USS ''Snook'' (SS-279), a
''Gato''-class submarine
A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
, was the first ship of the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
to be named for the
common snook
The common snook (''Centropomus undecimalis'') is a species of marine fish in the family Centropomidae of the order Perciformes. The common snook is also known as the sergeant fish or robalo. It was originally assigned to the sciaenid genus ...
, an Atlantic
marine
Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean.
Marine or marines may refer to:
Ocean
* Maritime (disambiguation)
* Marine art
* Marine biology
* Marine debris
* Marine habitats
* Marine life
* Marine pollution
Military
* ...
fish that is bluish-gray above and silvery below a black lateral line.
''Snooks keel was laid down by the
Portsmouth Navy Yard
The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard in Kittery on the southern boundary of Maine near the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Founded in 1800, PNS is U.S. Navy's oldest continuou ...
in
Kittery, Maine
Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals. The southernmost town in t ...
on 17 April 1942. She was
launched on 15 August 1942 sponsored by Mrs. Audrey Emanuel Dempsey, wife of Lieutenant James C. Dempsey who had been awarded the
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...
for heroism as commanding officer of the submarine
''S-27'', and
commissioned on 24 October 1942.
Patrols
First patrol
After shakedown training off the
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
coast, ''Snook'' departed New London on 3 March 1943 and set sail for the Pacific. Following a 12-day stopover at
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
, the submarine put to sea on 11 April and headed for the
Yellow Sea
The Yellow Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. It is one of four seas named after common colour terms ...
and
East China Sea
The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...
for her first war patrol. Upon completion of
mine planting in the
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
area, ''Snook'' continued on up the coast of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
to the
Yellow Sea
The Yellow Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. It is one of four seas named after common colour terms ...
. On the afternoon of 5 May, she sighted two freighters standing out of
Dairen
Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on the ...
and took up the chase. She trailed both until after nightfall, then fired a spread of three
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...
es that quickly sank ''Kinko Maru''. The lead freighter continued, unaware of the attack, until someone on the sinking ship sounded a whistle. At that point, the freighter began a series of frantic maneuvers to dodge two of ''Snook'''s torpedoes, then opened fire with her guns, forcing the submarine to withdraw out of range, returning shortly after and firing three torpedoes, one of which hit ''Daifuku Maru'' amidships and sank her. ''Snook'' then resumed patrol.
Early on the morning of 7 May, ''Snook'' began quickly closing in on a convoy. Upon overtaking the enemy cargo ships, she launched four torpedoes, followed by three others five minutes later. The 4,363-ton cargo ship ''Hosei Maru'' was destroyed and several other ships possibly damaged. After destroying two
armed trawlers in actions on 13 May and 16 May, ''Snook'' terminated her first patrol at
Midway Island
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
on 23 May.
Second patrol
''Snook'' set sail from
Midway Island
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
for her second war patrol on 9 June and headed for the waters off the
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yonaguni ...
. In the morning twilight of 24 June, the submarine closed on a six-ship
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
escorted by two
destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
s, launched two torpedoes at a large
tanker, and heard two hits as she went deep and rigged for
silent running
''Silent Running'' is a 1972 American environmental-themed apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic science fiction film. It is the directorial debut of Douglas Trumbull, and stars Bruce Dern, Cliff Potts, Ron Rifkin, and Jesse ...
to avoid the patrolling escorts. Coming back up to periscope depth, she found a
destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
guarding the crippled ship and was prevented from a second try by overhead aircraft.
Shortly before midnight on 3 July ''Snook'' made
radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...
contact with another enemy convoy. Early the following morning, she fired a spread of six
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...
es, sinking cargo ships ''Koki Maru'' and ''Liverpool Maru'' and severely damaging ''Atlantic Maru''. ''Snook'' returned to
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
from her second patrol on 18 July.
Third patrol
''Snook'' left
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
for her third war patrol on 18 August and arrived off
Marcus Island
, also known as Marcus Island, is an isolated Japanese coral atoll in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, located some southeast of Tokyo and east of the closest Japanese island, South Iwo Jima of the Ogasawara Islands, and nearly on a straight line ...
on 30 August to take reconnaissance photographs and stand lifeguard duty for the carrier air strikes of 1 September. Following the air strikes, the submarine resumed patrol and headed for the
East China Sea
The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...
where, in the early morning darkness of 13 September, she torpedoed and sank the 9,650-ton transport ''Yamato Maru''. On 22 September, ''Snook'' intercepted and sank 715-ton Japanese cargo ship ''Katsurahama Maru'' departing from
Dairen
Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on the ...
. On September 29, the submarine conducted a surface attack on a 500 ton vessel. The vessel was damaged and as the submarine moved closer to finish it off, returned fire was received. Four of the submarine's crew members were injured. The submarine turned away at high speed and the vessel was last seen settling in the water. The submarine terminated her third patrol at
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
on 8 October.
Fourth patrol
''Snook'' spent her fourth war patrol in a
coordinated attack group with sister ships and in the waters off the
Mariana Islands
The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...
. On 29 November, the submarine sank the passenger-cargo ship with four torpedo hits, and the cargo ship ''Shiganoura Maru'', as well as damaging an escort ship. ''Snook'' returned to
Midway Island
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
on 7 December and was routed on to
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
.
Fifth patrol
On 6 January 1944, ''Snook'' cleared
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
and headed for the western coast of
Kyūshū
is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...
and her fifth war patrol. While off the
Bonin Islands
The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic readi ...
on 23 January, the submarine torpedoed and sank the 3,120-ton converted gunboat ''
Magane Maru''. On 8 February, she attacked a 13-ship convoy, firing a spread of four torpedoes for three hits before diving to evade the escort ships. In this action, she sank the troopship
''Lima Maru'', with the massive loss of life of 2,765 dead,(the 11th worst loss of life by
ship sunk by a submarine in history), and heavily damaged the freighter ''Shiranesan Maru''. On 14 February, she quickly sank freighter ''Nittoku Maru'', with one
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...
hit amidships and, on the following day, sank cargo ship ''Hoshi Maru Number Two''. On 23 February, while returning to
Midway Island
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
, she spotted an enemy convoy eight miles away, made a daring approach through a screen of 11 enemy escort ships, and fired five torpedoes, with two hits which sank the passenger-cargo ship, ''Koyo Maru''. The submarine terminated her fifth patrol at
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
on 6 March and continued to
Hunters Point Navy Yard
The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city.
Originally, Hunters Point was a commercial shipyard established i ...
for a major overhaul.
Sixth patrol
On her sixth patrol ''Snook'' attacked and missed two freighters on 12 July, but found no other worthwhile targets, and returned to
Midway Island
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
on 14 August.
Seventh patrol
''Snook'''s seventh war patrol was conducted in
Luzon Strait
The Luzon Strait (Tagalog: ''Kipot ng Luzon'', ) is the strait between Taiwan and Luzon island of the Philippines. The strait thereby connects the Philippine Sea to the South China Sea in the western Pacific Ocean.
This body of water is an im ...
and the
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...
. After stopping at
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
for repairs from 25 September to 4 October the submarine continued her patrol and contacted an enemy convoy on 23 October. She sank passenger-cargo ship ''Shinsei Maru Number 1'', then evaded two escorts and resumed the chase, sinking the tanker ''Kikusui Maru'' with a torpedo which disintegrated the entire aft end. After again escaping the escorts, ''Snook'' returned and fired five bow torpedoes, sinking cargo ship, or "
hell ship
A hell ship is a ship with extremely inhumane living conditions or with a reputation for cruelty among the crew. It now generally refers to the ships used by the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army to transport Allied prisoners of ...
", , killing about 1,773 American prisoners of war (the 23rd worst loss of life by
ship sunk by a submarine in history), one of the greatest losses of life in American maritime history. After rescuing a downed airman on 3 November, the submarine returned to
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
on 18 November.
Eighth patrol
''Snook'''s eighth war patrol was conducted off the
Kuril Islands
The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the ...
from 25 December 1944 to 17 February 1945. Her only sightings during this patrol were two friendly
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
vessels and a momentary contact with a small patrol craft.
Final patrol
''Snook'' was lost while conducting her ninth war patrol, in the
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...
and
Luzon Strait
The Luzon Strait (Tagalog: ''Kipot ng Luzon'', ) is the strait between Taiwan and Luzon island of the Philippines. The strait thereby connects the Philippine Sea to the South China Sea in the western Pacific Ocean.
This body of water is an im ...
. On 8 April, she reported her position to submarine and when she did not acknowledge messages sent from ''Tigrone'' the next day, it was presumed that she had headed toward Luzon Strait. On 12 April, she was ordered to take lifeguard station in the vicinity of
Sakishima Gunto
The (or 先島群島, ''Sakishima-guntō'') ( Okinawan: ''Sachishima'', Miyako: ''Saksїzїma'', Yaeyama: ''Sakїzїma'', Yonaguni: ''Satichima'') are an archipelago located at the southernmost end of the Japanese Archipelago. They are part o ...
in support of British carrier air strikes. On 20 April, the commander of the British carrier task force reported that he had a plane down in ''Snook''s assigned area, and that he could not contact the submarine by radio. ''Snook'' was ordered to search the area and to acknowledge the order. When she failed to make a transmission, submarine was sent to make the search and rendezvous with ''Snook''. Although ''Bang'' arrived and rescued the downed aviators, she saw no sign of the missing submarine; on 16 May, ''Snook'' was presumed lost due to unknown causes. It is believed that she was sunk by kaibokans , ''CD-8, CD-32'' and ''CD-52''. It has also been suggested that ''Snook'' may have been lost in combat with one of five Japanese submarines which were also lost in April–May 1945. One candidate is the
Japanese submarine ''I-56'' (
type B3) but it is just a hypothesis because it is not confirmed by a single Japanese source.
''Snook'' was credited with sinking 17 enemy vessels in her two and one-half years of active service. She earned seven
battle star
A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...
s for
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
service.
Possible discovery
The actual whereabouts of ''Snook'' may have been discovered during a deep-sea dive in 1995. The possibility exists that a U.S. submarine lies in about of water off the coast of
Iriomote Island
is the largest of the Yaeyama Islands of Japan, and the second largest in Okinawa Prefecture after Okinawa Island itself.
The island has an area of and a 2005 population of 2,347. The island does not have an airstrip, and most visitors — ov ...
, the far southwest island in the
Okinawa
is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi).
Naha is the capital and largest city ...
chain. During operations with an Okinawan company using a U.S. made "SCORPIO" ROV in 1995, a group of divers encountered a sonar contact with what appeared to be a metal structure, about in girth and about in length (exposed) at roughly an angle of 20-30 degrees. The SONAR image of a large unexpected obstruction to the operations prompted the divers to command evasive maneuvers and avoid the area for the safety of the ROV.
[ ]
The divers, thinking they would have another opportunity to work in the area at a later date, left the area and never returned to that site. Their ROV was lost in 1997 off
Yonaguni Island
, one of the Yaeyama Islands, is the westernmost inhabited island of Japan, lying from the east coast of Taiwan, between the East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean proper. The island is administered as the town of Yonaguni, Yaeyama Gun, Okinawa ...
, the last island belonging to the Okinawa chain off the east coast of Taiwan. They were fairly certain that the object was a submarine, and quite possibly the ''Snook''. No further dives in the area were ever attempted.
See also
*
List of most successful American submarines in World War II
References
External links
Read the book about the USS Snook submarine "Final Dive" by Rick Cline
history.navy.mil: USS ''Snook''hazegray.org: USS ''Snook''Submarine books store
{{DEFAULTSORT:Snook (SS-279)
Gato-class submarines
World War II submarines of the United States
Lost submarines of the United States
Missing submarines of World War II
World War II shipwrecks in the Philippine Sea
Ships built in Kittery, Maine
1942 ships
Ships lost with all hands
Maritime incidents in April 1945
Submarines sunk by Japanese warships