Goya was a Norwegian motor freighter used as a troop transport by Nazi Germany and sunk with a massive loss of life near the end of World War II.

[2][3] Goya was just one of over 1,000 ships commissioned to participate in the Operation Hannibal evacuations organised by Kriegsmarine Commander-in-Chief Karl Dönitz.

[2] At exactly four minutes before midnight (local time), L-3 Captain Vladimir Konovalov gave the order to fire a spread of four torpedoes.

[1][4] Two of them hit Goya; one struck amidships, the second exploded in the stern, sending an immense plume of fire and smoke into the sky.

[1][2][3] Goya, a freighter not equipped with the safety features of a passenger ship, sank to a depth of approximately 76 metres (249 ft).

The exact number of survivors is also a matter of dispute; most estimates place it at approximately 182 people saved (176 soldiers and 6 civilians), of whom nine died shortly afterwards.

On 26 August 2002, the wreck was discovered by Polish technical divers Grzegorz Dominik, Michał Porada, and Marek Jagodziński, who also salvaged the ship's compass.

Exactly 58 years after the sinking of Goya, the wreck was located on 16 April 2003 by an international expedition under the direction of Ulrich Restemeyer, aided by 3D-Sonar scanning.

The wreck lies at a depth of 76 meters (249 feet) below the surface of the Baltic Sea and is in remarkably good condition, though covered with nets.