WWII Soviet Sub Discovered in Baltic Sea

Wreckage of Soviet WWII Submarine S-6
Photo: Försvarsmakten

Earlier this summer civilian divers reported discovering what they believed to be a sunken submarine in 130 feet of water near Sweden’s island of Oland in the Baltic Sea. The Swedish Navy returned to the site with its submarine salvage ship HSWMS Belos to further inspect the wreck and determine its identity. Swedish news site The Local reports that the Swedish military believes the vessel is the Soviet submarine S-6 which never returned from its September 1941 patrol. Cyrillic text and a Soviet hammer and sickle are visible on the wreck providing evidence that the wreck is indeed a Soviet sub.

The Swedish military further believes that while cruising on the surface of the Baltic the sub struck a Nazi mine and was blown to pieces. This hypothesis flows from the fact that a hatch (seen above) was open on the vessel and it was found in multiple pieces on the sea floor. The large size of the debris field rules out the possibility the sub struck a mine below the surface and that the crew were able to make an attempt at escape. Thus it is most likely the sub was cruising on the surface, possibly re-charging its batteries at night, with hatches open to circulate air within the boat when it struck the mine.

HSWMS Belos
Photo: Wikimedia