Zara
Country | Italy |
Ship Class | Zara-class Heavy Cruiser |
Builder | O.T.O., La Spezia, Liguria, Italy |
Laid Down | 4 Jul 1929 |
Launched | 27 Apr 1930 |
Commissioned | 20 Oct 1931 |
Sunk | 29 Mar 1941 |
Displacement | 11,870 tons standard; 14,530 tons full |
Length | 600 feet |
Beam | 67 feet |
Draft | 23 feet |
Machinery | 8 three-drum Thornycroft boilers, 2 Parsons turbines |
Power Output | 95,000 shaft horsepower |
Speed | 33 knots |
Range | 4,500nm at 16 knots, 2,950nm at 25 knots, 1,700nm at 31 knots |
Crew | 841 |
Armament | 8x203mm guns, 6x100mm guns, 6x40mm AA guns, 8x13.2mm AA machine guns |
Armor | 100-150mm belt, 70mm deck, 120-140mm turrets, 140-150mm barbettes |
Aircraft | 2 reconnaissance aircraft |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseCommissioned in early 1931, Zara was among the newest and most capable heavy cruisers in the world. During the Spanish Civil War, she served off Spain on the side of the Nationalists. In 1940, she participated in the Battle of Calabria and was present during the British raid on Taranto, Italy. On 29 Mar 1941, while under the command of Captain Luigi Corsi, Zara and her sister ships escorted the damaged battleship Vittorio Veneto back to port. En route, sister ship Pola was attacked and disabled by a British torpedo plane, and the two sister ships Zara and Fiume returned with four destroyers to guard her. That night, radar-equipped British ships, including three battleships, attacked the group. After sustaining heavy damage within five minutes of the battle, Corsi ordered Zara abandoned. At the end of the battle, all three Zara-class ships as well as two of the destroyers were sunk.
ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia.
Last Major Revision: Dec 2007
Photographs
Zara Operational Timeline
20 Oct 1931 | Zara was commissioned into service. |
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
» The Spanish Civil War
» Malta Campaign
» Battle of Matapan
- » 1,145 biographies
- » 336 events
- » 43,415 timeline entries
- » 1,237 ships
- » 349 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 372 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 259 facilities
- » 468 book reviews
- » 28,364 photos
- » 432 maps
Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, 16 Mar 1945
Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 a month will go a long way. Thank you!
Or, please support us by purchasing some WW2DB merchandise at TeeSpring, Thank you!