Battle of Cape Burnas

Battle of Cape Burnas
Part of the Black Sea Campaigns of the Eastern Front of World War II
Romanian gunboat Stihi Eugen
Date 1 October 1942 Location Cape Burnas, Romania Result Soviet submarine sank
Belligerents
Romania  Germany	Soviet Union
Strength
2 gunboats 1 transport ship 1 flying boat	1 submarine
Casualties and losses
1 transport ship sunk	1 submarine sunk 16-19 killed 2,000 Soviet POWs killed aboard the sunken German ship

The Battle of Cape Burnas was a naval engagement between the Soviet and Romanian navies near the Burnas Lagoon in October 1942.

On 1 October 1942, the Soviet M-class submarine M-118 attacked and sank the German transport ship Salzburg, which was carrying on board 2,000 Soviet prisoners of war. After attacking, the submarine was located by a German BV 138C flying boat, and the Romanian gunboats Sublocotenent Ghiculescu and Stihi Eugen were sent to the scene. The two Romanian warships attacked the Soviet submarine with depth-charges, sinking her with all hands.^[1][2][3]

Recent surveys in the area failed to find the wreck in the alleged sinking location and it has been raised the alternative version that M-118 was lost due to a German seaplane attack^[4] or from a Romanian field barrage "S-30".^[5]

At the same time, one source reported that two Soviet submarines were sunk by Romanian surface units.^[6] There are several Soviet submarines claimed to have been sunk by Romanian surface warships, but the two most valid claims are the M-118 and Shch-206, sunk on 9 July 1941.^[7]

• M-118 of the Soviet Navy
• M-118 (rus)

45°53′N 30°19′E / 45.883°N 30.317°E / 45.883; 30.317