It was a quiet night on 9 June 1918 when the two sister ships SMS Szent István and Tegettoff left the port of Pula (now Croatia) and set a course for Dubrovnik.

 

Both ships’ crews did not have much fear of being attacked by the Italian navy as they were accompanied by a destroyer and six torpedo boats. The Szent István was still a new ship of 20,000 tons, and up until now, had only used her gigantic 12-inch (30cm) cannons during gunnery practice.

 

The Italian scout cruiser Cesare Rossarol was a Poerio-class ship built at the Gio. Ansaldo & C. shipyard in Sestri Ponente. Entered into service on 1 August 1915, the Rossarol was actually a slender destroyer, 85m long and 8m wide. Her main armament comprised six cannons 102/45 and four torpedo launch tubes. With a displacement of 1,235 tons at full load, the Rossarol was able to reach a maximum speed of about 32 knots.

The wreck is remarkably well preserved; it is even said to be the world's best preserved Stuka bomber. The engine was placed in a different bay, probably torn off by the impact to the sea surface or abducted by fishing nets. Other than that, the plane stands almost completely intact on its wheels on the seabed at a depth of about 28m, as if it had just made a soft landing.

If there is any hidden secret in the Mediterranean, it is the island of Vis. For many years, it was a forbidden and restricted military area. It was not until 1991, when the iron curtain finally came down, that it was opened up for tourism and diving. On Vis, small picturesque port towns and spectacular wrecks, drop-offs and caverns are waiting to be discovered by divers.