Italian cruiser Emanuele Filiberto Duca d'Aosta

History

Italy
Name:	Emanuele Filiberto Duca d'Aosta
Laid down:	29 October 1932
Launched:	22 April 1934
Commissioned:	13 July 1935
Fate:	Ceded to the Soviet Union as war reparation, March 1949
Soviet Union
Name:	Z15 Stalingrad Kerch
Acquired:	March 1949
Struck:	20 February 1959
Fate:	Scrapped, 1960s
General characteristics
Class and type:	Condottieri-class cruiser
Displacement:	8,450 t (8,317 long tons) standard 10,539 t (10,373 long tons) full load
Length:	186.9 m (613 ft 2 in)
Beam:	17.5 m (57 ft 5 in)
Draught:	6.1 m (20 ft 0 in)
Propulsion:	2 shaft Belluzzo/Parsons geared turbines 6 Yarrow boilers 110,000 hp (82,027 kW)
Speed:	36.5 knots (67.6 km/h; 42.0 mph)
Range:	3,900 nmi (7,200 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Complement:	578
Armament:	8 × 152 mm (6 in) /53 guns (4×2) 6 × 100 mm (4 in) / 47 caliber guns (3×2) 8 × 37 mm (1.5 in) 54-cal. guns (4×2) 12 × 13.2 mm guns (4×2) 6 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2×3)
Armour:	Deck: 35 mm (1.4 in) Main belt: 70 mm (2.8 in) Turrets: 90 mm (3.5 in) Conning tower: 100 mm (3.9 in)
Aircraft carried:	2 or 3 Ro.43 floatplanes
Aviation facilities:	1 catapult

Emanuele Filiberto Duca d'Aosta was an Italian light cruiser of the fourth group of the Condottieri-class, that served in the Regia Marina during World War II. She survived the war, but was ceded as war reparation to the Soviet Navy in 1949. She was finally renamed Kerch and served in the Black Sea Fleet until the 1960s.

Duca d'Aosta was the namesake of the fourth subclass of Condottieri light cruisers. The design of the Duca d'Aostas derived from the preceding Montecuccoli class, with a slight increase in size and a significant increase in armour. The machinery was also re-arranged.

Duca d'Aosta was built by OTO, Livorno and was named after Emanuele Filiberto, 2nd Duke of Aosta, an Italian Field Marshal of World War I.

The ship joined the 7th Cruiser Division and in 1938 departed on a circumnavigation with her sister-ship, Eugenio Di Savoia. The deteriorating world political situation caused this to be cut short after visits to the Caribbean and South America, and the ships returned La Spezia in March 1939.

At the Italian entry into the war, d'Aosta was part of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron and participated in the Battle of Punto Stilo between 6–10 July. In addition, she protected North Africa convoys, took part in a fleet sortie against British cruisers and bombarded Corfu on 18 December.

During 1941, d'Aosta served mostly with the 8th Cruiser Division, laying minefields off North Africa and protecting convoys. One of the convoy duties, in December, led to the First Battle of Sirte, in which d'Aosta took part.

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