Adriano Foscari

Adriano Foscari (born June 10, 1904 in Venice , † June 22, 1980 ibid) was an officer in the Italian Navy .

Military career

Until the outbreak of the Second World War , Foscari u. a. Torpedo boats and submarines . In January 1940 he was promoted to frigate captain and then served with higher staffs. In January 1942 he was given command of the destroyer Camicia Nera . On 1 December 1942, he went along with the destroyer Folgore (Lieutenant Commander Ener Bettica ) and torpedo boats Procione and Clio of Palermo in order along with the destroyers Da Recco to in Bizerte moving convoy H escort (three Italian and a German merchant ship) . On the night of December 2, the convoy was attacked by a British formation consisting of three cruisers and two destroyers (Force Q) . Together with Bettica's destroyer Folgore , Foscari launched a torpedo attack in which the destroyer Camicia Nera fired six torpedoes at close range at the British unit, which was firing from all barrels. While the British concentrated their fire on the destroyer Folgore and sank it, Foscari managed to evade the superior enemy fire. Shortly afterwards he attacked the British cruisers again. When he had fired his remaining torpedoes, he attacked with his ship guns and caused considerable damage.

In addition to the destroyer Folgore , three of the four merchant ships sank, including the German steamer KT1 , with over 1,500 Italian and German soldiers losing their lives. For this service he was awarded the highest Italian military medal of valor in gold .

After the armistice of September 8, 1943 , Foscari commanded the San Marco Regiment fighting on the side of the Allies . In February 1947 he resigned from active service at his own request.

Ship name

The Italian Navy recently named a patrol ship after Adriano Foscari.

Web links

• Entry on marina.difesa.it