Archive for the ‘And now for something completely different…’ Category

The Crevalle’s Last Transit through Balabac

And now for something completely different..., Where was Flier 66 years ago today? | Posted by Rebekah
Jun 21 2010

Sorry about the long wait.  One of my little ones has been quite sick and fussy, and as much as I enjoy this project, my kids come first, as is natural.

I’ll take this moment to say that I may be a bit sporadic over the next few days.  The final revisions of the book is due in ten days, and I’m making some changes based on some things I’ve found recently.  I’ll do my best, but if it seems like I’m shorter and less detailed than normal, that’s why.

I wrote last that I would talk about about the Crevalle’s last transit of Balabac Straits, which happened on May 8, 1944.  This is an important transit because when the Flier was ordered to go through Balabac at top speed, the Navy also sent detailed route that the Crevalle supposedly used.  There were no orders attached to this route, and according to the investigation, Admiral Christie and his staff included this information only as a helpful guide to get through, since, whenever Crevalle took soundings during the transit, it was over 100 fathoms deep, which was considered too deep for Japanese sea mines. (They were wrong, but that’s another story.)

So what happened?

Well, since Flier was lost, there had to be an investigation, and a lot of interesting things came out, which I was able to read about.  (You can too, if you like.  Just go to pg. 60 for the Investigation’s transcript).  For one thing, the Navy recorded in the transcripts the exact directions they gave as derived from Crevalle’s passing.  I could bore you with the whole thing, but why bother when I can plot it out on a map.

In this map, the track of the Crevalle on May 8 is in bright blue. The track of the Flier is in the customary red. Where that track ends in the lower left-hand corner is approximately where Flier was heading for on her last night. Had she suceeded, she would have been there a 2:30 am on the morning of 14 August

Now, during the investigation, Captain Crowley gave several reasons as to why they chose not to use that path.  To begin with, Crevalle approached from further north than Flier, and they had to get through the Strait more quickly than diverting that far north would have allowed.  Secondly, Crevalle passed much more closely to Roughton Reef than Crowley was comfortable with. Unlike modern charts, the charts there men were working with had few, if any soundings.  Roughton Reefs was a known hazard, but Comiran wasn’t as much.   Since Crowley wanted more space between his boat and the reef, and also wanted as much sea space around him as possible to give him the greatest amount of maneuvering room in case of small fishing or patrol vessels, he and his navigator Jim Liddell plotted a course closer to Comiran.  For safety, they would take continuous soundings so they could stay in the deep water.   Once past Comiran Island, they would meet up with the Crevalle’s track for the rest of the passage.  After all, the most dangerous part of the passage was still to come: passing down the coast of Balabac and beyond the southern tip.

Flier never made the conjunction with the Crevalle’s track.  She went down too early.  Just before she hit the mine, she took a sounding of 42 fathoms deep, too shallow for comfort.

It is just as likely that Flier hit a floating mine as well as a tethered mine, and that even if Flier had diverted enough to follow Crevalle’s track to the nth degree, she still might have hit a rogue mine.  As Al was to find out, those were quite common in this area.

Still, as I did research to find out what Crevalle was doing when she crossed the Balabac Straits, I found out a couple of interesting things:

1.) The directions the Navy gave Flier made it sound like Crevalle was crossing Balabac heading west like Flier, but she wasn’t: she was heading east on a special mission.

2.) So I had to work my way back through the directions cross-referencing the few indications in the Crevalle’s war patrol reports of her route through Balabac I discovered that the directions were not translated exactly: for example, at one point, Crevalle traveled due north, or 0 degrees True.  The correct translation of that if going in the opposite direction would be head 180 degrees True, or due south. The directions the Navy gave the Flier, however, record they should head 184 degrees true, or slightly west of south, not due south.

3.) Crevalle also went through the night of a full moon. Flier went though during a waning crescent.  The significance might not be much, but tides are stronger during the full and new phases of the moon, and depending on the tides when Crevalle passed near Roughton Reef, that tide might have been purchased Crevalle a few more feet of clearance than Flier would have.

Does all this nit picking really make a difference though?  Well, not really, since we’re discussing history, and sadly, no matter what we do, nothing will bring the Flier and her crew back.  If it was mine,  especially if is was a rogue mine, then there was no fault on anyone’s head, just bad luck.

But I found those instances quite fascinating and helped me figure out why the decisions to go through Balabac where they did were made.

Incidentally, Crevalle was never supposed to go though that strait.  On 6 May, her CO was called and informed that due to a very pressing rescue mission, her patrol was being terminated early, and she was being re-routed to Negros Island to pick up some refugees and some papers.  There were only supposed to be 25 refugees, but they ended up taking 40, and the package of Japanese papers.

Those papers held the Z Plan, the plan to eliminate the Allied Navy once and for all.  They had washed up onshore of a neighboring island after the plane that was carrying those plans crashed into the sea.  The story of how these plans were collected, given to the Crevalle, then RETURNED, is really quite fascinating.  It ended up being one of the greatest intelligence coups of WWII.  Enjoy!

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The Distant and Lost Graves

And now for something completely different... | Posted by Rebekah
May 29 2010

On Memorial Day Weekend, I thought I would take an opportunity to honor the men and women who have given their lives so that the rest of us can live in freedom.  From the original soldiers and rebels of the Revolutionary war, all of whom faced a torturous death if the war had been lost and they had been captured and charged as traitors (talk about courage of conviction!) to our modern men and women on numerous bases all over the world, not only keeping us safe, but helping those in need, rebuilding in places where nature or man have destroyed, or all the other innumerable jobs the military does without complaint…

Thank You.

One of the hardest things that the families of the Navy had to face in wartime was the likelihood that if their loved one lost his life aboard his vessel, or his vessel was destroyed, that they would not ever have a grave to visit and remember them by.  Only a little less difficult were those whose sons (and now daughters too) served in conflicts abroad and might be laid to rest in those lands rather than the family plot.

Today, with modern embalming and refrigeration techniques, as many bodies as possible are returned to their families in the States.

But during WWII, that was often not possible.

In the Navy, if a ship or submarine was lost, any men lost with the vessel were lost at sea, sometimes, with no records on either side to record where that may be.  If someone died aboard a vessel during WWII, they were often buried at sea with military rites.  The body would be sewn into a canvas sack, weighted, and slid over the side of the vessel during a formal ceremony.  Even a submarine would pause when it was safest to take care of their lost brothers.  In May 1942, Mike Harbin became the first gunfire casualty of the Submarine Force aboard the USS Silversides.  A round hit him in the head and killed him instantly.  Silversides was battling it out with a small boat at the time, and two more men took Mike’s body inside with them.  After the battle, Silversides left he area submerged, and several hours later, after the body had been prepared, and the men changed into the most formal attire they had, the crew went onto the deck and held a Navy funeral for their crewmate, before sliding his body overboard.  They recorded the latitude and longitude in the deck log that day.  But his family would never be able to visit the grave.

Providing the coordinates were accurate, this is the location of the burial at sea for Mike Harbin of USS Silversides. Japan is the closest country over 750 miles away.

USS Cobia also lost a man to enemy gunfire in 1945, Seaman Huston Ralph Clark Jr., who was buried at sea. This photograph was taken during his funeral on February 27, 1945, just before his body was committed to the depths.

For the land-based military, the Marines, Army and Army Air Force (during WWII, what would eventually become the US Air Force was a part of the Army.  The Air Force would be organized as an independent branch in 1947), the casualties would often be quickly buried in temporary cemeteries erected near the battlefield.

Following the conclusion of the war, the search for a permanent memorial began.  There were serious objections to all the temporary graveyards hastily created all over the Pacific Basin, so a new cemetery was sought.  in 1948, the Government of the Philippines granted the US the right to construct a cemetery on the former site of Fort McKinley, just south west of Manila.  A lot of grading and landscaping began to create a peaceful resting place for those lost in the Pacific.

The Cemetery as it appears from the air. The Chapel and Semi-circles are clearly seen in the center, as are the radiating bands of burials. Like all American military cemeteries abroad, this land was gifted to the United States in perpetuity, and is not taxed or charged any fees of any kind. It is American sovereign soil.

The next of kin for each man whose remains could be recovered were given four options for the final resting place of those remains: repatriation to the US for burial in a private cemetery; repatriation to the US for burial in a national cemetery (such as Arlington); or burial in an American Military Cemetery abroad which would be kept in perpetuity; or leaving them where they were found.  The next of kin had until December 31, 1951 to make that decision.  Approximately 40% of families requested that their dead be buried in the new Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.

In the end, the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial covered 152 beautifully landscaped acres, and became the largest American cemetery outside the United States honoring WWII dead.  Its 17,100 headstones mark the graves of 17,206 men: 16,434 Americans and 570 Filipinos who were serving with the US Military.

13, 434 headstones mark the graves of a single, identified individual.

3,644 headstones identify the remains of a single unidentified individual (unknowns)

6 headstones mark the graves of a group of 28 men whose remains could not be separated into individuals

16 headstones mark the graves of a group of 100 men whose remains could not be separated into individuals.

But for those men buried at sea, lost with their vessels, or, for whatever reason, the resting place of their remains is known only to God, the cemetery erected a double semicircle structure called “The Tablets of the Missing” .  These immense tablets record the names of 36,285 men whose remains are lost or have not been identified.  (It is more than possible that some of the remains buried under the “Unknown” marker are listed on the Tablets.)  The names of the men of the Flier and Robalo would be engraved here.

A photograph of the "Tablets of the Missing". On the column on the right, near the top of the photo, you can see a dark dot on the name "Creighton, John", indicating that his remains have been discovered and identified. Photo taken from Google Earth's Panoramio Photos

In all, a symbol of 53,491 souls who gave all.

The last of the re-locations and burials took place in 1960, and the cemetery was dedicated on December 8, 1960, the 19th anniversary of the attack on Manila.  (The attack on Manila actually took place about eight hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, but due to the International Date Line, it is recorded as happening on December 8, not December 7.)

Unlike a National Cemetery, where veterans and their families can be buried after a veteran’s passing whether he or she was on active duty or retired, died in the line of fire or of natural causes, the Manila Cemetery, like most of the military cemeteries abroad, is closed to further internments.  Family members of those buried there, or even those who fought alongside the men buried there cannot have their remains returned to Manila to rest with their comrades in arms.

That does not mean that there have not been burials and changes in the cemetery since 1960.

Any remains discovered in the Pacific theater and positively identified as belonging to an American military personnel from WWII are eligible for internment (though they are also eligible for repatriation to the states, just as if they had been found in WWII).

The Tablets of the Missing also have been slightly altered. Some of the names have a rosette attached to it, signifying that that serviceman’s remains have been found and his identity returned to him.

Many of these cemeteries became necessary starting with the Mexican-American war, the building of the Panama Canal, and the World Wars.  There are twenty-four of these world wide, all under the care of the American Battle Monuments Commission.

Starting with the Korean War, all remains of American military personnel were returned to America.

Rest in Peace.

Pamphlet about Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.

Frequently asked questions about Military Cemeteries abroad

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Flier Underway

And now for something completely different..., Where was Flier 66 years ago today? | Posted by Rebekah
Apr 30 2010

Sixty-six years ago today, Flier pulled away from Mare Island, passed under the Golden Gate bridge and left America behind. The people who waved her good-bye didn’t realize that for the vast majority of the people aboard, and the sub itself, that good-bye was permanent.

It would take nine days to get to Pearl Harbor, with Crowley testing his boat and crew the entire way, because like any submarine coming straight from the continental US, Flier was scheduled for two weeks of further training and provisioning before being sent off for their first real patrol once again.

*       *        *

As this story starts again, I’m finding that it’s sometimes difficult to write about.  As I’m getting to know the families of those who still patrol aboard the Flier, these men are becoming more real, and I can’t help but feel a touch depressed, since I know that this story, for one family already, and soon for 76 more, will have a tragic ending.

In talking with Al, I know that sometimes he felt he had to live a certain life to honor those who didn’t make it.  He gave to his family, his community, his employees.  I sometimes wonder if the other survivors felt the same way.  I only know what happened to four of the men:  Captain Crowley had a long and successful career in the Navy, Lt. Liddell founded a company that today employs hundreds, Baumgart became a police and fireman.  Where Miller, Howell, Tremaine and Russo ended up, I don’t know.

I hope, but re-living this journey 66 years later, I can honor these men’s memories and sacrifices.

*      *        *

In other news, in a few days, I’ll be heading out for a business trip to meet the family of one of the survivors to see photos, letters, and other items from Flier’s history.  I’m really excited to go, but due to safety and privacy reasons, I won’t say when where and who until it’s all over (and I won’t say who unless given permission!)  But as the story of the Flier unfolds, I hope to have some new images and things to share.

Finally, in regards to my post a week ago about USS Virginia returning to port and how the submarine squadrons are arranged, I received a note from Lt. Evans of Submarine Group Two who told me that  USS New Mexico will be assigned to Squadron 8 along with the Boise, the Newport News, and the Oklahoma City.

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It’s Official…Bring on the Women…and put out those cigarettes!

And now for something completely different... | Posted by Rebekah
Apr 29 2010

There have been two large developments with the Submarine Force recently!

The first is, cigarette smoking, something which, until now has been the domain for the individual captains of the various submarines, has officially been banned from all submarines from the higher ups.  For the smokers left on the submarines and their crewmates…good luck, God Bless and try not to kill each other while having to quit cold turkey in a stressful situation.  Remember, the enemy is outside the submarine!

There is actually an interesting history to this.  Smoking bans for inside the military bases, below decks on surface ships and inside heavy artillery like tanks began in 1994, predating the no-smoking ban in federal buildings by three years.  Sailors on surface ships were allowed to smoke out in the open air of the deck which of course raised the question of submarines:  There is no deck, and for months on end, there is no open or fresh air or air of any kind.  A submariner who loses his head and tries to get outside to get some will be generally tackled and, if necessary, shackled to their beds until they can be safely evacuated.

Seriously, I’m not joking.

So the smoking ban had a built-in loophole for submariners.  They could continue, to smoke at sea, though the biggest loophole of all still applied:  the CO could ban smoking on his boat if he wanted.

During WWII, it was very common for many people to smoke and several photographs taken of the interior of submarines show men smoking cigarettes or cigars while underway (Remember, this is before submarines could recycle air: the oxygen you had when you went down was all the oxygen you were going to have until you surfaced and could exchange air.)  Some non-smokers recall taking up the habit suddenly during depth charge attacks, others, giving it up entirely.  During a long depth charge attack, smoking might be banned because the burning matches and cigs would deplete the oxygen faster.  You knew you were really in trouble if you couldn’t LIGHT a match or cig because the oxygen was so low!

This photo, taken from inside the USS Silversides, shows men at leisure and cards inside the Crew's Mess. You can clearly see the cigarette hanging from the left-hand man's mouth. This photo was pulled from USS Silversides: An Illustrated Record of Silversides' War Patrol Record December 1941-August 1945 available from the Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum.

A couple decades later, following the introduction of the snorkel and several other technological achievements, submarines manufactured and recycled their own air, allowing them to stay under for months at a time.

Now this is not to say that every submariner smoked.  Many didn’t.  Above all, each submarine had a Commanding Officer whose word was just short of law when out at sea.  If the CO of a sub said there will be no smoking on this boat, or smoking will be confined to these compartments, or  anything else he wanted, that was that. (The  Florida apparently has a rule that only three people can smoke at a time.  There is occasionally a line for smokes)  So by exempting submarines, the Navy was really allowing the COs of each boat to continue to make that decision for themselves and their crews.

No longer.  Starting at New Year Day 2011, all subs are smoke free, all the time.  One of the factors that went into this decision was a study done on non-smoking submariners in 2009.  They were testing for nicotine in their systems before deployment and after.  Very few had nicotine in their systems before their deployment, all had it in their systems after, despite the limited times and areas their fellow smokers were permitted to smoke.  The air scrubbers and filters that removed the smoke and cooking smells were not apparently removing the nicotine.  So on behalf of the nearly 60% of non-smoking submariners, the other 40% have been requested to comply with the Navy’s “no smoking below decks” rule, even if their deck is underwater for weeks at a time.  (The article I’m referencing and will link to at the end stresses that “smoker” in this case refers to people who smoke every day, as opposed to those who have the occasional cigar or smokeless tobacco)

The reason the ban does not go into effect for another eight months is to allow those sailors who need to quit time to do so and physically adjust.  Submarine sailors who have already quit have been enlisted as mentors to those who are trying, and Corpsmen anticipate stocking up on nicotine gum and patches.  Some COs are more severely limiting where and when smokers can light up in an effort to gradually wean their men off nicotine.

The other piece of news is that women, beginning in 2012, will be serving on submarines.  No one in Congress wanted to say anything for or against it during the waiting period, so it is now official.

Starting on the large Trident Missile Submarines (the largest of the submarines, the Ohio-class) three women will be assigned to each submarine together.  The reason is a junior officer’s cabin sleeps three, so all three women would share sleeping and changing space, helping with the privacy issues.  Those women would include a female senior officer as well as two juniors.  A reversible sign on the officer’s bathroom would help with the privacy issues in the head.  (For all you civilians, that means bathroom).

This still doesn’t solve issues with privacy and security in the enlisted men’s quarters, which will require physical alterations, and some careful thought on how to accomplish that.

This leaves the thorny issue the Navy and submariners have to deal with when it comes to harassment and potential health problems, particularly reproductive problems.  The Navy does not want to be responsible for the loss of reproductive capabilities of any personnel, and submariners are exposed to more things (recycled air, increased and constant pressure, lack of sunlight and the associated health benefits for long periods and radiation exposure (though that is a very minor issue)) than surface sailors.

Women have been on modern submarines before for days at a time: but usually civilian engineers or naval personnel aboard for a very specific and limited mission.  The long term effectiveness and problems will show themselves eventually.

Some of the foreseen problems might end up being overblown, while some serious problems might end up being a surprise.  Only time will tell how this will play out, but submariners have always taken pride in their professionalism.  That professionalism will hopefully smooth this new transition.

For more on the development of women in the military, you can read my previous post here.
For more on the Smoking Ban

More on how women will be transitioned onto submarines

A study the Navy did about the feasibility or the adjustments needed to have women on submarines

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BREAKING: New Trailer for Dive Detectives

And now for something completely different..., Where was Flier 66 years ago today? | Posted by Rebekah
Apr 20 2010

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While those of us in America wait with baited breath, I hope to offer something in the interim.  This trailer comes from the British National Geographic website, and you can get a few more glimpses of the damage done to the Flier and the wreck itself.

Enjoy!

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Welcome Back Virginia!

And now for something completely different... | Posted by Rebekah
Apr 14 2010

As we all get ready for the inevitable tax day tomorrow, (I’m so proud of myself, mine are already done!…but then again, I had someone else do them…;)  ) on the submarine front, there is, at least, bright news.

The USS Virginia, in commission since 2004 has returned to her home port of Groton Connecticut, having completed her first six-month tour.  She left the US on October 15 last year, and made port calls in Spain, Greece, United Arab Emirates, and Turkey.

USS Virginia at sea

Now she is no longer a new boat, but rather, a workhorse of Submarine Squadron 4, a part of Submarine Group 2, stationed on America’s  Northeast Coast.

So what is Submarine Group 2?   It is the group of submarines based out of Groton Connecticut, and consists of five squadrons:  Squadrons 2, 4, 6, 8, and development squadron 12.  Here’s who’s in that group:

SUBMARINE GROUP 2

PCU Missouri (SSN 780)  (PCU means Pre-Commissioned Unit.  Once commissioned, it will change to “USS”)
PCU California (SSN 781)

Submarine Squadron 2

USS Dallas (SSN 700)
USS Philadelphia (SSN 690)
USS Pittsburgh (SSN 720)
USS Providence (SSN 719)
USS Springfield (SSN 761)

Submarine Squadron 4


USS Miami (SSN 755)
USS Hartford (SSN 768)
USS Virginia (SSN 774) (There’s the new girl)
USS North Carolina (SSN 777)
USS New Hampshire (SSN 778)

Submarine Squadron 6


USS Albany (SSN 753)
USS Norfolk (SSN 714)
USS Scranton (SSN 756)
USS Montpelier (SSN 765)

Submarine Squadron 8


USS Boise (SSN 764)
USS Newport News (SSN 750)
USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723)

Submarine Development Squadron 12


USS Annapolis (SSN 760)
USS Alexandria (SSN 757)
USS Memphis (SSN 691)
USS San Juan (SSN 751)
USS Toledo (SSN 769)

The USS New Mexico is also a part of Submarine Group 2, but I was unable to find out what Squadron she’s been assigned to.

For more fun, believe it or not, Submarine Group 2 has a Facebook Page and Twitter Feed.

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Medicine without Doctors or Nurses…but with ingenuity

And now for something completely different... | Posted by Rebekah
Apr 13 2010

Continuing on a previous post (See “No Atheists in Foxholes…or underwater?) Submarines don’t have any clergy aboard, or Doctors or Nurses.  Someone who is so highly trained is too valuable to place on a submarine, or so the theory goes.

Yet a submarine is a dangerous place, especially in WWII when a submarine could be under attack and people could suffer deep cuts, broken bones or other serious injuries, and that doesn’t include diseases that  could easily sweep through such a combined space.

Enter the Pharmacist’s Mate.  These men, fondly known as “Doc”, are trained to deal with first aid, routine and basic medicine, and they’re really good in an emergency.  A common analogy is they’re trained in a similar manner to paramedics.  They can handle most things well, but if something is serious, they will keep you alive and stable until a doctor or nurse can take over.

During WWII, the most famous Pharmacist Mates were probably Wheeler Lipes on the Seadragon, Harry Roby on the Grayling, and Thomas Moore on the Silversides.  All three of these men did something that was not expected of a Doc: They performed surgery   a patrolling submarine.  The same surgery actually, an Appendectomy.

Starting on September 11, 1942, with the Seadragon and ending on December 23, 1942 on the Silversides, a crewman on each submarine came down with acute appendicitis, and there was no one nearby enough to transfer the crewman before the likely rupture of the appendix.  Each Doc had scalpels and sutures and sulpha drugs for fighting infection, along with anesthetic and ether, and each rigged the rest of the tools he needed from the rest of the tools on their boats.  (Moore on Silversides used bent spoons as retractors.)

A submarine is NOT a sterile environment, and beside the Doc, few on board would have medical training.

On Silversides, a fireman named George Platter came down with appendicitis a few days before Christmas.  Captain Creed Burlingame and Moore studied Platter for several hours.  Moore had several months of nurse training and had assisted in many appendectomies at the Naval Hospital in San Diego, and as he watched Platter, he worried that the case wouldn’t resolve itself.  Finally, he told Burlingame that they would have to turn around or do an appendectomy.  Burlingame checked every schedule he could looking for someone who would have the proper medical equipment aboard, or a submarine headed back to port, but there was no one, and after a discussion with Platter (who was willing to do anything at this point), Moore was given the green light to operate.

The Silversides Wardroom, as it appears today. The fixtures, including three-quarters of the table, are original to the boat. This is the table the surgery took place on.

The Wardroom was the best room for the job: small, mostly covered in stainless steel, and, though cramped, the easiest to clean and keep isolated from the rest of the boat during the procedure.  The table wasn’t long enough for Platter’s frame, so an ironing board had to be fixed to the end to support his feet.  The stewards scrubbed the room, removed the light fixture globes, cleaned and inserted the brightest bulbs aboard (150 watts) into the sockets.  The room would get very hot, very quickly.

Silversides, despite the fact she only had a partial charge on her batteries, dove to 150 feet deep to keep the boat at an even keel for the surgery.

For four hours, the surgery continued, Moore leading a team of five assistants.  When he found the appendix, it was grotesquely swollen and gangrenous.  As he slowly and carefully cut it away, men would stop by for the latest update on the surgery to pass on to the anxious crew.

The Silversides Appendectomy, as photographed by XO Roy Davenport, who was standing next to the paitent's head. Thomas Moore is the dark-haired bearded man in the T-shirt.

Suddenly, Moore, who had been given a spinal anesthetic, said “I can wiggle my toes now,” and moments later, could feel the surgery taking place inside him.  He was quickly put back under using a can of ether, but the fumes filled the wardroom and forward part of the Officer’s Country.  (And as anyone who has worked with ether knows, it’s exteremly flammable as well…and Officer’s Country sits on top of one of the boat’s giant wet-cell batteries!)

Finally, the surgery was done and Platter was laid on the Wardroom’s only bunk to recover. Silversides, needing to charge her batteries, rose to the surface.  An hour later, a Japanese destroyer found them, and chased them down, dropping dozens of depth charges when Silversides tried to escape to the depths.  One of the charges blew so closely to Silversides, Platter was nearly thrown from his bunk, but Moore, ever watchful (and worried sick Platter wouldn’t survive) caught him.

Despite the attack, and the jury rigged hospital (which ended up including a custom made bedpan–the assigned one being used as an oil pan in the engine room) Platter was on the mend and back on duty.  When Silversides returned to port, the story quickly made waves, and the photographs XO Roy Davenport took during the procedure guaranteed the surgery became the most famous one during the war.

As it turned out, most Appendicitis problems will cure themselves with proper care, so the Navy quickly indocrinated the upcoming Submarine Officers and Pharmacist’s Mates to NEVER DO SURGERY UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.  The other two Pharmacist Mates that performed the surgeries, like Moore,  had assisted on many other surgeries prior to entering the Submarine Force, and the Navy worried that incoming Docs, who may not be as thoroughly trained may be lulled into a false sense of ease of surgery.

Despite that door being forcibly closed, sub Docs faced a wide and dizzying array of medical problems that needed attention: communicable diseases, diagnosis of everything from the cold and flu, to broken bones, internal injuries, gunshot wounds, ruptured eardrums, and even, at times, making the call, with the CO, to terminate the patrol early due to illness of the crew.  In addition to their own crew, a submarine’s Doc might have to treat a rescued pilot or sailor and even Prisoners of War who didn’t speak English.

On September 12-13, 1944, the USS Sealion, together with the Queenfish, Barb and Growler, sank the Rukuyo Maru, full of Allied POW's. The four submarines were able to pick up 141 survivors between them. Above, you can see the survivors being pulled out of the debris covered water, below, they are treated for malnourishment and exposure.

When the Flier grounded at Midway, Waite Daggy was smashed against the conning tower lacerating his side and jaw, breaking his jaw and losing several teeth, all of which the Doc aboard had to administer first aid before he could be transferred to Midway’s Hospital.  Joseph Lia,  a torpedoman, tied himself to a lifeline and threw himself overboard after James Peder Cahl, but was quickly swept back to the boat and hauled aboard by Kenneth Gwinn and Herbert Beahr.  Doc checked him out for any injuries and exposure.    During her second patrol, Flier’s Doc was Peter Adolph Gaideczka, and may have been the Doc aboard for Midway.

Flier's Doc on her second patrol: Peter Gaideczka, from Watervliet, New York.

Now  Independent Duty Corpsman, these men still serve aboard submarines, offering the medical attention that the men need.  Major surgery still very discouraged, a submariner that needs medical attention beyond what can be found aboard is evacuated off (sometimes by helicopter!) to the nearest medical facility.  Due to this potential breech in stealth, the health of submariners is obsessively monitored prior to leaving port.  Off the record though, I’ve been told by nuc sub vets that modern Corpsmen are at times just as creative and daring as their predecessors.

More information on Modern Independent Duty Corpsmen

Fascinating report detailing what Pharmacist’s Mates came up against during WWII War Patrols

Article about the first Appendectomy on a submarine

Article about the development of the hospital corpsmen, mentioning the appendectomies.

The best account for the Silversides appendectomy is found in Robert Trumbull’s book “Silversides”.  The only submarine book written during WWII  (but held for publication by the Navy until just before the war’s end).  It is difficult to find, but can be ordered for $19.95 through Silversides museum gift shop (call 231-755-1230) or its publisher Knutson & Co.

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No Athiests in Foxholes…or underwater?

And now for something completely different... | Posted by Rebekah
Apr 06 2010

The Submarine Service is dangerous.  No one has ever debated that.  Well, almost never.

In fact, early in the 20th century, submarine duty was considered safe shore duty and submariners were paid twenty-five percent LESS than those on surface ships.

But in 1905, at the invitation of the Captain and crew of the USS Plunger (SS-2), President Theodore Roosevelt spent about four hours aboard.  They dove, surfaced, porpoised and tooled around quietly beneath the storm tossed Atlantic, and even operated with the lights out, much to the delight of Roosevelt, who said, “Never in my life have I had such a diverting day, nor can I recall having so much enjoyment in so few hours as today.”

But he quickly saw that submariners, far from having a safe shore patrol duty, were, in fact, highly trained professionals who were in a dangerous job.  Being Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces has its advantages.  He raised the submariners pay, and gave them an additional dollar per day if the submarine spent any part of the day underway while submerged.  (This increased the rate of diving practice very quickly!).

An amusing cartoon from a 1905 paper talking about Roosevelt's experience on Plunger. The Plunger herself was a very small boat, holding only 7 crewmen. Taken from: www.goatlocker.org/plunger/ss-2.htm

Submarines, however, are so dangerous, that some people who are routinely assigned to bases and ships are left off of submarines, and the submariners must make do.

Two of these positions are the Chaplain and Doctor (or even nurse).  We’ll cover the medicos later.

Chaplains, regardless of the military affiliation, are valued members of the military, and called upon to offer guidance, counseling, conduct religious services, including marriages, funerals, and other religious rites.  (The most famous fictional chaplain is probably Father Mulcahy of MASH television show)  The position has been recorded as far back as the 1770′s.  Currently, the United States Navy has chaplains representing the Christian (Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant), Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist faiths.

The Navy also had a strong tradition of holding religious services every Sunday for those interested to attend.

While there are chaplains assigned to surface ships, there are none on a submarine. So what to do?

During WWII, for regular services, many submarines would have men who would agree to lead the worship for those who wished to attend.  For Example, aboard the Silversides, the Executive Officer, Roy Davenport, a Christian Scientist, would lead services in the Forward Torpedo Room for their men.  (He later became known as the “praying skipper” and credited his prayers and faith with Silversides and his later commands, Haddock and Trepang surviving the war.  He even turned out to be the most decorated Naval Officer of WWII who didn’t win a Medal of Honor, having been awarded FIVE Navy Crosses!)  Other submarines would use the Mess Hall, the common area of the submarine.

An example of a church service lead by a common sailor, held in the After Torpedo Room, taken in the Spring of 1945. Sadly, most of the men in this photograph were lost when Bullhead went down near Lombok Straits ca. August 6, 1945.

Aboard a submarine, sadly, the only real service that might happen, would be a funeral, and usually, the Commanding Officer or Executive Officer would pray and conduct the services.  Sometimes, for holidays such as Christmas or Easter, or the Fourth of July (religious holidays weren’t the only ones celebrated!) the kitchen would also pitch in with special meals and treats.  Alcohol, however, was always strictly prohibited…officially.  Though strictly NEVER on duty.

Today, the tradition continues, though with specially trained lay ministers, meaning people who are trained to hold religious observances and services, but do not have the Master’s Degree and theological training that the military requires for its chaplains.

It takes a labor of love to volunteer to go above and beyond what your title is and minister to your fellow crewmen, but these lay ministers continue to volunteer for the good of their crews.

For more information on Roosevelt’s dive on the Plunger

More information about the role of the modern lay minister on submarines

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Welcome USS New Mexico (SSN-779)

And now for something completely different... | Posted by Rebekah
Mar 27 2010

Today is the commissioning of the newest Virginia Class submarine in the United States Navy, USS New Mexico.

A  submarine generally goes through four significant ceremonies in its life:  keel laying, launching, commissioning and decommissioning.   (There are sometimes other ceremonies like a christening or a re-launch after an overhaul, but I digress) Commissioning happens between a year and two years after launching.  Between these ceremonies, the submarine is undergoing its sea trials, a series of tests to make sure that the submarine is up to Navy standards.

Until it is a commissioned submarine, it is NOT an official Naval Vessel (this holds true not only for the US Navy, the many navies of the world.)  This is why, though the submarine Turtle fought in the Revolutionary War, and the submarine Alligator was going to fight in the Civil War, neither are rightfully considered naval vessels because neither one was ever commissioned.   Whether the CSS Hunley could count is an interesting question.  I can’t find any evidence that she was formally commissioned, putting her in the same boat as the other two, but let’s face it, at the time, the Hunley was not part of the United States Navy, (she was part of the other side) and she was sunk by the time the two became one again.

A publicity photo for the USS New Mexico underway at her sea trials.

The USS New Mexico joins her sisters Virginia, Texas, Hawaii, North Carolina and New Hampshire.  These boats are designed not only for war, but a multitude of assignments virtually anywhere in the world.  They carry around 135 men, and a lot of their specifications (speed, test depth, capabilities) are top secret.    Surprisingly enough, they are not much bigger than their WWII sisters, the Gato/Balao/Tench boats,  being only 65 feet longer and 8 feet wider, but they carry three decks instead of two and almost twice the men aboard. Each one is covered in a rubberized paint that helps deflect sound waves from sonar making them harder to find, and has a whole host of variations and possibilities built in.

Two more Virginia Class boats are under construction (the Missouri and California) and the Mississippi,Minnesota, North Dakota, and John Warner have been awarded to their builders and named.  A total of 30 Virginia Class submarines are planned and budgeted for, phasing out the Los Angeles Class boats (which have been in commission starting in 1972) completely.  This will leave the Ohios, Seawolfs and Virginias the American submarines on the high seas, a total of 51 when all is said and done.  (Of course with the addition of the New Mexico, there are approximately 72 submarines in the active Navy right now…)

Fascinating look inside a Virginia Class Submarine (at least what’s declassified)

Photos from today’s commissioning Ceremony

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Farewell Seawolf I

And now for something completely different..., Where was Flier 66 years ago today? | Posted by Rebekah
Mar 13 2010

While the Flier is still up on blocks in Mare Island and Redfin and Robalo patrol outside Fremantle waiting for the invasion that will never come, we’ll step back a little bit in time to acknowledge another lost submarine, the first US Submarine Seawolf, more commonly known as H-1.

The Seawolf was laid down in 1911 and renamed while still under construction to USS H-1.  H for the seventh class of submarines, and 1 because she was the first submarine in that class.  She was commissioned in 1913 and her eight sisters quickly followed.

They served for seven years, including guarding the East Coast during WWI.

In the winter of 1920, the H-1, H-2, and H-3 were sent from New London to California via the Panama Canal.  Once clear, they steamed north, but on March 12,  the H-1 grounded on a shoal near Santa Margarita Island off Baja California.

The crew had to abandon ship and swim to safety.  Some headed to shore, some were picked up by the H-2 and H-3, who tried to help as many as possible.  Of the crew of twenty-five,  four men, M.S. Delarmarine, H.M. Gillef, Joesph Kaufman, and H-1′s Commanding Officer James Reid never made it to safety.

The H-1 remained hard aground until the Repair Ship Vestal (later attacked and damaged in Pearl Harbor) pulled her free.  She must has sustained significant damage, because 45 minutes later, she rested on the bottom of the ocean in 50 feet of water.

Following WWI, the Navy was awarded the unsunk German U-Boats, and those re-wrote the American submarine blueprints, leading to what would become the Fleet Submarine of WWII.  These boats were being built and launched in 1920, so the loss of an old boat like the H-1, wasn’t considered important enough to salvage, despite the shallow depth.  She was abandoned.

Her wreck was discovered in 1992, though I have been unable to find any photos of her hulk.

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