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HMS York
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HMS York

Royal Navy cruiser disabled at Suda Bay in 1941

Italian explosive motorboats crippled HMS York at anchor in Suda Bay, Crete, on 26 March 1941, the pattern an MKE robot boat repeated with a live 100kg warhead in a Turkish exercise in September 2026.

Last refreshed: 7 October 2026

Timeline for HMS York

#13 20 Sept

MKE robot boat hits with a live warhead

Autonomous Systems: Land & Sea
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Background

HMS York, a British heavy cruiser crippled by Italian explosive motorboats in 1941, is the forerunner of the one-way-attack drone boat. MKE's uncrewed surface vessel struck a target with a 100kg live warhead during Turkey's Denizkurdu exercise in September 2026.

York was a York-class heavy cruiser built by Palmers at Jarrow, launched on 17 July 1928 and completed in 1930. Before dawn on 26 March 1941 the Italian Decima Flottiglia MAS launched six explosive motorboats from the destroyers Francesco Crispi and Quintino Sella into Suda Bay, Crete. Each pilot aimed his boat and jumped clear before impact. Two boats hit York amidships, flooding both boiler rooms and an engine room, and she settled in shallow water. German bombing wrecked her in May, and her CREW destroyed her main armament with demolition charges on 22 May 1941 as Crete fell.

The raid is the classic case of a cheap explosive boat crippling a large warship at anchor. Today's drone boats remove the pilot, and Ukrainian and Russian uncrewed surface vessels now fight each other in the Black Sea. The aiming step moves to a console and a radio or satellite link that an enemy can jam.

Common Questions
What happened to HMS York at Suda Bay?
On 26 March 1941 Italian explosive motorboats hit the heavy cruiser HMS York at anchor in Suda Bay, Crete. She flooded and settled in shallow water, and was wrecked by German bombing in May 1941.Source: https://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/1187.html
Who attacked HMS York in 1941?
The Italian Navy's Decima Flottiglia MAS, using six explosive motorboats launched from the destroyers Francesco Crispi and Quintino Sella.Source: https://defensemedianetwork.com/stories/little-boats-at-suda-bay-decima-mas-sinks-hms-york
When was HMS York abandoned?
Her CREW destroyed her main armament with demolition charges and abandoned her on 22 May 1941, during the evacuation of Crete.Source: https://www.naval-history.net/xGM-Chrono-06CA-York.htm
Why is HMS York compared with drone boats?
The Suda Bay boats were small, cheap hulls built to carry a warhead into a larger ship, the same job as today's one-way-attack uncrewed surface vessels, but with a pilot aboard.Source:
Source Material
Little Boats at Suda Bay: Decima MAS sinks HMS YorkHMS York, York-class heavy cruiserHMS York (90)