Direction of Ataturk for naming submarines

TCG ''Atılay'' was a submarine of the

Turkish Navy The Turkish Naval Forces ( tr, ), or Turkish Navy ( tr, ) is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The modern naval traditions and customs of the Turkish Navy can be traced back to 10 July 1920, when it was establi ...

, which sank on 14 July 1942. Its wreck was located after more than 50 years. She was built at Germaniawerft,

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...

, being launched in 1938. Her name was chosen as ''Atılay'' personally by a written decree of the founder of the modern Turkey President

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, or Mustafa Kemal Pasha until 1921, and Ghazi Mustafa Kemal from 1921 Surname Law (Turkey), until 1934 ( 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish Mareşal (Turkey), field marshal, Turkish National Movement, re ...

(1881–1938). Her sister submarines were named ''Saldıray'', '' Batıray'' and ''Yıldıray''. She was commissioned on 19 May 1939. The submarine was long and her full crew was 52.

Sinking

On 14 July 1942, ''Atılay'' was tasked by the Fleet Command to conduct testing on underwater magnetic security lines in the

Dardanelles The Dardanelles (; tr, Çanakkale Boğazı, lit=Strait of Çanakkale, el, Δαρδανέλλια, translit=Dardanéllia), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli from the Gallipoli peninsula or from Classical Antiquity as the Hellespont (; ...

Strait. Carrying 38 crew, she was commanded by

LCdr LCDR may refer to: * The London, Chatham and Dover Railway * The rank of lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. ...

Sadi Gürcan. The vessel came to

Çanakkale Çanakkale (pronounced ), ancient ''Dardanellia'' (), is a city and seaport in Turkey in Çanakkale province on the southern shore of the Dardanelles at their narrowest point. The population of the city is 195,439 (2021 estimate). Çanakkale is ...

and moored around 7:30 hours local time. After a briefing held between 8:00 and 9:00, she dived in

Morto Bay Morto Bay is an inlet on the South West tip of Cape Helles on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. The bay is in the north west (European) coast of the Dardanelles strait, which connects the Sea of Marmara to Aegean Sea. The Gallipoli Peninsula ...

at 14:30 to leave the Strait, accompanied by a security boat on the surface. However, due to bad weather conditions, the escort boat soon lost its contact with the submarine. As the submarine did not return in due time, two navy boats were sent for search and rescue operation. At 20:30, the submarine's

rescue buoy A rescue buoy or rescue tube or torpedo buoy is a piece of lifesaving equipment used in water rescue. This flotation device can help support the victim's and rescuer's weight to make a rescue easier. It is an essential part of the equipment th ...

was found. The emergency station of the navy was, however, unable to establish a telephone contact with the submarine although the telephone in the rescue buoy was intact. A seaman named Ahmet Bağdat, who had disembarked for crew rations, was the only one to survive the disaster. The fate of the submarine remained unknown for years.

Aftermath

In 1994 after more than 50 years, Selçuk Kolay, with the support of the "Rahmi M. Koç Foundation for Museum Studies and Culture", found in a two-and-half-month research the exact location of the wreck of ''Atılay''. She was offshore and was lying at a depth of . A hole in the hull proved that she hit a

naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any ...

. It is assumed that the mine was a

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

munition, which was laid during the Dardanelles Campaign. A crew member,

Warrant officer Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mos ...

Fethi Yüceses, was the husband of

Hamiyet Yüceses Hamiyet Yüceses Sabuncu (191510 July 1996), best known by her stage name Hamiyet Yüceses, was a Turkish female singer of Ottoman classical music. She was a radio and music hall singer releasing a great number of records. Early years Hamiyet Y ...

, a well-known Turkish singer. After the 14 July event, she released a song ''Gitti de Gelmeyiverdi'' ("He Went and Didn't Return"), which became a popular song of the time.

Museum project

In the general congress of Chambers of Shipping a project was proposed by the architect Kaya Şener. According to this project the submarine will be relocated in 30 meters depth and a museum will be established in the submarine. So far the project is not realised.

Citations

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Atilay Ships built in Istanbul 1938 ships Ay-class submarines Maritime incidents in Turkey 1942 in Turkey Maritime incidents in July 1942 Shipwrecks in the Dardanelles Çanakkale Province Ships sunk by mines