Post-War Losses in Combat Trivia Quiz

Answer: Slava

Moskva was originally ordered by the Soviet Navy under the name Slava, and was commissioned in January 1983, the lead ship of a new class of cruiser. Western observers suggested that the relatively conventional Slava had been built to guard against the possible failure of the larger and more radical Kirov-class missile cruiser. One of the ship's major tasks during its first years of service was to act as one of the host vessels, alongside the US Navy cruiser USS Belknap, for the Malta Summit conference between US President George H.W. Bush and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

Although the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Slava served in the Russian Navy under its original name until 1995, when it was renamed Moskva, the transliteration of the Russian for Moscow. In 2000, following a major refit, Moskva became the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. It was in this role that the ship took part in the naval actions of Russia's invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022. On 13 April 2022, Moskva was reported to be on fire, with Ukraine stating it had fired a pair of anti-ship missiles at the ship. the ship sank in the early hours of 14 April.

Answer: Torpedo

ROKS Cheonan was a Pohang-class corvette originally commissioned in 1989. Intended as a vessel for coastal defence, it had an emphasis on anti-submarine operations to guard against incursions by submarines of the North Korean navy. On 26 March 2010, Cheonan was operating as part of a joint Korean/US anti-submarine exercise. Just before 9.30pm local time, an explosion was reported that led to Cheonan breaking in two, with the ship sinking in less than ten minutes.

The wreck of the ship was salvaged in April 2010, which allowed an extensive investigation to take place into the cause of the sinking. The investigation showed that, although Cheonan was not hit directly by a torpedo, there was evidence of a torpedo explosion close to the ship generating a shockwave that caused the ship to break in half. Further evidence was found indicating that the torpedo was identical to a North Korean weapon previously obtained by South Korea, with it suggested that it had been fired by a midget submarine. In 2012, a high-ranking North Korean defector stated that this was the case, as the crew had received one of North Korea's highest decorations.

Answer: Gulf of Sidra

During the 1980s, Muammar Gaddafi, the leader of Libya, claimed the entire Gulf of Sidra as Libyan territorial waters out to a distance of 62 nautical miles from the coast. This was disputed by the United States, who continued to conduct operations in international waters beyond the recognised 12-mile limit. In 1986, during a period of tension, the US Navy conducted a series of "freedom of navigation" exercises in the Gulf, with the third of these taking place from 23 March, and involving a large carrier group from the US Sixth Fleet.

Following the entry of the carrier group into the Gulf, Libyan forces began to make attacks on the Americans, with SAMs and fighters launched against US aircraft, and Libyan Navy ships armed with anti-ship missiles moving close to the carrier group. One of these was the Soviet-built corvette Ain Zaquit. At around 7.30am on 25 March, Ain Zaquit was operating close to the carrier group when it was attacked by A-6E Intruder aircraft from the aircraft carrier USS Coral Sea. Ain Zaquit was disabled by cluster munitions before then being hit by a Harpoon missile that led to the ship sinking.

Answer: HMS Glasgow

In April 1982, when the Royal Navy was ordered to form a task force intended to be used to retake the Falkland Islands following the Argentine invasion, the bulk of the initial group came from those that had been involved in Exercise Spring Train in March, which included the Type 42 destroyers Sheffield, Coventry and Glasgow, all of which immediately began the voyage south, forming the main air defence screen for the two aircraft carriers, HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible. On 4 May, Sheffield was struck by an Exocet missile from an Argentine Navy Super Etendard aircraft, with the ship eventually sinking six days later.

Following the loss of Sheffield, the remaining two Type 42s were paired with the Task Group's pair of Type 22 frigates as a way of maximising the remaining air defence ships' capabilities. This saw Coventry paired with Broadsword and Glasgow with Brilliant. On 12 May, Glasgow and Brilliant were operating off the coast of Port Stanley when they were attacked by Argentine aircraft, with Glasgow receiving bomb hits that disabled the ship and led to it having to return to the UK for repairs. Two weeks later, on 25 May, Coventry and Broadsword were operating off the north-west of the Falkland Islands when, after a series of air attacks, Coventry was hit by multiple bombs that caused the ship to roll over and sink.

Answer: HMS Conquerer

Following the invasion of the Falkland Islands, the Argentine Navy was ordered out to meet the British Task Force in an effort to deter it from approaching the islands. The main element was formed into Task Force 79, which was divided into two major groups; the first was centered around the aircraft carrier Veinticinco de Mayo, and the second around the cruiser General Belgrano. Each group sailed from a port at opposite ends of Argentina, to try and catch the British in a pincer movement from different directions. To counter this, a pair of Royal Navy nuclear submarines were assigned to find and track the two task groups, with orders to sink the major vessels if ordered.

On 30 April 1982, HMS Conquerer detected the General Belgrano's task group to the south-west of the British exclusion zone around the islands. The following day, the British intercepted a signal ordering the Argentine Navy to find and attack the British Task Force. This led to orders being made to attack the cruiser. Just before 3.00pm local time on 2 May, HMS Conquerer fired three torpedoes at General Belgrano, of which two hit, with one striking just after of the bow, and the other in the aft machinery spaces. The ship took approximately an hour to sink, with the action leading to the return of the Argentine Navy to port to take no major part in the rest of the war.

Answer: Cuba

On 8 May 1980, HMBS Flamingo, one of the patrol vessels of the newly formed Royal Bahamas Defence Force, departed Coral Harbour Base in Nassau for what was supposed to be a 10-day patrol of the Bahamas' territorial waters, primarily to prevent illegal fishing and poaching. Two days into the patrol, Flamingo came across a pair of Cuban flagged fishing vessels engaged in illegal fishing off the coast of Cay Santo Domingo, a small island near the Cuban coast. Giving chase, the Bahamaian ship eventually caught and boarded the fleeing boats, arresting the crews and taking them in tow to return them to Cay Santo Domingo.

As Flamingo was returning to Cay Santo Domingo, a pair of Cuban Air Force MiG-21s buzzed the ship, firing across the bow. Despite flying Bahamaian flags, the MiGs returned and fired both rockets and cannon shells into the side of the Bahamaian ship, causing it to catch fire and forcing the crew to abandon ship, as it sank. The Cubans continued strafing the water as the crew attempted to swim clear. The survivors were eventually rescued by one of the fishing boats in tow that had remained unscathed.

Answer: Gujarat

On 3 December 1971, India and Pakistan began hostilities for the third time since their independence in 1947. On that day, having detected evidence of a submarine in the area of Diu, the Indian Navy despatched two ships of its 14th Frigate Squadron, INS Khukri and INS Kirpan, in an effort to locate and destroy it. However, the ships of this formation were obsolete Type-14 frigates, while the Pakistan Navy operated a trio of modern French diesel-electric submarines. The submarine, PNS Hangor, sighted the two Indian ships on 9 December.

At just prior to 8.00pm local time, having remained undetected by the Indians, the submarine fired a torpedo at Kirpan. This failed to explode, and led to the frigate firing its anti-submarine mortar, while Khukri turned towards the submarine and increased speed. Hangor then fired a second torpedo, this time towards Khukri, which exploded underneath the ship's fuel tanks, which led to an explosion in the magazine, causing the ship to sink within two minutes. Despite the efforts of the Indian Navy, the submarine returned safely to its base four days later.

Answer: Egypt

INS Eilat was a Z-Class destroyer originally built for the Royal Navy, before being sold to Israel in 1955. In July 1967, following the start of a conflict between Israel and Egypt, Eilat participated in an action that saw two Egyptian torpedo boats sunk. Three months later, Eilat was in international waters off the Mediterranean coast of the Sinai Peninsula near Port Said. At the time, a number of Soviet-built missile boats of the Egyptian Navy were in the harbour at Port Said.

At approximately 5.30pm on 21 October, one of the missile boats fired a pair of anti-ship missiles, while still within the harbour, at the destroyer. With nothing suspicious detected aboard Eilat, there was very little time before the missiles struck, causing the ship to list badly. While the crew were engaged in efforts to save the ship and tend to the wounded, another Egyptian boat fired another pair of missiles, with one of these hitting the Israeli ship. The damage this caused, on top of what had already been sustained, led to Eilat sinking within two minutes.

Answer: Mormugao

In 1961, Portugal retained control of a handful of territories along the west coast of the Indian subcontinent, with the largest of these being Goa. Portugal's naval forces in the area were primarily centered around the frigate Afonso de Albuquerque. On 18 December, information was received aboard the ship that Indian forces had invaded the territory, while a force of Indian Navy ships was spotted approaching the harbour at Mormugao, where Afonso de Albuquerque was stationed.

A pair of Indian frigates, INS Betwa and INS Beas, the vanguard of a large Indian task force, transmitted instructions for the Portuguese ship to surrender. At 12.00, with the Portuguese refusing to do so, the two Indian ships forced the harbour, which led to Afonso de Albuquerque returning fire. After nearly 40 minutes, Afonso de Albuquerque had suffered major damage, with its engines and boilers destroyed. The ship was partially sunk as it ran aground, where it continued to be used as a stationary artillery battery for another two hours.

Answer: HMS Newfoundland

ENS Domiat was a River-class frigate originally built for the Royal Navy that was transferred to Egypt in 1948. On 31 October 1956, Domiat was operating in the northern Red Sea, close to the Gulf of Suez as part of Egypt's operations to repulse the combined British / French / Israeli invasion to capture the Suez Canal, codenamed Operation Musketeer. During the evening, Domiat encountered a pair of Royal Navy warships, the cruiser HMS Newfoundland and the destroyer HMS Diana.

Newfoundland ordered the Egyptian ship to heave to, which was refused, with Domiat opening fire on the cruiser. However, Domiat was markedly outmatched, mounting just a pair of 4-inch guns, compared to Newfoundland's nine 6-inch, plus Diana, which had six 4.5-inch guns. The action proved brief, with Domiat eventually being reduced to a hulk. Having picked up the survivors, Diana eventually sunk the Egyptian ship.