The Silent Service in World War II: The Story of the U.S. Navy Submarine Force in the Words of the Men Who Lived It

ISBN: 1612001254

Author: Green, Michael

Condition: New

When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, the U.S. Navy had a total of 111 submarines. However, this fleet was not nearly as impressive as the number suggests. It was mostly a collection of aging boats from the late teens and early twenties, with only a few of the newer, more modern Gato-class boats. Fortunately, with the war in Europe was already two years old and friction with Japan ever-increasing, help from what would become known as the Silent Service in the Pacific was on the way: there were 73 of the new fleet submarines under construction.The Silent Service in World War II tells the story of Americas intrepid underwater warriors in the words of the men who lived the war in the Pacific against Japan. The enemy had already begun to deploy advanced boats, but the U.S. was soon able to match them. By 1943 the new Gato-class boats were making a difference, carrying the war not just to the Japanese Imperial Navy, but to the vital merchant fleet that carried the vast array of materiel needed to keep the land of the Rising Sun afloat.As the war progressed, American success in the Solomons, starting with Guadalcanal, began to constrict the Japanese sea lanes, and operating singly or in wolfpacks they were able to press their attacks on convoys operating beyond the range of our airpower, making daring forays even into the home waters of Japan itself in the quest for ever more elusive targets. Also taking on Japanese warships, as well as rescuing downed airmen (such as the grateful first President Bush), U.S. submarines made an enormous contribution to our war against Japan.This book takes you through the war as you learn what it was like to serve on submarines in combat, the exhilaration of a successful attack, and the terror of being depth-charged. And aside from enemy action, the sea itself could prove to be an extremely hostile environment as many of these stories attest. From early war patrols in obsolescent, unreliable S-boats to new, modern fleet submarines roving the Pacific, the forty-six stories in this anthology give you a full understanding of what it was like to be a U.S. Navy submariner in combat.Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsGlossaryIntroductionHollywood and American SubmarinesPART ONE: PREWAR AND EARLY WAR STORIES (1941-1942)1: Submarine School BY CORNELIUS R. BARTHOLOMEW2: Sea Dragons Prop Wash BY J. KILLIN3: A Vanishing Day-dream BY CORNELIUS R. BARTHOLOMEW4: Operational Readiness on December 7, 1941 BY FRANK E. PERRY5: Rest and Recreation BY FRANK KIMBALL6: The First and Only Patrol of S-27 (SS-132 ) BY GEORGE J. HEROLD7: S-37s Voyage Home BY ROBERT B. LANDER8: Bob Rose and Sargos Australian Welcome BY DOUG RHYMES9: Escape by Submarine BY LUCY I. WILSON10: The Doubtful Tale of the S-36 BY ALFRED SIMS11: Rivets in the O-2 BY STANLEY LAMBKIN12: Aground on a Reef BY FRANK BOWMANPART TWO: MID-WAR STORIES (1943)13: Pompon Evades Torpedoes BY CHARLES FOSKETT14: Gun Boss Pay BY EDWARD CRAWFOOT15: Loss of the USS Grenadier (SS-210) BY ROBERT W. PALMER16: Midway, Our Refuge of 1943 BY JACK QUADE17: Loose Torpedo at Pearl Harbor BY JAMES H. ALLEN18: Second Patrol of the USS Bluefish (SS-222) BY EDWIN J. SHEPHERD JR.19: S-48, My First Boat BY CHURCHILL JIM CAMPBELL20: The Ryuhos Last Stand BY JOHN M. GOODPART THREE: LATE WAR STORIES (1944-1945)21: Submarine on the Loose BY WILLIAM DREHER22: USS Rays Great Conning Tower Flood BY HAL MOYER23: Ambush on Borneo BY KEN HARRINGTON24: Pogys Stowaway BY W. E. BATTENFIELD25: The Battle of the Philippine Sea BY ERNEST J. ZELLMER26: Penny Picked Me BY BILL GLEASON27: Story of the USS Flier Second Patrol and Its Survivors BY ALVIN E. JACOBSON28: Left on the Bridge BY JOHN PAUL JONES29: Dying of the Emperor on Palau BY NORMAN R. DIREY30: Picking Up the Left-overs off Palauig Point BY R.C. GILLETTE31: A Total Loss BY FARRELL STEARNS32: The Sape Strait Shooting Incident of November, 1944 BY H. E. MILLER33: From the Perspective of an Aviator BY C. B. SMITH34: A Submarine Home BY MYRON ALEXANDER35: My First War Patrol BY JOSEPH CORNEAU36: Bucket Brigade BY HANK NATE HENDERSON37: Three Submarines in Three Days BY HUGHSTON F. LOWDER38: Bing is Missing BY BILL GLEASON39: Absence Without Leave, March 1945 BY JOE OROURKE40: From Kamikaze Attack to Typhoon BY K. F. WELTY41: The Sinking of Hatsutaka BY WORTH SCANLAND42: The Man Who Never Made a Mistake BY JACK BLUMEBERG43: Gabilans Aviator BY ROBERT TALBOT44: The Capture of I-401 BY ALEX LEITCH45: From Perch to Prisoner BY B. R. VAN BUSKIRK46: The S-40 Leaves the Atomic Age BY GEORGE STANNARDSourcesIndex