Comando Subacquei e Incursori 'Teseo Tesei' (COMSUBIN)

The Comando Raggruppamento Subacquei e Incursori 'Teseo Tesei' (COMSUBIN) is the elite unit of the Italian Navy, composed of the 'Gruppo Operativo Subacquei' (G.O.S.) and the 'Gruppo Operativo Incursori' (G.O.I.), Special Forces units.

Diving and Incursion Command
GOI Inflatable - Copyright Jimmy C. Pan ID: 100528-N-3136P-204

Founded in 1952, in its current organisation since 1960, is named after Major Teseo Tesei, Gold Medal for Military Valour. COMSUBIN reports directly to the Chief of the Naval Staff, under the leadership of an admiral officer.

It is based in Le Grazie, in the ancient Varignano fortress. Originally built as a lazaret, in 1888 it became the local Maritime Defence Command and later the school of the Royal Marine Corps for the torpedo and radiotelegraph categories.

In 1910, Varignano became the headquarters of the Regia Marina's divers, with the relocation of the historic Diving School, founded in Genoa in 1849. Later, in 1952, it became the base of the incursors, a new category created to give continuity to the tradition of the Navy's assault craft fighters and to preserve the skills acquired during the Second World War.

The barracks is named after Naval Engineer Major Teseo Tesei.

History

The first diver school, founded in Genoa in 1849, was transferred to Varignano in 1910, where it combined diving skills with expertise in explosive ordnance neutralisation.

The formation of the first underwater raiding groups dates back to the First World War, when the Regia Marina used means such as the MAS and the self-propelled torpedo Rossetti (known as the 'mignatta'), from which the famous slow-moving torpedo, or 'pig', was derived.

Diving and Incursion Command
A Gamma operator of the 10th MAS Flotilla

These means enabled the Italian raiders to carry out memorable actions against the Austro-Hungarian fleet, including the famous feat of Premuda.

A key role was also played by Naval Engineer Officer Armando Andri, who in 1921 led the first salvage of a battleship, the Leonardo da Vinciin the Mar Piccolo of Taranto, an operation that marked an important milestone in underwater operations.

The category of divers was formally established in 1933 by a law amending the organisation of the Royal Maritime Crew Corps (CREM).

However, the origin of the COMSUBIN Incursors can be traced back to the 1930s, when experiments with special assault vehicles and diving equipment, such as breathing apparatuses and wetsuits, began.

In 1938, the first assault craft unit was created, called the 'Assault Craft Command', which became the 1st MAS Flotilla, later transformed into the famous 10th MAS Flotilla in 1941.

In 1939, the 'Scuba Diving School' was established in Livorno, at the Naval Academy. Founded by Angelo Belloni, inventor of the self-contained oxygen breathing apparatus (ARO), the school trained officers and non-commissioned officers in the use of such devices and selected them to work in specialised departments, such as Gamma men or slow running torpedo (SLC) operators.

Incursors destined for the SLCs were trained in secret at the Bocca di Serchio base, where they developed the necessary skills to use these means and covertly place explosive charges under enemy ships.

World War II

During the Second World War (1940-1943), the MAS Flotillas of the Regia Marina performed remarkable feats, sinking over 72,190 tons of warships and 130,572 tons of merchant ships.

Among the most important actions was theCompany of Alexandria 1941, when six Italian raiders penetrated the port of Alexandria in Egypt, sinking British battleships Valiant e Queen Elizabeth.

For these achievements, numerous decorations were awarded, including the Gold Medal for Military Valour to the banner of the 10th MAS Flotilla.

GNP departments

In 1941, the Regia Marina created a 'Guastatori' unit in Pula, supplemented by battalions of 'Swimmers' and 'Parachutists', destined for the invasion of Malta. Although the operation did not materialise, these specialists were employed in Provence and Corsica in 1942.

In April 1943, they were reunited in Livorno in the Parachute Swimmer Battalion Group, under the command of frigate captain Carlo Simen, under Generalmas.

After the armistice

After the armistice of 8 September 1943, a unit of the Southern Kingdom called Mariassalto Taranto was reorganised in Taranto, under the command of frigate captain Ernesto Forza, former commander of the Tenth Flotilla MAS. This was joined by operators such as Antonio Marceglia and Luigi Durand de La Penne, who were repatriated in 1944 after being taken prisoner by the British.

The unit participated in several operations alongside the Allies, including the sinking of the cruiser Bolzano in 1944 and the incomplete aircraft carrier Aquila in Genoa in 1945, to prevent its use by the Germans.

Meanwhile, in the Italian Social Republic, other members of the Xª Flottiglia MAS, under the command of Junio Valerio Borghese, continued to operate under the RSI flag. Despite the German occupation, Borghese maintained a certain operational autonomy, with the tricolour continuing to fly over their base.

Group Arditi Incursors

In 1952, after the lifting of the constraints of the Treaty of Paris, the Navy created the Group Arditi Incursors under the command of Lieutenant Aldo Massarini, incorporating experience gained by the divers and frogmen of the Gamma Group. The group, placed under Maricentrosub, was reorganised under the leadership of Admiral Gino Birindelli and in 1956 assumed the name of MariSubArdIndistinguishing itself for training in maritime and mountain operations, including airdrop activities since 1962.

The establishment of COMSUBIN

In 1959, the MariSubArdIn command became MaricenSubInsign of the continuous evolution of the department, until it reached its final organisation on 15 February 1960 with the birth of the COMSUBIN, Comando Raggruppamento Subacquei ed Incursori 'Teseo Tesei'. The command frieze, represented by a caiman, honours the Arditi of the First World War known as the 'Black Caimans of the Piave'.

One of the most significant episodes that highlighted the effectiveness of COMSUBIN was the rapid intervention during the Florence flood of 1966, in which the raiders provided vital aid to the population, earning the silver medal for civil valour.

Transactions abroad

On 30 December 1985, the Special Operations Groups (GOS)of which COMSUBIN was part with a portion of the Col Moschin raiders, to conduct operations under the coordination of the SISMI. Subsequently, the operators of the Operational Group Incursors (GOI) took part in sensitive missions around the world, including the recovery of Italian citizens in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide and the peacekeeping operation in East Timor in 1999.

Between 2001 and 2005, GOI incursors were deployed in Afghanistan as part of theOperation Enduring Freedomwith continuous gaps in the Task Force 45 until 2012.

GOS operators were also protagonists in the recovery of the Costa Concordia after the 2012 shipwreck.

Since 2016, the COMSUBIN GOI collaborates with theAISE for classified missions outside the area, maintaining a strategic role in sensitive and highly classified operations on an international scale.

Organisation

The department commander is usually a rear admiral, and has under his direct command the commanders of the GOI (Gruppo Operativo Incursori) and the GOS (Gruppo Operativo Subacquei).

Diving and Incursion Command
COMSUBIN raiders during the 2004 Clever Sentinel exercise in Mediterranean waters - Copyright Stephen P. Weaver ID: 040422-N-5821W-009

From the grouping commander depend:

  • HeadquartersIt ensures the services and the maintenance of the efficiency of the Command, enabling the groups to carry out their missions.
  • Operational Group Incursors (GOI)The Navy's only Special Forces unit, heir to the Navy's assault troops.
  • Diving Operations Group (GOS)This is a specialist department that includes divers and divers, diver operators with the most advanced diving skills, derived from a tradition of some 170 years in the Navy.
  • Special Naval Groupresponsible for naval units, including:
    • Anteo
    • Cabrini e Germans
    • motorboats Pedretti e Marino and other minor means.
  • Schools Group, divided into:
    • diving school
    • commando school
    • school of underwater and hyperbaric medicine.
  • Study Office: a centre dedicated to the technological development of materials and means used by operational group operators.

Incursor Operations Group - GOI

The GOI (Gruppo Operativo Incursori) is the attack unit specialising in special operations, and is part of the recognised Italian special forces, under the operational command of the COFS (Italian Special Forces Operations Command). The GOI operates together with other Italian special units, including:

The GOI works closely with the Eliassalto Department for airborne operations and plays offensive roles, in line with its operational doctrine, aimed at the defence of national interests, even beyond Italy's borders. The GOI staff is composed exclusively of professionals, subjected to extremely tough, selective and in-depth training to ensure high operational standards.

Diving Operations Group - GOS

The Gruppo Operativo Subacquei (GOS) is a specialised force of the Navy, in charge of conducting complex underwater operations. It specialises in clearing mines and unexploded ordnance at sea, in technical interventions at great depths and in rescue and technical support to the crews of submarine units.

The divers and divers of the GOS are responsible for the underwater defence of Navy units in port, conducting anti-sabotage operations against possible hostile incursions, inspecting the hulls of ships for ordnance and participating in major underwater missions, such as inspections of sunken wrecks.

The GOS is part of the Raggruppamento Subacquei e Incursori 'Teseo Tesei' and shares its headquarters at the Varignano promontory, in the municipality of Portovenere (La Spezia). It is commanded by a senior officer, usually of a rank no lower than frigate captain.

Navy divers are the Italian benchmark for diving doctrine and equipment. The GOS is also often called upon to intervene in civil protection operations. Among their most relevant missions

  • On 24 December 1978, they intervened to recover the wreckage of the plane that crashed near Punta Raisi (Palermo), which had crashed into the sea during the night of 22-23 December, killing 108 people.
  • On 13 January 2012, they were the first to intervene in the shipwreck of the cruise ship Costa Concordiaopening gaps by means of explosive charges on the half-covered keel to allow a search for survivors.

The GOS is able to operate up to a depth of 300 metres, using integrated equipment on the ships of the Special Naval Group, with the help of helium-oxygen breathing mixtures and saturation diving techniques. The rescue of damaged submarines is carried out using the McCann Bell up to 130 metres, a Drass-Galeazzi SRV-300 mini-submarine, or diving with an articulated rigid diving suit (ADS) up to 300 metres.

The Diving School

COMSUBIN's Diving School is the heir to the 'Scuola Palombari' (Diving School), founded in Genoa on 24 July 1849 on the initiative of General Enrico Morozzo della Rocca, then Minister of War and the Navy of the Kingdom of Sardinia. Initially, the institute trained personnel capable of operating with a diver's diving suit at a depth of 10 metres for over three hours. In 1934, the school was transferred to the San Bartolomeo Arsenal in La Spezia.

During the two world wars, divers carried out salvage operations on sunken hulls. After World War II, the Diving School was merged with the Livorno Diving School, giving birth to the MARICENTROSUB in Varignano.

In the following years, divers contributed to the removal of shipwrecks and the clearing of mines and ordnance, an experience that fostered the development of the modern Diving Units. In 1954, the diving school was reorganised within the Diving Regiment.

The school selects and trains Navy divers and divers, as well as diving operators for all Armed Forces and police corps.

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