In the turbulent period of the Ιnterwar period, in 1936 Ioannis Metaxas took over the Prime Minister’s Office of Greece. In the period 1936-1940 there was relative calm with the state to prepare systematically for the impending war. With regard to the funding of our Armed Forces priority was given to the Army, less so the Air Force and lastly the Navy. As I. Metaxas foresaw
international developments, in his estimation, was a one-way street for Greece as an island nation, to side with the great naval power of the time, namely the British Empire. The Navy’s staff plan was to prepare Greece as an ally of Great Britain, taking advantage of our country’s geographical position. Thus, special attention was paid to the fortification of the coasts and the creation of safe inland sea lanes and bases. The purpose of the above was to protect maritime transport, something necessary both for the mobilization of troops and to supply the country, especially in times of war.

At that time the Italian provocations were many, culminating in the torpedo of the cruiser “Elli”, which participated in the celebrations in Tinos on 15 August 1940. The day after the torpedo, aerial bombardment took place by two Italian aircraft against the destroyers “B. George” and “V. Olga”, which rushed to the island to escort the pilgrims returning to Piraeus. Italian provocation led inevitably to the declaration of war on October 28, 1940.

In the period before the declaration of war, G. Averof was in bad condition. The ship was considered technologically finite, being now capable of catching speed only 16 knots, due to the poor condition of her boilers. In addition, the ship’s crew was constantly being used to fill gaps in the personnel of the destroyers. Nevertheless, the ship conducted regular execution drills in the Saronic Gulf and at the same time she was used as a training ship for the Training of Ensigns and Naval Cadets. It is noteworthy that I. Metaxas, in talks with the British ambassador in January 1939, had discussed the possibility of replacing the Averof with a similar, modern navy unit, with English credits.

While the Greco-Italian war was in progress, G. Averof was tied to the Salamis Naval Base and served as Fleet Headquarters. The operation liberation of the Italian-occupied Dodecanese, in which Averof was scheduled to participate, never took place as there was no agreement of the British naval authorities. After the bombing of the Naval Base by Italian planes, on November 1, 1940, the ship was transferred in the Gulf of Elefsina. She was there from January 1941 until the German attack in April, having a crew of 650 officers and sailors. More specifically, the period between 6 and 12 April German bombers pounded the Piraeus – Keratsini – Elefsina area. Especially during the night of April 12, the bombing was particularly fierce, with Stuka aircraft attacking in waves with the aim of sinking the ships of the Hellenic Fleet in the Gulf of Megara. The Averof, by effectively providing cover in the area with her anti-aircraft guns, succeeded in shooting down an enemy aircraft.

It is worth mentioning as a sample of the overall action of our Navy, that only between October 1940 and February 1941, 86,361 men and 31,237 animals were transported. This work was carried out under conditions of absolute naval superiority in favor of the Italian. This is why the work of the Navy is judged as successful, as the objective Goals achieved.