USSGrouper

USSGrouper(SS/SSK/AGSS-214),aGato-classsubmarine,was the only ship of theUnited States Navyto be named for thegrouper.

History
United States
Builder	Electric Boat Company,Groton, Connecticut
Laid down	28 December 1940
Launched	27 October 1941
Sponsored by	Mrs. Albert F. Church
Commissioned	12 February 1942
Decommissioned	2 December 1968
Stricken	2 December 1968
Honors and awards	10 ×battle stars Navy E Ribbon
Fate	Sold for scrap, 11 August 1970
General characteristics
Class and type	Gato-classdiesel-electricsubmarine
Displacement	1,525 long tons (1,549 t) surfaced 2,424 long tons (2,463 t) submerged
Length	311 ft 9 in (95.02 m)
Beam	27 ft 3 in (8.31 m)
Draft	17 ft (5.2 m) maximum
Propulsion	4 ×General MotorsModel 16-248V16Diesel enginesdrivingelectric generators 2 × 126-cellSargobatteries 4 × high-speedGeneral Electricelectric motorswithreduction gears two propellers 5,400shp(4.0MW) surfaced 2,740 shp (2.0 MW) submerged
Speed	21 knots (39 km/h) surfaced 9 kn (17 km/h) submerged
Range	11,000nautical miles(20,000 km) surfaced at 10 kn (19 km/h)
Endurance	48 hours at 2 kn (4 km/h) submerged 75 days on patrol
Test depth	300 ft (90 m)
Complement	6 officers, 54 enlisted
Armament	10 × 21-inch (533 mm)torpedotubes 6 forward, 4 aft 24 torpedoes 1 × 3-inch (76 mm) / 50caliberdeck gun Bofors 40 mmandOerlikon 20 mmcannon

Construction and commissioning

Grouperwaslaunchedby theElectric Boat CompanyatGroton,Connecticut,on 27 October 1941, sponsored by Mrs. Albert F. Church, andcommissionedatNew Londonon 12 February 1942, withLieutenant CommanderC. E. Duke in command.

1942

After shakedown inLong Island Sound,Groupersailed forPearl Harboron 30 March 1942 to join thePacific Submarine Force,which was to play havoc onJapaneseshipping. Before departing for her first war patrol,Grouperwas assigned to the submarine screen which ringed the area as the American and Japanese fleets clashed in the decisiveBattle of Midway.Patrolling the fringe of the fighting on 4 June,Groupersighted two burning enemyaircraft carriers,but could not close for attack because of heavy air cover. On that day, she was strafed by fighter planes and driven deep in a series of aircraft and destroyer attacks which saw over 170 depth charges and bombs dropped on the novice submarine.

The next day, as the battle still raged,Groupercrash-dived to avoid enemy bombers. She then put in at Midway for three days for fuel and provisions before sailing on her first war patrol on 12 June. She torpedoed and damaged two Japanesemaru(civilian) ships before returning to Pearl Harbor on 30 July.

On her second patrol (28 August – 9 October),Grouperunder the command ofRob Roy McGregorsank two freighters,Tone Maruon 21 September andLisbon Maruon 1 October. It was later learned thatLisbon Maruwas carrying 1800BritishPOWsfromHong Kong;over 800 died in the sinking.

On her third patrol (12 November – 31 December) toBrisbane, Australia,on 17 December, she encountered and sankBandoeng Maru,a passenger-freighter headed for theSolomon Islandswith troop reinforcements.

1943

During her fourth war patrol (21 January – 18 March 1943),Grouperrescued an aviator who had been stranded on Rengi Island, nearRob Roy Islandin theSolomons,for several days; she also located several key Japaneseradarinstallations in theSolomon Islands.On 4 February 1943, she penetrated between the two columns of a Japaneseconvoyand had just achieved a firing solution on adestroyerat a range of 1,500 yards (1,372 m) whenAlliedaircraft arrived and beganbombingtheconvoy,both prompting her target to make a radical course change that spoiled her attack and endangeringGrouperherself.Japanese aircraft intervened, resulting in a largedogfightoverGrouper's position.With the Japanese ships and aircraft on high alert,Grouperwent deep and lost her opportunity to attack the convoy.

Grouper's next four patrols netted her no further kills, despite several determined attacks, but the patrols illustrated the varied tasks submarines took on during the war. In addition to her regular patrol duties, which harassed Japanese shipping and tied up valuable warships desperately needed by the enemy,Grouperlanded 50 men and 3,000 lb (1,400 kg) of gear onNew Britainto carry on guerrilla warfare; at the same time, she rescued an American aviator who had been stranded there almost three months.

On 30 July 1943, aUnited States Army Air ForcesB-25 Mitchellbomber mistakenly attackedGrouperin theCoral Sea,185 nautical miles (343 km; 213 mi) east ofRossel Islandat11°00′S156°44′E.Shecrash-divedto a depth of 150 feet (46 m), but the B-25 dropped twodepth chargeswhich exploded as she passed a depth of 50 feet (15 m), inflicting enough damage that she was forced to terminate her patrol and head for Brisbane.She reached Brisbane on 3 August 1943 and went alongside thesubmarine tenderUSSFulton(AS-11)for repairs.

At the conclusion of her eighth patrol,Grouperheaded for theUnited Statesand overhaul, reachingSan Franciscoon 19 October 1943.

1944

After returning to Pearl Harbor on 7 January 1944 for additional repairs, the veteran submarine sailed for her ninth war patrol on 22 May. This patrol nettedGrouperwhat was to be her last kill of the war,Kumanoyama Maru,which she sank in a night surface attack on 24 June.Grouper’s final three war patrols found a lack of targets; American submarines had done their job on Japanese shipping too well forGrouper’s purposes. She stood lifeguard duty during several air strikes and rescued seven downed aviators during raids on thePalausin September 1944.

1945 – 1949

Returning to Pearl Harbor from her 12th and last war patrol on 26 April 1945,Groupersailed the following day for San Francisco and overhaul. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 6 August, butV-J Daycancelled plans for another patrol, and on 9 September,Grouper,in company withToroandBlackfish,sailed for New London. Four years of local operations and training exercises along the coast toFloridaand in theCaribbeanfollowed forGrouper.During this period, she chalked up two "firsts": in 1946 she became the first submarine to have aCombat Information Centerinstalled, and the following year she effected the first discharge and recovery of men from a submerged and underway submarine.

1950 – 1957

These operations ended 5 March 1950 asGrouperentered theMare Island Naval Shipyardfor conversion under projectSCB 58to the Navy's first "hunter-killer submarine".Her classification was changed toSSK-214on 2 January 1951. With the addition of asnorkeland extensivesonarand radar facilities,Grouperemerged from the yard on 27 June 1951 to pioneer in research on the deadly submarine-versus-submarine warfare. For the next eight years, as a unit ofSubmarine Development Group 2,Grouperworked to develop and test concepts of hunter-killer antisubmarine warfare. In this duty, she ranged along the East Coast fromNova Scotiato Florida, as well as participating in Caribbean exercises. In 1953 and 1955, exercises tookGrouperacross theAtlantictoRothesay,viaIceland.In the fall of 1957, she then participated inNATOmaneuvers.

1958 – 1962

Grouperafter conversion to a research submarine.

Grouperwas reclassifiedAGSS-214,17 May 1958, and on 28 November 1959 she entered thePortsmouth Navy Yardfor extensive modification. Her forward torpedo room was converted into a floating laboratory; work benches and additional berths for scientists were installed, and various types of sonar gear were added topside. Thus equipped,Grouperdeparted Portsmouth on 23 June 1960 to embark on the fourth phase of her long career, research vessel for theNaval Research and Underwater Sound Laboratories.Her duties as a floating laboratory took her frequently to the Caribbean andBermuda,although she retained New London as her home port and engaged in operations there and as far north as Nova Scotia. Her efforts were focused on the study of sound propagation in water. In December 1962,Grouperentered thePhiladelphia Naval Shipyardfor overhaul and modification to prepare for further work in this field.Grouperleft the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in May 1963 to resume her investigation of waterborne sound.

1964 – 1968

In June 1964,Grouperwas awarded the Battle Efficiency "E". In November 1965, the submarine again entered the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for overhaul and equipment modifications to increase her usefulness as a floating underwater sound laboratory. She departed Philadelphia on 1 May 1966, reached New London on 1 June, and headed for the Caribbean for intensive research. Her studies during 1966 also took her toNarragansett Bayand twice to Bermuda. At the beginning of 1967,Grouperwas at New London preparing to resume gathering knowledge of underwater sound propagation.

Up until the end of 1968,Grouperwas still adding accomplishments as a floating laboratory to her long and outstanding record during both war and peace.

In May 1965Groupersurpassed the record previously held byUSSO-4(SS-65)for serving the longest as the oldest submarine in the U.S. Navy.

Grouperwas decommissioned and stricken on December 2, 1968. On August 11, 1970, she was sold for scrapping.

Awards

• Navy E Ribbon
• American Campaign Medal
• 

  

  
  Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medalwith 10battle stars
• World War II Victory Medal
• 

  
  National Defense Service Medalwith star

In media

Grouper's 1943 mission to land men and gear on New Britain is depicted in "TheGrouperStory, "a 1957 episode ofThe Silent Service,an Americantelevision seriesthat aired insyndicationin theUnited Statesfor two seasons in 1957 and 1958.

References

Citations

This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.The entry can be foundhere.

Bibliography

• Hinman, Charles R., and Douglas E. Campbell.The Submarine Has No Friends: Friendly Fire Incidents Involving U.S. Submarines During World War II.Syneca Research Group, Inc., 2019.ISBN978-0-359-76906-3.

External links

• Sinking ofLisbon Maru
• DANFS: USSGrouper
• hazegray.org: USSGrouper
• navsource.org: USSGrouper
• "TheGrouperStory, "Episode 21 ofThe Silent Service,on YouTube.