![]() They were in the forefront of the submarine force’s success of near-destruction of the Japanese merchant fleet and significant reduction of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Balao-class submarines entered service in mid-1943. One Balao submarine, USS Tang (SS-306), actually achieved a depth of 612 feet, as stated by the Tang’s commander Richard O’Kane in his book, Clear the Bridge!: The War Patrols of the U.S.S. It increased their test depth to 400 feet. The major improvements over the previous Gato-class was the upgraded thicker, higher yield strength steel and the pressure hull skin and frame. Approximately 265 were ordered and more than 119 were completed between 19. Of all the classes of submarines during World War II, the Balao-class contributed the most submarines to the submerged fight. One balanced streamlined type, limits 38 degrees to port and starboard.ĭiesel, 54,000 gallons normal 116,000 gallons maximum BOWFIN: A BALAO-CLASS SUBMARINE Each cell was about 4.5 feet high, 1.25 feet deep, and 1.75 feet wide, and weighed about 1,650 pounds.Ģ0.25 knots surface speed 8.75 knots submerged ![]() MACHINERY:įour General Motors Model 16-278A diesel, V-16įour General Electric 1,100 kw 2,650 amps/415 volts propulsion 3,600 amps/296 volts battery charging. Upgraded to one 5 inch 25-caliber, one 40 mm and one 20 mm. Originally, one 4 inch 50-caliber and two 20 mm. By the end of the war, Bowfin was using the Mark 18 electric torpedo and Mark 27 acoustic torpedo, nicknamed "cutie." Primary torpedoes used were the Mark 14 and Mark 23, both steam-driven. Originally 70 men (7 officers & 63 enlisted), later increased to 80 men (8 officers & 72 enlisted) Bowfin carried 85 men on her last war patrol.ġ,810 tons (on surface) 2,415 tons (submerged)įreeboard (distance from deck to surface of water):ġ2 feet 5 inches at bow 3 feet 11 inches at sternĦ tubes in the forward torpedo room, and 4 in the aft torpedo roomĢ4 total, 10 in tubes and 14 in reload racks. Navy, who was head of the Portsmouth Navy Shipyard Jane Gawne, wife of CAPT James Orville Gawne, U.S. ![]() Baltic Sea Submarine Operations – Russia, Sweden and Finland.Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maineħ December 1942, nicknamed, "The Pearl Harbor Avenger".Death Down Below: Are Submarines Set to Become Obsolete? August 23, 2015.Russia’s Got a Mysterious New Submarine August 23, 2015.Navy’s Most Secretive Submarine August 23, 2015 Navy Seeks Better Underseas Sub-Hunting to Counter Putin August 23, 2015 Does Thailand Need Submarines At All? August 24, 2015.A Miss-used Submarine Force August 26, 2015.Join 15 other subscribers Archives Archives Categories Categories Resources All Hands Nov 1953 Midgets and Baby Subs Join the Fleet.USN GUPPY SUBMARINE CONVERSIONS 1947-1954 at .uk.Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program at Wiki.Some boats that went through an early phase were then upgraded further in a later phase. Those upgrades proceeded in seven variants, in the following order: GUPPY I, GUPPY II, GUPPY IA, Fleet Snorkel, GUPPY IIA, GUPPY IB, and GUPPY III. The initial two boat test program, implemented by the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, eventually grew into several successive conversion programs. In June 1946, the Chief of Naval Operations approved the GUPPY project. The navy immediately focused on designing a new class of submarines, but the Bureau of Ships believed that the vast fleet of existing Gato, Balao, and Tench class submarines could be modified to incorporate the desired improvements. That analysis led to four goals-increasing the submarines’ battery capacity, streamlining the boats’ structures, adding snorkels, and improving fire control systems. The navy began the program by testing and reverse engineering two captured German Type XXI U-boats: U-2513 and U-3008. (The “Y” in the acronym was added for pronounceability.) The Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program (GUPPY) was initiated by the United States Navy after World War II to improve the submerged speed, maneuverability, and endurance of its submarines. The series describes the peak of WW II US submarine technology. The Fleet Type Submarine, Navpers 16160, is the first in a series of submarine training manuals that were completed just after WW II. Navy submarines of the period, the Gato-class were given the names of marine creatures. Gato‘s name comes from a species of small catshark. Named after the first vessel of this design, USS Gato, the Gato-class and its successors, the Balao and Tench classes, formed the core (approximately 300 boats) of the submarine service that was largely responsible for the destruction of the Japanese merchant marine and a large portion of the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II. The United States Navy Gato-class submarine formed the majority of the United States Navy’s World War II submarine fleet.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |