
February 1st, 1942
Commander Cunsolo handed over command to Lieutenant Alberto Longhi.
February 3rd, 1942
After only two days, Lieutenant Longhi handed over command to Lieutenant Commander Loris Albanese, 34, from Giuncarico.
March 3rd, 1942
Under the command of Lieutenant Commander Loris Albanese, Corridoni set sail from Brindisi at 08.15 AM for a training patrol, returning at 04.17 PM, after having cvovered 46 miles.
April 8th, 1942
Lieutenant Commander Albanese left the command of the Corridoni, which was again taken over by his peer Cunsolo.
April 10th, 1942
Again, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Cunsolo, Corridoni made an exit from Brindisi from 08.43 AM to 9.50 AM, to conduct a test aimed at verifying the presence of leaks.
April 11th, 1942
Still under the command of C.C. Cunsolo, Corridoni made an outing at sea from Brindisi for trials from 1.30 PM to 5 PM, together with her sister ship Bragadino and with the escort of the torpedo boat Orsa and the minesweeper RD 32. The boat travelled 18.5 miles.
April 20th, 1942
Exit from Brindisi for gyrocompass tests, from 08:00 AM to 11.50 AM, under the command of C.C. Cunsolo covering 4 miles.
April 24 to June 17th, 1942
Several training patrols from Brindisi under Commander Cunsolo and Lieutenant Armando Rosso.
June 21st, 1942
Corridoni sailed from Brindisi at 08.20 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Armando Rosso, to move to Taranto.
June 22nd, 1942
The boat arrived in Taranto at 03:00 PM, after having covered 158 miles.
June 25th, 1942
Departure from Brindisi for exercise, from 03.10 PM to 05.10 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Armando Rosso travelling 9.5 miles.
June 1942
Following insistent requests from the German Commands, on June 21st the Grupsom Taranto received orders to use some of its units to transport aviation gasoline for the Luftwaffe. The German authorities were pressing for the use of submarines in transport missions to bring supplies close to the front lines, during the advance of Rommel’s forces which has just recaptured Tobruk and was advancing towards the Egyptian border, although the normal traffic of merchant ships was going smoothly, with very limited losses, and despite the fact that a submarine cannot carry even a tenth of what a small merchant ship can cargo. Other German agencies and commands made similar requesst, but the order remains strictly limited to aircraft gasoline only.
The Corridoni was among the submarines chosen for this service, together with her sister ship Bragadin, the minelayers Micca, Atropo and Zoea and the large and elderly Enrico Toti, Antonio Sciesa, Narvalo and Santorre Santarosa.
June 26th, 1942
Corridoni sailed from Taranto at 11.20 AM (12.30 PM for another source), under the command of Lieutenant Armando Rosso, to transport to Derna one and a half tons of food and 54 tons of gasoline in cans (for another source, 56 tons of ammunition). The British, through the interceptions of “ULTRA”, knew that the Corridoni, together with Atropo, Bragadino and Zoea, were being used to transport supplies to Derna, and that had to pass through 33°20′ N and 22°40′ E.
June 28th, 1942
At 11.30 AM a drifting mine was sighted in position 35°45′ N and 20°11′ E.
June 29th, 1942
Between 10:45 Am and 11:05 AM, about ninety miles northeast of Derna, twenty-four bombs exploded at a distance of at least 1,000 meters from the Corridoni. No noise from ship engines was detected on board, which was why it was believed that the bombs were dropped from aircraft. Zoea, sailing about fifty miles to the west, also hears explosions in the distance.
June 30th, 1942
Corridoni arrived in Derna at 08:55 PM (08:30 PM for another source).
July 3rd, 1942
Once the cargo was disembarked, the boat left Derna at 08.10 PM bound for Messina.
July 5th, 1942
At 05.30 AM, orders were received on board to remain east of the meridian 22° East until noon, but at that moment Corridoni was in position 03°26′ N and 20°34′ E, 73 miles away, and therefore unable to reach the indicated area in time.
July 7th, 1942
The boat arrived in Messina at 01.10 PM after having covered 569.5 miles. At 03.35 PM left for Trapani, escorted by the torpedo boat Giuseppe Dezza to three miles south of Stromboli.
July 8th, 1942
At 12:35 PM, two Italian steamers were sighted, heading north, escorted by a CANT Z. 501 seaplane; They appear to be under airstrike, and a tall column of smoke was visible. Corridoni arrived in Trapani at 05.13 PM, after having covered 217.7 miles.
July 13th, 1942
Exit from Trapani for exercise, from 03.35 PM to 05.12 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Armando Rosso. The boat traveled 13.22 miles.
July 14th, 1942
Corridoni set sail from Trapani at 01.15 PM (4.40 PM for another source), under the command of Lieutenant Armando Rosso, to transport 50 tons of aviation gasoline in cans for the Regia Aeronautica to Tripoli. It was escorted by the minesweeper RD 16, then replaced by the torpedo boat Centauro until 09.10 PM, given the worsening of the weather and sea conditions.
July 16th, 1942
After passing through the conventional point “V” (33°12′ N and 12°56′ E), at 05.30 AM Corridoni encountered a requisitioned fishing boat, sent to meet it from Tripoli, which piloted it through the minefields. The boat arrived in Tripoli at 10:52 AM (10:30 AM for another source), after having traveled 449.7 miles.
July 17th, 1942
Having disembarked the fuel, Corridoni left Tripoli at 08:00 PM (8.30 PM according to another source) to return to Trapani.
July 18th, 1942
At 3:36 PM, an Italian-made drifting mine was sighted twelve miles by 166° from the Island of Linosa.
July 19th, 1942
Corridoni arrived in Trapani at 12:00 PM(10.30 AM for another source), after having covered 844.2 miles.
July 24th, 1942
The boat left Trapani for training at 03:00 PM, under the command of Lieutenant Rosso.
July 25th, 1942
The boat returned to Trapani at 01.45 AM, after having covered 27 miles, and left at 02.45 PM to move to Messina.
July 27th, 1942
The boat arrived in Messina at 6.09 AM, after having covered 223.6 miles.
August 5th, 1942
Corridoni sailed from Messina at 06.20 PM (06.45 for another source), under the command of Lieutenant Armando Rosso, to transport 52 tons of gasoline in cans for the Italian army and 70 tons of ammunition to Derna.
August 6th, 1942
At 10:5