USSS-28

USSS-28atPuget Sound Navy Yard,Bremerton,Washington,on 24 June 1943 after a refit.
History
United States
Name	USSS-28
Builder	Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation,Quincy,Massachusetts
Laid down	16 April 1919
Launched	20 September 1922
Sponsored by	Mrs. William R. Monroe
Commissioned	13 December 1923
Fate	Sank 4 July 1944
General characteristics
Class and type	S-classsubmarine
Displacement	854 long tons (868 t) surfaced 1,062 long tons (1,079 t) submerged
Length	219 ft 3 in (66.83 m)
Beam	20 ft 8 in (6.30 m)
Draft	15 ft 11 in (4.85 m)
Speed	14.5kn(16.7 mph; 26.9 km/h) surfaced 11 kn (13 mph; 20 km/h) submerged
Complement	42 officers and men
Armament	1 ×4 in (102 mm)/50deck gun,4 ×21 inch (533 mm)torpedo tubes
Service record
Operations:	World War II
Awards:	1battle star

USSS-28(SS-133)was anS-classsubmarineof theUnited States Navy.Adiesel submarine,she served inWorld War IIduring which sank oneJapaneseship. She was lost at sea with all hands in July 1944. Her wreck was discovered in 2017 at a depth of 8,500 feet (2,600 m) off the coast ofOahu.

Construction and commissioning

S-28′skeelwaslaid downon 16 April 1919 by theBethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation'sFore River ShipyardinQuincy,Massachusetts.She waslaunchedon 20 September 1922, sponsored by Mrs. William R. Monroe, andcommissionedon 13 December 1923.

Service history

Inter-war period

Followingshakedownexercises off the southernNew Englandcoast,S-28moved south in March 1924 to join SubmarineDivision11 in the final exercises of 1924's winter maneuvers in theCaribbean Sea.In April 1924 she returned toNew London,Connecticut,with her division and commenced local exercises which occupied the remainder of 1924.In the winter of 1925, she moved south again, transited thePanama Canal,and, after the conclusion ofFleet Problem V,conducted in the vicinity ofGuadalupe Island,she arrived in theHawaiian Islandsfor a month's stay.In June 1924, she moved toSan Diego,California,where her division replaced another division which had transferred to theUnited States Asiatic Fleet.

S-28operated primarily offSouthern Californiauntil 1931, calling atMare Island Navy Yardin California for regularly scheduled overhaul periods and also deploying for aFleet Problemin the Panama Canal area in 1926, for summer maneuvers nearHawaiiin 1927, for a Fleet Problem in the Panama Canal area in 1929, and for summer maneuvers near Hawaii in 1930.

S=28departed theUnited States West Coastfor Hawaii in mid-February 1931, and on 23 February 1931 arrived atPearl Harbor,Hawaii, from which she operated for the next8+1⁄2years.In mid-1939, she transferred back to San Diego, where she took part in training activities for the Underwater Sound Training School.

World War II

On 7 December 1941,S-28– then a unit of Submarine Division 41 – was undergoing overhaul at Mare Island Navy Yard when the Japaneseattack on Pearl Harborbrought the United States intoWorld War II.On 22 January 1942, the work was completed, and she returned to San Diego, where she resumed her training activities for the Underwater Sound Training School.She continued that duty into the spring of 1942, then was ordered north to theAleutian Islandsto augment U.S. defenses in theTerritory of Alaska.

On 20 May 1942,S-28,with other submarines of her division, departed San Diego.They stopped atPort Angeles,Washingtonon 25 May 1942, then continued on toward the newly established submarine base atDutch Harbor,onAmaknak IslandoffUnalaskain the Aleutian Islands.On 29 May 1942, however, as the United States made preparations to minimize a two-pronged Japanese thrust againstMidway Atollin theNorthwestern Hawaiian Islandsand the Aleutians, the S-boats received orders to proceed to their patrol areas, bypassing Dutch Harbor.

First war patrol

During a quickly extinguished fire in herportmain motor on the morning of 1 June 1942,S-28suffered minor damage.That evening, she parted company with hersister shipsand their escort, and on 2 June 1942 she entered her assigned patrol area and commenced patrolling the approaches toCold Bayon the tip of theAlaskan Peninsula.On 3 June 1942, the Japanese bombed Dutch Harbor, opening theAleutian Islands campaign,and, within the week, they had occupiedKiskaandAttuin the Aleutians.On 11 June 1942, a U.S. Navyfloatplanemistook her for a Japanese submarine and attacked her in thePacific Oceansouth of the Aleutians at53°57′25″N164°30′00″W,dropping abombordepth chargeas shecrash-divedthat inflicted only slight damage and no casualties.On 12 June 1942,S-28arrived at Dutch Harbor, refueled, took on provisions, and headed west to resume her war patrol.

On 15 June 1942,S-28crossed theInternational Date Line,and on 17 June – after a two-day storm – she sighted Kiska and set a course to intercept Japanese shipping between there and Attu.On 18 June 1942, she fired on her first enemy target – anImperial Japanese Navydestroyer– and the destroyer in turn counterattacked her.Eight hours later, sounds of the destroyer's search faded out to the south.S-28had survived her first encounter with Japaneseantisubmarine warfareforces.

Poor weather soon returned, and storms raged during 80% ofS-28′s remaining time on station.On 28 June 1942, she moored in Dutch Harbor and commenced a refit.

Second war patrol

On 15 July 1942,S-28got underway for her second war patrol and again headed for the Kiska area.On 18 July 1942, she reconnoiteredSemisopochnoi,then moved on toSegula.Finding no signs of Japanese activity, she continued westward.On 20 July 1942 she was ordered to take station on an 85-nautical-mile (157 km; 98 mi) circle fromSirius Pointprior to sunrise on 22 July 1942, at which time a U.S. Navytask forcewas to bombard Japanese facilities on Kiska.The bombardment was delayed, delayed, andS-28remained on that more distant station until 30 July 1942, when she was ordered back into the Kiska area.On 18 August 1942, having been unable to close any of the targets sighted during the latter part of her patrol, she returned to Dutch Harbor.

Third war patrol

On her third war patrol, which she conducted from 16 September to 10 October 1942,S-28returned to the Kiska area.She operated to the north of the island until 25 October 1942, then, with the discovery of the Japanese development ofGertrude CoveonVega Bayon the coast of Kiska, she shifted to the island's southern shore.On the night of 6–7 October 1942, she turned toward Unalaska, and on the morning of 10 October 1942, as she prepared to fire on an unidentified vessel, a ground in herfire control circuitscaused an accidental firing of atorpedofrom the No. 1torpedo tube.That afternoon, she arrived at Dutch Harbor.

October–December 1942

From Dutch Harbor,S-28headed to San Diego, which she reached on 23 October 1942.She provided training services for theWest CoastSound School and for theAmphibious ForcesTraining Group from 26 October to 13 November 1942.Then, during an overhaul, she received afathometer,a Kleinschmidtdistillingunit, andSJ radar.On 9 December 1942, she again headed north.On 16 December 1942, she reported by radio toTask Group8.5 (TG 8.5), and on 21 December 1942 she arrived at Dutch Harbor.

Fourth war patrol

On 27 December 1942,S-28departed Dutch Harbor on her fourth war patrol.On 3 January 1943, she crossed the International Date Line, and on 5 January 1943 she entered her assigned area in the northernKuril Islands.Moving down the coast ofParamushiro,she patrolled inOnekotan Strait,then headed north again, and on 20 January 1943 passedShumushu,from which she set a course for the Aleutians and returned to Dutch Harbor.

Fifth war patrol

During her fifth war patrol, which she conducted from 6 to 28 February 1943,S-28remained in the western Aleutians, patrolling across the Attu-Buldir-Sirius Point route and along the coast of Attu, particularly offHoltz Bay,Chichagof Harbor,andSarana Bay.Poor weather and her lack of speed, however, impeded her hunting.

March–June 1943

On her return to Dutch Harbor,S-28was ordered south, and on 4 March 1943 she got underway forEsquimalt,British Columbia,Canada,where from 15 March to 15 April 1943 she conducted sound tests and antisubmarine warfare exercises withRoyal Canadian NavyandRoyal Canadian Air Forceunits.She then continued on to thePuget Sound Navy YardinBremerton,Washington, for overhaul andsuperstructuremodification work. On 27 June 1943, she started back toAlaska.

Sixth war patrol

On 13 July 1943,S-28departed Dutch Harbor to return to the northern Kuril Islands for her sixth war patrol.Again, she patrolled off Paramushiro and in the straits to its north and south.Again, she was hindered by the weather, her obsolete design, and by mechanical failures.On 14 August 1943, she headed for the Aleutians, and on 16 August 1943 she moored inMassacre Bayon the coast of Attu — retaken from the Japanese in theBattle of Attuin May 1943 — and commenced a refit.

Seventh war patrol

The late arrival of needed spares from Dutch Harbor delayed her readiness for sea, but on 8 September 1943,S-28departed Attu to return to the northern Kuril Islands for her seventh and final war patrol.On 13 September 1943, she entered her patrol area.On 15 September 1943, severe smoking and sparking from her port main motor necessitated 14 hours of repair work.On 16 September 1943, she transitedMushiru Kaikyo,and, on the afternoon of 19 September 1943, she closed on an what she identified as an unescorted freighter off the island ofAraito.Hertorpedoesmissed their mark. The supposed freighter was awarship,which turned and within minutes had delivered the first twodepth chargesof a 10-minute attack.The Japanese ship searched the area for an hour, then departed.

S-28continued her patrol.At 19:16 on 19 September 1943, she contacted a second unescorted Japanese vessel.At 19:43, she fired a spread of four torpedoes.At 19:44, two of the four exploded.The target took on a 30°listand began to sink by thebow.At 19:46, the 1,368-long-ton (1,390 t) convertedgunboatKatsura Maru Number Twosank, bow first, hersternvertical in the air.Five loudunderwater explosionsfollowed her disappearance.S-28went deep and rigged for a depth charging which did not materialize.

Into October 1943,S-28hunted just north ofAraitoand off the coast of theKamchatka Peninsula.On 5 October 1943, she moved throughOnekotan Straitand continued her patrol on the Pacific side of the Kuril Islands.On 10 October 1943, however, a crewman developed severeappendicitis,and she headed for Attu one day ahead of schedule.On 13 October 1943, she moored at Attu.The next day, she departed for Dutch Harbor.

November 1943–July 1944

In November 1943,S-28headed south to Hawaii.She arrived at Pearl Harbor in mid-November 1943, and – after overhaul – commenced training duty.For the next seven months, she remained inHawaiian waters,providing training services.

Loss

On 3 July 1944,S-28began anti-submarine warfare training operations offOahuwith theUnited States Coast Guard cutterUSCGCReliance(WSC-150).The anti-submarine warfare exercises continued into the evening of 4 July 1944.At 17:30, the day's concluding exercise began.Contact between the two vessels became sporadic and, at 18:20,Reliancemade and lost her last, brief contact withS-28.All ofReliance′s further attempts to establish communications withS-28failed.

Assistance arrived from Pearl Harbor, but a thorough search of the area failed to locateS-28or her crew.Two days later, aslickofdiesel fuelappeared in the area where she had been operating, but the extreme depth of the waters there exceeded the range of available rescue andsalvageequipment.A court of inquiry was unable to determine the cause of the loss ofS-28.

Discovery of wreck

On 20 September 2017, Tim Taylor, with the support of STEP Ventures. discovered the wreck ofS-28at a depth of 8,500 feet (2,600 m) off the coast of Oahu.

Awards

• 

  
  Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medalwith onebattle starforWorld War IIservice

References

Bibliograohy

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

• On Eternal Patrol: USSS-28
• Kill record: USSS-28