Pictures Of German Hafenschutzboote Laspezia And Livorno

[ptdockyard]

Here are some pictures I have found or bought over the years showing some unique craft.

 

Here is IL-09, a former Italian Motoscafo landing craft that has been modified by the Germans and uses as part of the Livorno Harbor Security Flotilla (Hafenschutzflottille). She was left behind and captured when the Allies took the port over. Note the 20mm fore and aft. I spent years trying to figure out what this boat was (first found these in 1995) and it wasn't until I bought some good sources on the Regina Marina that it all clicked :s03:

 

Pictures from the PT Museum in Memphis, TN

 

 

 

Here are two photos of what I think are boats of the 70 VP Flottille that operated out of Genoa. Unlike the VP trawlers used by the Kriegsmarine in the Channel, the 70VP was made up of fairly small fishing boats. Pictures came from Ebay and are said to be taken off LaSpezia in 1943

 

 

 

I saw a brief video on Youtube (now gone) that showed one of these curious little fishing boats rescuing German sailors after a battle with Allied coastal forces.

 

Does anyone have better photos of these or any other similar small craft like this along the Western Italian coast 1943-45?

 

 

Dave G

The PT Dockyard

Modificato 8 Aprile, 2011 da Alagi

[de domenico]

The 70. Vorpostenflottille (ex 67. Vpflot. from May to July 1943) was mostly made up of small fishing boats captured at Sète in November 1942: V 6702/7002 S.TE JEANNE D'ARC 20 grt, V 6705/7005 ST.CASIMIR 18 grt, V 6706/7006 ST.LOUIS (ex French Navy AD 191) 19 grt, V 6707/7007 A' LA VOLONTE' DE DIEU 21 grt, V 6708/7008 ST.RAPHAEL, V 6709/7009 ST. ANTOINE or STE. ANTOINE (ex French Navy AD 192 or 268 ii) 52 grt, V 6710/7010 VOLONTE' DE LA VIERGE MARIE 20 grt, V 7011 (or M 7011?) PHOQUE 18 grt, V 7012 JEAN ET MARIE 21 grt, V 7013 LOUISE ELISE 16 grt, V 6714/7014 JESUS NAZARETH (ex French Navy) 19 grt, V 7018 (or M 7018?) ST. CHRISTOPHE (ex French Navy AD 189?) 19 grt, V 7022 ST. MICHEL, V 7028/IG 22 ST.GILLES-JOSEPH 21 grt, were all Sète boats.

 

The rest of the Flotilla was made up with other former French fishing boats. V 6701/7001 FRANCIS SIMONE (ex French Navy AD 209) 32 grt, and V 7016 (or M 7016?)/IL 10 JOSEPH FRANCOIS 18 grt were from Marseille; V 6703/7003 PETIT JESUS 20 grt, V 6704/7004 ST.JOSEPH 21 grt, V 7017 ST. COME ET DAMIEN 23 grt were from Agde; V 7015 STE. MADELEINE (from Sète?), V 7026 ANNE MARIE, V 7027 were from unidentified ports etc.

 

V 7014 ii was earmarked for EUSKALDUNA II, V 7015 ii for AHALDUGUNA, V 7019 for ST.BERNARD, lobster boats from Bayonne; V 7018 ii (or M 7018) for GOELAND, a sardine fishing boat also from Bayonne.

 

No former Italian boats at all, as far as I know. I think that it would be easier to find photos from French sources, or from forum-marinearchiv.

 

As regards the IL (Italien, Livorno) Hafenschutzgruppe, Groener only identifies IL 10 JOSEPH FRANCOIS ex V 7016, 18 grt/1933, a diesel fishing boat from Marseille; and adds that it has no info about IL 01/09 and that IL 13/15 were other motor fishing boats. Your small boat JL 08 (number probably painted by mistake, since JL identified Juetland, Limfjord instead of Italien, Livorno) seems in fact to have the same hull lines of an ex Regia Marina ML (MotoLance da sbarco, 15.5 t displ., 100 built in 1942), but the cabin roofing above the hull and the conning tower are completely new. So your suggestion could be right.

Modificato 20 Dicembre, 2010 da de domenico

[ptdockyard]

The Germans modified many of the ML into a fully enclosed cabin version, calling them "sarg" or coffin. A few were used in the Adriatic and one was captured by the Yugoslavian Partisans and incorporated in their fleet. There is a picture of a model of this craft in the book "Kuestenjaeger!" that I bought from Tuttostoria a few years ago.

 

I thing the "J" is a German style "I".

 

Dave