SS Roma (1926)

Navigazione Generale Italiana

Industry	Shipping
Headquarters	Genoa , Italy
Products	Ocean liners, passenger ships

SS Roma was an ocean liner constructed for the Italian shipping firm Navigazione Generale Italiana based in Genoa. Built at the Ansaldo shipyard in Sestri Ponente, she was the sister vessel to MS Augustus. Following the merger that formed the Italian Line, ownership of the ship was transferred to this new entity. With the onset of the Second World War, she was requisitioned by the Royal Italian Navy and underwent conversion into an aircraft carrier renamed Aquila. In 1943, control passed to the National Republican Navy of the Italian Social Republic alongside German occupation forces. In 1945, she was partly sunk during a commando raid carried out by Mariassalto, an assault group affiliated with the Co-Belligerent Navy of the Kingdom of Italy, composed of former members of the Decima Flottiglia MAS. Raised afterward, Roma was ultimately dismantled by 1952.

Ocean liner career

After the conclusion of World War I, several shipping companies awaited financial stability to commission new liners. Navigazione Generale Italiana placed orders for two transatlantic ocean liners, each approximately 30,000 gross register tons, from the Ansaldo shipyard. The first vessel, launched in 1926 and named Roma, featured a fully steel hull. Its interiors were adorned in a lavish Baroque style. The ship registered Template:GRT and bore signal code letters ICEV.

Distinct from her sister ship, Augustus, Roma was equipped with eight turbines arranged in pairs driving four propeller shafts. Steam was generated by nine double-ended and four single-ended boilers, enabling her to reach a peak speed of 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph). Some machinery components originated from the canceled Italian Navy battleship Cristoforo Colombo. The liner accommodated roughly 1,675 passengers distributed across four classes: 375 first class, 300 second class, 300 intermediate class, and 700 third class.

Following the merger that created the Italian Line through uniting Lloyd Sabaudo and Cosulich Line, Roma’s two funnels were repainted to reflect the new company’s colors. In 1933, the intermediate class was replaced by a touristic class. Additionally, the main deck was overlaid with teak wood.

On 30 January 1932, Roma collided with the American ocean liner President Roosevelt near New York City, causing significant damage to President Roosevelt. The latter underwent repairs and resumed service. Roma continued operating as a passenger liner until Italy’s declaration of war in 1940, after which she was taken out of service until 1941.

Conversion into an aircraft carrier

Main article: Italian aircraft carrier Aquila

At the onset of World War II, the vessel was laid up before being seized by the Royal Italian Navy. Subsequently, she underwent extensive reconstruction to become an aircraft carrier and was renamed Aquila. Following the modifications, her top speed was elevated to 30 knots. However, by the time Italy signed the armistice in 1943, the conversion was approximately 90% complete. Later in 1943, control of the ship passed to the National Republican Navy and the German occupation forces, who placed her under strict surveillance. By 1944, German troops began to plunder and partially dismantle the vessel. Eventually, she was sabotaged and partially sunk by the royalist Italian Co-Belligerent Navy.

Concerned that the Germans might seize and deliberately sink her as a blockship at Genoa’s harbor entrance—similar to what had occurred months earlier with Roma's sister ship Augustus, which had been converted into the aircraft carrier Sparviero—the Mariassalto commando unit, composed of former members of the Decima Flottiglia MAS, executed a manned torpedo assault on the night spanning April 18 to 19, 1945. This operation resulted in the partial sinking of Aquila.

Following the conclusion of hostilities, there was some deliberation regarding completing and commissioning the ship. Ultimately, this option was dismissed due to financial inefficiency and political complications. Her remains were salvaged and in 1949 towed to La Spezia, where she was redesignated as Pontone P227. The ship was fully dismantled by 1952.

See also

• MS Augustus
• Italian aircraft carrier Aquila