The Soviet Black Sea Fleet's battleship, cruisers, nineteen destroyers, forty-four submarines, and many torpedo boats greatly outweighed the Romanian, German, Italian, Bulgarian, and Croatian contributions. Axis reinforcements included submarines, torpedo boats, mines, anti-submarine craft, and landing vessels, but no comparable heavy fleet reached the theatre. The imbalance raises the question of why the Soviet campaign became so defensive. Severe penalties for failure made commanders reluctant to risk valuable ships without airtight authorization. Fleet lists alone therefore give a poor measure of usable combat power. Command incentives suppressed much of the advantage promised by superior numbers and heavier ships.
Notable Point · 27:37-30:23
Risk aversion neutralized Black Sea Fleet superiority
The Black Sea Fleet greatly outnumbered its Axis opponents, yet political fear helped turn that apparent advantage into a defensive campaign.