Battle of Baltim

Diagram outlining the Battle of Baltim

Date	October 8–9, 1973
Location	Off the coast between Baltim and Damietta, Egypt Coordinates: 31°39′18.49″N 31°27′26.25″E / 31.6551361°N 31.4572917°E / 31.6551361; 31.4572917
Result	Israeli victory

Belligerents

Israel

Egypt

Commanders and leaders

Michael Barkai

Strength

2 Sa'ar 4 boats
2 Sa'ar 3 boats
1 Sa'ar 2 boat
1 Sa'ar 1 boat

4 Osa boats

Casualties and losses

None

3 Osa boats sunk
Unknown killed

The Battle of Baltim (also Battle of Damietta, Battle of Baltim–Damietta, Battle of Damietta–Baltim or Battle of Damietta – El Burelos) was fought between the Israeli Navy and the Egyptian Navy on October 8–9, 1973, during the Yom Kippur War. It took place off the Nile delta, between Baltim and Damietta. The battle erupted when six Israeli Sa'ar class missile boats heading toward Port Said were engaged by four Egyptian Osa class missile boats coming from Alexandria. It lasted about forty minutes. The Osas fired Styx missiles, missed, and begun withdrawing back to Alexandria when the Israelis began to give chase. Two Osas were sunk by Gabriel missiles within a span of 10 minutes, and a third was sunk twenty-five minutes later. The fourth made it back to base.

On October 8, the third day of the war, the Israel Defense Forces launched a counterattack in the Sinai in an attempt to push the Egyptian Army back across the Suez Canal. Israeli naval command expected ground pressure on Port Said to prompt a withdrawal of Egyptian naval assets from the local harbor to Alexandria, 180 kilometres (110 mi) to the west. A flotilla of Israeli missile boats was therefore ordered to proceed to Port Said. The boats, having just arrived back in Haifa after the Battle of Latakia, had not yet completed refueling. Nevertheless, within twenty-five minutes eight boats were heading south at thirty knots. These arrived off Port Said five hours later, meeting Commander Michael Barkai who was already on station with two boats. By that time, the counterattack in the Sinai had failed and the Egyptian boats did not leave the port.

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