Siebruniemi Torpedo Battery (Liinakhamari)

The Siebruniemi torpedo battery is an unfinished German rock-cut torpedo battery from the Second World War on the eastern shore of Pechenga Bay, near the village of Liinakhamari in the Pechenga district of Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It is described as the only rock torpedo battery in Russia: its torpedo tubes were meant to fire from emplacements cut straight into the cliff.

History

During the war Pechenga Bay and the port of Liinakhamari were a key point of German defence in the Far North. The battery was built at the foot of Valkelki-Tunturi hill, at a narrow point of the bay where the opposite shore is only about 1.5 km away. Its job was to close the bay to Soviet ships and boats: torpedoes fired from fixed tubes could hit any vessel heading for the port.

It was due to enter service in spring 1944. Work in solid rock was slow, and the war was turning against Germany. The battery was never finished: in October 1944, during the Petsamo–Kirkenes offensive, Soviet troops took Pechenga and Liinakhamari, and the battery never became operational.

What to see

Four concrete emplacements with embrasures for the torpedo tubes still face the water. Behind them, tunnels are cut into the rock, partly lined with concrete, which were to house the battery's underground rooms. Further up the slope a command and observation post appears to survive. The site is abandoned rather than a museum, but the concrete and the rock workings show well how the Germans fortified the shores of Pechenga Bay.

Getting there

There is no road to the German torpedo battery near Liinakhamari. The easiest way is a boat hired in the village: the battery stands right at the water's edge, and its embrasures are clearly visible from the bay.

Good to know

Liinakhamari and the shores of Pechenga Bay are in the border zone, so a border permit, arranged in advance, is required. The tunnels are dark and damp, so bring a torch and sturdy shoes; the weather on the bay changes quickly, and boat trips depend on wind and waves.