Battle of Vyborg Bay ( 1944 ) The Battle of Vyborg Bay ( ) was fought in the Finnish - Soviet Continuation War ( 1941 - 1944 ) . Background . The Soviet offensive against the Finns started on June 10 and managed to break through the Finnish defensive lines at Valkeasaari and Kuuterselkä on June 15 . This forced the Finnish forces on the Karelian Isthmus to withdraw to the still incomplete Finnish VKT - line . Although Soviet advance forces captured Viborg on June 20 , the main offensive got stuck in the stubborn Finnish defense of the Tali - Ihantala region . Despite heavy fighting and use of fresh reserves , the VKT - line bent but did not break , forcing the Leningrad Front to seek alternate routes past the Finnish defenses . The Leningrad Front followed roughly the same plan as in the Winter War and made plans for a crossing of Viborg Bay . Order of Battle . Soviet . Soviet forces that took part in the battle were part of the Soviet Leningrad Front under Leonid Govorov ' s command . The attack across the Bay of Viborg was assigned to the Soviet 59th Army ( Korovnikov ) to which the 43rd Corps ( Andreyev ) was subordinated . Infantry forces involved in the offensive were the 124th and 224th Rifle Divisions with the 80th Rifle Division being kept in reserve . Only a few Soviet tanks were assigned to support the offensive . Several artillery regiments were assigned to the offensive , it also had air support from the Baltic Fleet and light naval forces of the Soviet Baltic Fleet as well as the 260th Naval Infantry Regiment also supported the offensive . Finnish . Initially the forces responsible for the defense were the 22nd Coastal Artillery Regiment ( RTR 22 ) of the Eastern Bay of Finland Coastal Brigade ( Enkainen ) , under the command of the Commander of the Finnish Navy , and parts of the Cavalry Brigade ( Tähtinen ) under the Finnish V Corps ( V AK ) . Both the 22nd Coastal Artillery Regiment and the newly arrived German 122nd Infantry Division ( Breusing ) were subsequently subordinated to the Finnish V Corps . A large portion of the Finnish Navy supported the defensive operations . Fighting . Initially the Viborg Bay islands were in a fairly strong position with the Finnish garrison on the Koivisto islands preventing Soviet naval forces from gaining access to the bay . The Soviet Baltic Fleet landed a small assault force on the islands , but the Finnish garrison managed to keep the bridgehead contained . Nevertheless , Finnish headquarters decided it would be impossible to keep the troops in the islands supplied given Soviet air supremacy , and withdrew their forces from the islands unopposed . This opened the route for the Baltic Fleet to get safely into the bay . Battles in Viborg Bay started on June 30 with the Soviet 224th Rifle Division ' s attempt to capture the islands of Teikari and Melansaari . Finnish forces on the islands drove the attacks back , inflicting heavy losses on the Soviet troops in the process . Renewed Soviet attacks on July 4 met success in the islands near Uuras , but the attempt to land on Teikari was again repulsed with heavy Soviet losses . On July 4 and 5 the Finnish Navy , supported by several German AFP gunbarges , made several raids on Viborg Bay in an attempt to disrupt the Soviet landings on the islands . Heavy Soviet resistance from shore artillery , numerous Motor Torpedo Boats , ( MTB ) s , and the Soviet air force forced the Finns to withdraw without reaching the intended target area . Although none of the Finnish ships were sunk , most of them suffered crew casualties and were badly damaged , requiring immediate repairs . This situation effectively forced Finnish naval forces to withdraw from the battle . Of the Finnish ships , the worst damage was suffered by the auxiliary gunboat " Viena " during a Soviet air attack on its anchorage . The ship came close to sinking but was still able to return to Helsinki for repairs . Parts of the Soviet 124th Rifle Division captured the islands of Teikari and Melansaari on July 5 – 6 . Fighting on the other islands closer to the northern shore continued until July 8 when the Soviet 124th and 224th Rifle Divisions attempted landings on the northern shore of the bay . The defending German 122nd Division repulsed the attempts . The Soviet 59th Army switched to defense after these attempts , and fighting in the bay wound down . Aftermath . In costly battles the 124th and 224th Rifle Divisions of the Soviet 59th Army managed to capture the islands dominating Viborg Bay , but failed to gain a bridgehead on the northern shore of the bay . With both the initial attempt at Tali - Ihantala and the crossing at Viborg Bay blocked , the Leningrad Front turned its attention to the still undecided battles raging in the Äyräpää - Vuosalmi region .