A British WWII-era P311 submarine that went missing in January 1943 has been found by a Genoese diver just off the coast of the island of Tavolara.
Massimo Domenico Bordone found the wreck at a depth of 90 metres near the small island off the northeast coast of Sardinia.
Despite his two decades of experience diving in the waters off Sardinia, Bordone, who discovered the sunken relic with technical support from Corrado Azzali's Orso Diving in Poltu Quatu, said that the find was an emotional moment.
"The characteristic that makes this find particular, almost one-of-a-kind, is the on-deck presence of two Chariot manned torpedoes," Bordone told ANSA.
"The sailors used them to get close to targets and prepare explosives".
Submarines that vanished without a trace were fairly common during WWII, making up a sort of "ghost fleet".
According to embarkation documents, this particular sub went missing after it left Malta with a crew of 71 British sailors.
The condition of the vessel, which was damaged by a probable explosion but is still sealed shut, makes it likely that the bodies are still inside. The sub's mission was to reach the Sardinian port of La Maddalena and to destroy two Italian cruisers that were seen as dangerous.
At the time that the sub went missing, the Badoglio Proclamation of September 8, 1943, announcing an armistice between Italy and the Allies was still months away.
During the submarine's mission, it ran into an undetected naval minefield near Tavolara.
"At the time, some fishermen said that they had heard a blast during the night," said Bordone. Now, this relic that was among the most searched-for in the Mediterranean will become a divers' tourist attraction, above all for those who have a passion for history.
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