Inside Yugoslavia's Secret Naval Tunnels
- By Amos Chapple
Camouflaged moorings for ships and submarines hidden along the coastline of Montenegro give a fascinating insight into Cold War tensions.
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This is the entrance to a "camouflaged mooring" for attack vessels of the now defunct Yugoslav Navy.
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The secret base is one of three inside Montenegro’s Bay of Kotor that could hide vessels, including submarines, from enemy ships or aircraft.
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At the entrance to two of the three bases, metal arms topped with rock-like chunks of polystyrene were designed to swing across the entrance, transforming the facility into what looked like a rocky bay when viewed from the air.
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The polystyrene "rocks" were even scattered on the hill around the secret bases to make the camouflage look as natural as possible.
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Drazen Jovanovic, the director of the Naval Heritage Collection Museum in Tivat, says such bases are scattered along the Adriatic coastline of the former Yugoslavia.
![Graffiti from 1980 inside one of the underground ports. "They started building these [secret bases] in the 1950s. It was a part of the naval strategy of ex-Yugoslavia," Jovanovic said. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-6ec2-08dad1e5fcc8_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Graffiti from 1980 inside one of the underground ports.
"They started building these [secret bases] in the 1950s. It was a part of the naval strategy of ex-Yugoslavia," Jovanovic said.
"They started building these [secret bases] in the 1950s. It was a part of the naval strategy of ex-Yugoslavia," Jovanovic said.
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"Torpedo boats or missile boats could wait inside for enemy ships to come closer, then pop out and fire a salvo of torpedoes or rockets," the naval-history expert explained.
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With its deep water and natural shelter from the waves of the open ocean, the waters of Kotor are a naval strategist’s dream.
The hidden naval tunnels of the Bay of Kotor are at the upper left of this photo.
The hidden naval tunnels of the Bay of Kotor are at the upper left of this photo.
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A file photo shows a Yugoslav Sava-class attack submarine, armed with six 533-mm torpedo tubes.
Yugoslavia operated 13 domestically produced submarines designed for use in the Adriatic and Mediterranean seas and several "wet subs" for use by special forces.
Yugoslavia operated 13 domestically produced submarines designed for use in the Adriatic and Mediterranean seas and several "wet subs" for use by special forces.
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Waves wash into an underground port near the village of Rose.
The Yugoslav Navy was disbanded in 1992, following the breakup of the country.
The Yugoslav Navy was disbanded in 1992, following the breakup of the country.
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The Polaris, a retired tugboat that was built in Yugoslavia in 1953, is currently being stored inside one of the secret moorings.
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A toilet alongside one of the secret naval bases.
Two locals who lived near the bases in the Bay of Kotor had never heard of the camouflaged moorings.
Two locals who lived near the bases in the Bay of Kotor had never heard of the camouflaged moorings.
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A blast door leads to a hidden entrance to one of the underground bases.
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The exit tunnel of an entrance to an underground mooring near the village of Rose.
Many of the attack submarines of the Yugoslav Navy were scrapped, but one was saved and is now on display across the bay from the moorings where it was once able to hide.
Many of the attack submarines of the Yugoslav Navy were scrapped, but one was saved and is now on display across the bay from the moorings where it was once able to hide.
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This Heroj class diesel-electric submarine was built in Yugoslavia in the 1960s. "Somehow this submarine survived," Jovanovic said, "and a couple of years ago we were able to restore it as a museum piece."
