| Conflict: | Battle of Cape Burnas |
| Partof: | the Black Sea Campaigns of the Eastern Front of World War II |
| Date: | 1 October 1942 |
| Place: | Cape Burnas, Romania |
| Result: | Soviet submarine sank |
| Combatant1: | Romania |
| Strength1: | 2 gunboats 1 transport ship 1 flying boat |
| Strength2: | 1 submarine |
| Casualties1: | 1 transport ship sunk |
| Casualties2: | 1 submarine sunk 16-19 killed 2,000 Soviet POWs killed aboard the sunken German ship |
The Battle of Cape Burnas was a naval engagement between the Soviet and Romanian navies near the Burnas Lagoon in October 1942.
On 1 October 1942, the Soviet M-class submarine M-118 attacked and sank the German transport ship Salzburg, which was carrying on board 2,000 Soviet prisoners of war. After attacking, the submarine was located by a German BV 138C flying boat, and the Romanian gunboats Sublocotenent Ghiculescu and Stihi Eugen were sent to the scene. The two Romanian warships attacked the Soviet submarine with depth-charges, sinking her with all hands.[1] [2] [3]
Recent surveys in the area failed to find the wreck in the alleged sinking location and it has been raised the alternative version that M-118 was lost due to a German seaplane attack[4] or from a Romanian field barrage "S-30".[5]
At the same time, one source reported that two Soviet submarines were sunk by Romanian surface units.[6] There are several Soviet submarines claimed to have been sunk by Romanian surface warships, but the two most valid claims are the M-118 and Shch-206, sunk on 9 July 1941.[7]