Giuseppe Miraglia was laid down in 1921 as the train ferryCittà di Messina, intended for use by the Italian State Railway Company, but was acquired by the Regia Marina soon after her launch in 1923. Works to convert her into a seaplane carrier began immediately; in 1925, with the ship nearly complete, Giuseppe Miraglia capsized during a storm. Salvaged under the direction of Umberto Pugliese, she was repaired and commissioned in November 1927.[1]
During World War II, after surviving the Battle of Taranto, she was employed in the Mediterranean theatre. After the Armistice she sailed (along with much of the Italian fleet) to Malta for internment.
After the British motor torpedo boat depot ship HMS Vienna was straddled by bombs and damaged beyond repair during the Luftwaffe bombing raid on the Italian port of Bari on December 2, 1943, and the subsequent mustard gas disaster, Giuseppe Miraglia was impressed by the Royal Navy as temporary replacement.[citation needed]
After the war Giuseppe Miraglia was used to repatriate Italian prisoners-of-war, then spent the rest of her career as a barrack ship and workshop at Taranto until her scrapping in 1950.[1]
Aircraft facilitiesedit
Giuseppe Miraglia could carry some 17 seaplanes (originally Macchi M.18, later IMAM Ro.43) and one Reggiane 2000 "catapultabile". The ship was equipped with two catapults. Seaplanes could be retrieved by means of large doors and cranes at the sides of the hangar.
italian, seaplane, carrier, giuseppe, miraglia, giuseppe, miraglia, italian, seaplane, carrier, giuseppe, miragliahistory, italy, namegiuseppe, miraglia, namesakegiuseppe, miraglia, builderregio, arsenale, della, spezia, laid, down5, march, 1921, launched20, d. Giuseppe Miraglia was an Italian seaplane carrier Giuseppe MiragliaHistory Italy NameGiuseppe Miraglia NamesakeGiuseppe Miraglia BuilderRegio Arsenale della Spezia Laid down5 March 1921 Launched20 December 1923 Commissioned1 November 1927 Stricken15 July 1950 FateScrapped General characteristics Class and typeseaplane carrier Displacement5 400 tonnes normal 5 913 tonnes full Length121 22 m Beam14 99 m Draught5 82 m Propulsion2 Parsons steam turbines with 8 Yarrow boilers 2 shafts 16 700 shp Speed21 knots 39 km h Complement16 Officers 40 NCOs 240 Ratings Armament4 102mm 35 guns 12 13 2mm MGs Armourbelt 70mm deck 80mm Aircraft carried17 seaplanes Aviation facilities2 catapults Contents 1 History 2 Aircraft facilities 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksHistory edit nbsp The Miraglia with seaplanes on her stern in 1940 Giuseppe Miraglia was laid down in 1921 as the train ferry Citta di Messina intended for use by the Italian State Railway Company but was acquired by the Regia Marina soon after her launch in 1923 Works to convert her into a seaplane carrier began immediately in 1925 with the ship nearly complete Giuseppe Miraglia capsized during a storm Salvaged under the direction of Umberto Pugliese she was repaired and commissioned in November 1927 1 Giuseppe Miraglia participated in the Second Italo Abyssinian War and the Spanish Civil War During World War II after surviving the Battle of Taranto she was employed in the Mediterranean theatre After the Armistice she sailed along with much of the Italian fleet to Malta for internment After the British motor torpedo boat depot ship HMS Vienna was straddled by bombs and damaged beyond repair during the Luftwaffe bombing raid on the Italian port of Bari on December 2 1943 and the subsequent mustard gas disaster Giuseppe Miraglia was impressed by the Royal Navy as temporary replacement citation needed After the war Giuseppe Miraglia was used to repatriate Italian prisoners of war then spent the rest of her career as a barrack ship and workshop at Taranto until her scrapping in 1950 1 Aircraft facilities editGiuseppe Miraglia could carry some 17 seaplanes originally Macchi M 18 later IMAM Ro 43 and one Reggiane 2000 catapultabile The ship was equipped with two catapults Seaplanes could be retrieved by means of large doors and cranes at the sides of the hangar nbsp 1937 Official photo of the Giuseppe Miraglia See also editList of seaplane carriers by countryReferences edit a b Cernuschi Enrico and Vincent P O Hara in Jordan John 2007 Warship 2007 Annapolis MD Naval Institute Press ISBN 978 1844860418 Page 64 External links editNave Appoggio Aerei Giuseppe Miraglia Marina Militare website Portals nbsp Italy nbsp Engineering Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Italian seaplane carrier Giuseppe Miraglia amp oldid 1202669061, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
