Siluro a Lenta Corsa -- Italian Manned Torpedo

[CIUTTSO]

No, was not a kamikaze action but was really dangerous. The head of the torpedo wear the explosives, and had a removable mechanism. The two divers attached the explosive head at the balance keels of the ship. They could return with the torpedo.

[Sakrison]

Originally Posted by scon10

Was it a kamikaze action? Or did the crew manage to get back to shore? The model seems to be a full torpedo, with no returning vehicle.

No, it carried one or two detachable warheads (up front) that would be fastened to a ship's hull like limpet mines and detonated by a timer that gave the SLC crew time to get away.

[Mark Hansen]

For a good read on the exploits of Decima Flottiglia MAS, there is a companion book to a DVG game by David Thompson and Nicola Saggini. It covers the entire history and is free to download (89Mb) at By Stealth and Sea – Digital Capricorn Studios.

The game is also well worth playing (disclosure: I was one of the playtesters). It has scenarios for all of the actions that Decima Flottiglia MAS took part in. The early scenarios typically end much the same way that the real ones did (i.e. failure and capture). The later scenarios aren't much easier but neither were the real life actions.

[Viator]

When I read about the X-MAS, I was really shocked how the Italians use the wreckage of the ship as a hidden base for maiale garaging right under the enemy nose. I must say, it was a real masterpiece.
Your torpedo is a masterpiece too. Congratulations!