WWII Silent Service

[Subdeacon Joe]

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mxzKuzN4wc

[Charlie Plasters, SASS#60943]

In the early '70's I was attached to a sub tender with sub squadron 6. We still had a few diesel boats in the squadron - nothing quite as old as those in this movie but still cramped and stinky.

[Trailrider #896]

The heroism of our submariners was tremendous, especially when a majority of the torpedos with which they were armed were defective. First, the magnetic exploders malfunctioned, so they were ordered disabled, and the contact exploders relied on. Unfortunately, a defect in the contact firing pins prevented them from working if the warhead hit the target dead on! Also the depth setting mechanisms were not calibrated correctly, and the torpedos tended to run too deep, which made them pass under the targets, especially with shallow draft ships. When sub commanders reporte the problems, they were accused of not being aggressive enough, and a number were relieved of their commands! Finally, enough of this occurred that tests were finally undertaken at Pearl Harbor, under the direction of Cdr. "Swede" Momson (yes, the inventor of the Momson lung escape device), and the problem solved, markedly increasing the effectiveness and safety of our subs! Typically, the resistance to testing was due to the chairborne in BuOrd.

[Steeldust Dan, SASS #2631Life]

The heroism of our submariners was tremendous, especially when a majority of the torpedos with which they were armed were defective. First, the magnetic exploders malfunctioned, so they were ordered disabled, and the contact exploders relied on. Unfortunately, a defect in the contact firing pins prevented them from working if the warhead hit the target dead on! Also the depth setting mechanisms were not calibrated correctly, and the torpedos tended to run too deep, which made them pass under the targets, especially with shallow draft ships. When sub commanders reporte the problems, they were accused of not being aggressive enough, and a number were relieved of their commands! Finally, enough of this occurred that tests were finally undertaken at Pearl Harbor, under the direction of Cdr. "Swede" Momson (yes, the inventor of the Momson lung escape device), and the problem solved, markedly increasing the effectiveness and safety of our subs! Typically, the resistance to testing was due to the chairborne in BuOrd.

 

The reason the depth setting mechanisms were mis-calibrated was because in the pre-war years they removed the explosives so the torpedoes could be fired, recovered and reused. They filled the warhead cavity with water, which did not weigh the same as the explosives.

[Four-Eyed Buck,SASS #14795]

They were also fired from rafts or barges, not a sub. The Silent Service lost 50+ boats during the war, and some of those were probably the result of the torpedo problem.Once the problems were solved, the Japanese Merchant Marine basically ceased to exist by the end of the war

[Sedalia Dave]

I have had the privilege to set foot on the USS Bowfin and the USS Florida. Both were private tours so I got to see areas of the USS Bowfin not normally accessible to the public and I got to see all areas of the USS Florida that a sailor could see without being an actual member of the crew.

All I can say is that those WWII sailors were a tough bunch. Working in that small cramped space during wartime took a lot of intestinal fortitude and dedication.

I was surprised how much room there is on a boomer. Still submerging for 90 days at a time takes a special kind of person. My tour guide for the USS Florida had just came from Fast Attack and told me that they had about 1/2 the room that the boomers had. Unfortunately there were no Fast Attack subs in port at the time.

[Cliff Hanger #3720LR]

I was assigned to the USS George Washington SSBN 598 while it was in the yards for full refit and recoring. USA first missile boat. (boomer)

Having been in every compartment and crawl space I can say that submarines are machines with rat runs for the people who maintain and operate them.

 

Now for comparison.

USS George Washington launched in June 1959

33' in diameter...sort of. The forward and aft sections of the boat where made from a smaller fast attack boat that was being built at the time and was lengthened in the center to add 130' of missile compartment. . ID of that boat was USS Scorpion. 252' in Length

382.6' in Length of GW

 

I had the pleasure of boarding the USS Benjamin Franklin 640 to help with an electrical equipment issue found during sea trials. after about 13 hours the BF was on it's way again.

33' diameter

425' in Length

 

What I saw was just 1/2 the upper level operations compartment of the Ben Franklin.

It had more free space than the entire George Washington in all 6 compartments and all levels.

To me it was huge.

 

Can't imagine an Ohio class boats at 560' long and 44' in diameter.

Yet the Russian Typhoon is bigger and almost twice as wide.

 

And yes, I have been on the diesel boats.

Not at sea but while in the yards for refit.

Like putting 5 people in a phone booth and all wanting to make a call.

[Cliff Hanger #3720LR]

Dave, on the nuke boats there are parts of the boat even regular sailors can't access without a nuke qualification badge.

On nuke boats back in the 60's & 70s, the crew was divided in to forward personnel and after personnel.

 

Short version.

Nukes (after) and Non Nukes (forward).

They really didn't mix together. (socialize)

They seemed to even have their own table in the mess area.

========================

For those really interested......

 

Submarines..An Obsession

 

Submarine and related museum stuff

[Bugs Bonney SASS # 10171]

Sounds like those Boomers are a tad bit bigger than the Hunley. I saw her shortly after raising her and they hadn't excavated the interior. Abe Lincoln's secret weapon wasn't all that big.

[Cliff Hanger #3720LR]

If the H L Hunley was just 4' shorter, it would fit in the Polaris missile tube of the older A1/A3 missiles of the GW.

----------------------------

You visited the H L Hunley in Charleston Harbor?

I spent a lot of time just about 1/2 mile north at the two dry docks from where the Hunley is being worked on.

Or 6 miles up river at the weapons station. Not much time there.

For the loading of two boomers and our two test shots.

[Sedalia Dave]

CH,

Thanks for sharing. My Navy Instructor Training was at the Sub base in Silverdale Wa. All of my class except two of us were off of the USS Parche (SSN-683). I had no knowledge of the Parche or its history at the time. Didn't learn about that until I read Blind Man's Bluff ( A good book BTW) Probably a good thing as I doubt they could have talked much about it.

I was an Airdale stationed at NAS Whidbey IS at the time and knew very little about Subs. A couple of my class mates were curious about jets so I arranged to take them to the base. Got them into the pilots seat of an EA-6B and an in depth tour of a P-3C and EP-3E. In return they offered a tour of a Sub. Got to see one in Dry dock (they are really big when out of the water) and then we boarded the Florida which was still a SSBN at that time. I was impressed at how big the bridge was and how small the racks were.

 

I still remember the first Carrier I saw up close. It was the USS Independence docked in Norfolk at the time. Went there on a Navy bus as part of a working party so I couldn't see much until we got off trhe bus at the pier. Standing on the pier it didn't look big enough. (Mostly because standing that close you can't see all of it) However once on the flight deck you can start to appreciate the true size of a carrier. The main passage ways on the O-3 level extended from bow to stern and standing at one end and looking down the passage way the frames looked just like an infinity mirror. Boy those were the days.

[Subdeacon Joe]

If the H L Hunley was just 4' shorter, it would fit in the Polaris missile tube of the older A1/A3 missiles of the GW.

----------------------------

You visited the H L Hunley in Charleston Harbor?

I spent a lot of time just about 1/2 mile north at the two dry docks from where the Hunley is being worked on.

Or 6 miles up river at the weapons station. Not much time there.

For the loading of two boomers and our two test shots.

 

Now that's an interesting perspective on it! Thanks!

[Cliff Hanger #3720LR]

Parche is the most decorated ship in U.S. Navy history, receiving a total of nine Presidential Unit Citations and ten Navy Unit Commendations.

That boat had several lives. Started out like any other sub but was converted several times including an addition in front of the sail of 99' for special opts.

 

Short history of Parche from Wikipedia.

I am sure there is far more not said on this boat and most others.

After all, it is the Silent Service.

 

And anyone who has rode the boats has their own special stories.

Or should I say memories because we couldn't talk back then and most likely still don't today.

[Tucker McNeely]

Dave, on the nuke boats there are parts of the boat even regular sailors can't access without a nuke qualification badge.

On nuke boats back in the 60's & 70s, the crew was divided in to forward personnel and after personnel.

 

Short version.

Nukes (after) and Non Nukes (forward).

They really didn't mix together. (socialize)

They seemed to even have their own table in the mess area.

========================

For those really interested......

 

Submarines..An Obsession

 

Submarine and related museum stuff

We let the coners come aft. The only place they couldn't go was the reactor compartment. No reason other than they didn't need to take dose just for a tour. Nukes and coners got along fine on both of my boats. Just like everywhere else in life, the idiots are left to themselves. I like the analogy of describing the boat as living in a football field long three story double wide trailer.

[Bugs Bonney SASS # 10171]

If the H L Hunley was just 4' shorter, it would fit in the Polaris missile tube of the older A1/A3 missiles of the GW.

----------------------------

You visited the H L Hunley in Charleston Harbor?

I spent a lot of time just about 1/2 mile north at the two dry docks from where the Hunley is being worked on.

Or 6 miles up river at the weapons station. Not much time there.

For the loading of two boomers and our two test shots.

 

Yes it was in Charleston shortly after it was raised. Much as I admire the bravery of the men that manned her she killed far more southerners than Yankees and that is why I call her Lincolns secret weapon. She sank twice in trials and the last time after sinking Housatonic. If I recall the numbers correctly 18 of her crews died and five yanks were killed on the Housatonic.

[Cliff Hanger #3720LR]

Interesting stuff.......

 

USS Parche decked out in here awards while receiving another..

What looks like the missile deck is actually forward of the sail and was for special opts.

 

The USS Parche has been scraped but her sail lives on at Puget Sound Navy Museum in BREMERTON, Wash.

[Sedalia Dave]

If one sailor had to wear all that on his chest he would need crutches just to be able to stand. Not to mention a chest the size of the Incredible Hulk. Knowing the little that was revealed in Blind Man's Bluff I am very sure her crews earned every single Ribbon and Medal.

 

BTW if you are interested in getting a small taste of the high stakes roll that submarines played during the cold war, I highly recommend you read "Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage"