USSS-45

	USSS-45making 10.5knotsonsea trialsoffGroton,Connecticut,on 24 March 1925.
History
United States
Name	USSS-45
Builder	Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation,Quincy,Massachusetts
Laid down	29 December 1920
Launched	26 June 1923
Sponsored by	Mrs. Charles Hibbard
Commissioned	31 March 1925
Decommissioned	30 October 1945
Stricken	13 November 1945
Fate	Sold for scrapping December 1946
General characteristics
Class and type	S-classsubmarine
Displacement	850 long tons (864 t) surfaced; 1,126 long tons (1,144 t) submerged;
Length	225 ft 3 in (68.66 m)
Beam	20 ft 8 in (6.30 m)
Draft	16 ft (4.9 m)
Speed	14.5knots(16.7 mph; 26.9 km/h) surfaced; 11 knots (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

USSS-45(SS-156)was a third-group (S-42)S-class submarineof theUnited States Navy.

Construction and commissioning

S-45′skeelwaslaid downon 29 December 1920 by theBethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation'sFore River ShipyardinQuincy,Massachusetts.^[1]She waslaunchedon 26 June 1923, sponsored by Mrs. Charles Hibbard, and delivered andcommissionedon 31 March 1925.^[1]

Service history

Completing shakedown exercises off the southernNew Englandcoast,S-45departedNew London, Connecticut,on 9 June 1925.^[1]Nineteen days later, she joined Submarine Division (SubDiv) 19 atCoco Solo,Canal Zone, and commenced type exercises and jointUnited States Army-United States Navy maneuvers in thePanama Canalarea.^[1]During the next two years, onlyFleet Problems VIandVIItook her out of her normal operating area.^[1]In May 1927, theS-boatmoved northwest toMare Islandfor overhaul, then began operations out ofSan Diego, California.^[1]

The following spring,S-45participated inFleet Problem VIII,a convoy and antisubmarine search and contact problem conducted en route betweenSan Francisco, California,andHonolulu, Hawaii.^[1]During the winter of 1929, she returned to the Panama Canal Zone forFleet Problem IX.^[1]

In December 1930,S-45was transferred a third time; and, on 12 December, she arrived at her new home port,Pearl Harbor,whence she operated, with SubDiv 11, on a schedule of exercises and fleet problems similar to those followed previously for the next year and one half.^[1]In September 1932, she joined Rotating Reserve Division 14 and, for the next several years alternated active service with Division 11 and reserve status in Division 14.^[1]

In March 1936, the boats of SubDiv 11 were ordered back toPanama.^[1]They participated inFleet Problem XVIIen route and arrived at Coco Solo, their new home port, on 22 May.^[1]For the next four years, they maintained a schedule similar to previous tours in the Canal Zone.^[1]

With the new decade, 1940, and the expansion of hostilities in Europe and Asia, the schedule was varied.^[1]Exercises and patrols in the vital canal area were stepped up, and plans were made to overhaul and modernize the old S-boats.^[1]On 15 May 1941,S-45got underway forPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania.^[1]There, she received new equipment, exclusive of air-conditioning, and a complete overhaul.^[1]By August, she was off the New England coast for simulated war patrol exercises, and, in October, she moved south toBermudafor patrol and antisubmarine warfare training duties.^[1]

World War II

First two defensive patrols

After the 7 Decemberattack on Pearl Harbor,S-45returned to Panama and assumed patrol duties in the approaches to the canal.^[1]By 1 February 1942, she had conducted two defensive patrols, during which her crew became even better acquainted with the defects in thetorpedoesshe carried and with the limited wartime capabilities of boats of her class.^[1]

Then, as the Japanese thrust towardAustraliacontinued, the Panama S-boats prepared to assist in defensive efforts in the southwestern Pacific.^[1]In March,S-45and her division, now SubDiv 53, headed west.^[1]In mid-April, they arrived atBrisbane,Queensland;and, on 12 May,S-45departedMoreton Bayon her first offensive war patrol.^[1]

First war patrol

Assigned to theBougainville-Buka-New Irelandarea, she remained on patrol into mid-June, unable to score against Japanese shipping and unable to contact an agent onCape Sena.^[1]On 19 June, she returned to Brisbane, where an overhaul brought the installation of temporary air conditioning and corrected some of the defects in the engines, the radio transmitter, and the bow planes which had hampered her during her recent patrol.^[1]On 26 August, she headed back to theSolomon Islands.^[1]By the end of the month, she was on station in theShortland Islandarea.^[1]Numerous targets were sighted; but, due to frequent squalls and her own limitations, she was unable to press home an attack.^[1]

Second war patrol

On 5 September, she was ordered to theTrobriand Islandsto intercept enemy shipping bound forMilne Bay,but her luck was no better there.^[1]

On 12 September,S-45sighted, closed, and attempted to fire a bow shot at acruiser.^[1]As the outer doors were opened, she became heavy forward, and depth control was lost.Periscope depthwas soon regained but could not be held.^[1]The sound operators lost the target inS-45’s own noises; and, by the time control was regained, the target had passed firing bearing.^[1]The submarine swung to a new track to pursue.^[1]Depth control was again lost.^[1]Another battle for control of the boat was won but too late forS-45to score.^[1]

Third war patrol

S-45returned to Moreton Bay on 23 September.^[1]By 27 October, she was back in theShortland Islandarea and, on 2 November, her presence nearFauro Islandwas detected by the enemy.^[1]Explosions were heard, but none was close.^[1]The next morning, prior to daylight, she was sighted by adestroyeras she was preparing for a surface shot.^[1]

The destroyer swung left to ram;S-45swung right, submerged, and rigged for depth charging.^[1]Within minutes, the explosions, close aboard portside, were felt.^[1]Varying her depth and course, the S-boat reached 200 feet (61 m).^[1]Her evasive maneuvering was successful, and she retired south.^[1]The destroyer continued to circle on the surface near the initial contact point.^[1]By daylight, a second destroyer had joined the first; and, for the next three hours, the two surface ships were heard, alternately close, then fading out.^[1]After 09:30, no further pinging was heard.^[1]Little damage had been done, but pressure in the boat was high, a result of blowing and venting tanks.^[1]The high pressure, in turn, caused the depth gauge to register low.^[1]

By 4 November, poor weather had set in; and, on 6 November, the boat cleared the area, setting course forSuvaand thePanama Canal.^[1]Arriving at the latter on 6 January 1943, she underwent voyage repairs, then received orders toSaint Thomas, United States Virgin Islands,for training duty.^[1]On arrival, she was ordered back to Coco Solo, whence she continued on to San Diego and a three-month tour with theWest Coast Sound School.^[1]Overhaul followed, and on 19 November, she got underway for theAleutian Islands.^[1]

Fourth war patrol

S-45arrived atDutch Harboron 2 December 1943.^[1]Training and minor repairs occupied the remainder of the month; and, on 31 December, she departed the eastern Aleutians forAttu.^[1]There, she topped off and continued on to theKuril Islands,encountering strong winds and heavy seas as she moved west.^[1]On 12 January 1944, she lost her antennae in a storm and, on 13 January, she arrived in her patrol area, theOminato-Paramushiroconvoy routes.^[1]

Hunting was again poor; and, on 28 January, she returned to Attu.^[1]Two days later, while chargingbatteries,she suffered an explosion in the after battery compartment.^[1]By 10 February, the debris had been removed and temporary repairs had been made.^[1]The next day, she moved east, arriving at Dutch Harbor on 14 February.^[1]From there, she returned to San Diego, completed repairs, then got underway, in June, to cross the Pacific.^[1]From mid-July to the end of the year, she conducted training exercises fromManusin theAdmiralty Islands;then moved to Brisbane for repairs preparatory to returning toCalifornia.^[1]

Retirement

S-45arrived back at San Diego in early April 1945 and resumed operations for theWest Coast Sound School.^[1]In September, after the formal end ofWorld War II,she moved up to San Francisco where she was decommissioned on 30 October 1945.^[1]Her name was struck from theNaval Vessel Registeron 13 November 1945; and in December 1946, her hulk was sold for scrapping to theSalco Iron and MetalCompany of San Francisco.^[1]

References

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

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