In July 1940 Admiral Raffaele de Courten, Giorgini's superior, ordered him to select his best four crews and launch an attack on the capital ships of the Mediterranean Fleet moored in Alexandria. After vainly protesting that his men were not yet ready for action, Giorgini set out to carry out the order; but the operation, codenamed G.A.1, ended in failure when the carrier submarine, Iride, was sunk by British torpedo bombers in the Gulf of Bomba while readying to sail, on 22 August 1940. Giorgini, who was onboard Iride, barely survived along with the SLC operators, while most of the submarine's crew perished; the SLC operators themselves (including Tesei, Toschi, de la Penne and Birindelli) managed to save several survivors trapped in the sunken wreck of the Iride.Gianni Bianchi, "Un capitano coraggioso" la storia di Mario Giorgini, il Comandante di Tesei, Birindelli, De La Penne..., pp. 119-143-161Operazione G.A. 1Giorgio Giorgerini, Attacco dal mare. Storia dei mezzi d’assalto della Marina italiana, pp. 170-171-172
