The Ottoman fleet departed the Dardanelles at 8:20 on the morning of 18 January, and sailed toward the island of Lemnos at a speed of . "Barbaros Hayreddin" led the line of battleships, with a flotilla of torpedo boats on either side of the formation. A long range artillery duel that lasted for two hours began at around 11:55, when the Ottoman fleet opened fire at a range of . They concentrated their fire on the Greek "Georgios Averof", which returned fire at 12:00. At 12:50, the Greeks attempted to cross the T of the Ottoman fleet, but "Barbaros Hayreddin" turned north to block the Greek maneuver. At around that time, "Mesudiye" took a serious hit that disabled three of her 150 mm guns; this damage, coupled with boiler trouble, led the Ottoman commander to detach the ship and send her back to port.