USS Grunion ...now all things sunken submarines

[tomahawk6]

The Grunion was lost off Kiska in 1942. Last report was on 30 July and was declared overdue in October. The family of the skipper of the Grunion has funded the search for the sub and this month their expedition took pictures of the sub which is in 1000 feet of water.

http://www.gulflive.com/newsflash/national/index.ssf?/base/national-91/11879213684310.xml&storylist=national

http://www.ussgrunion.com/

http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08216a.htm

 

[Good2Golf]

An amazing story.  It will be interesting to see what the next expedition finds regarding the Grunion's fate.

G2G

 

[3rd Herd]

Nice work T-6. I have a couple of other lost submarines which have been found recently. I will add them to this thread.

 

[tomahawk6]

Its pretty sad really that we know more about lost German and Japanese subs than our own.

 

[Good2Golf]

I've always been interested in subs and sub mishaps...in particular, the Thresher.  Must be something about the unknown and the likelihood (or lack thereof) that a definitive answer to what happened might ever be found.


G2G

 

[3rd Herd]

As promised the first and my apologies for over looking the valiant efforts of our own.

"USS LAGARTO – LOST

Such was to be the fate of the USS-LAGARTO, when during a joint radio co-coordinated attack of a Japanese convoy with the submarine USS-BAYA on the 3rd May 1945, the Japanese escort minelayer HATSUTAKO recorded a depth charge attack on a US submarine in 30 fathoms (55 meters) of water. The BAYA was never able to re-establish radio communications with the LAGARTO and it is assumed that it was this attack that was responsible for her sinking. The ‘unusually alert’ HATSUTAKA crew was so vigilant in defending the convoy that it was also able to successfully drive the USS BAYA off. 

That the HATSUTAKA was subsequently sunk 12 days later was not by accident. The captain of a nearby US submarine USS HARKBILL was a close friend of the LAGARTOS captain, he requested and was granted permission by COMSUBPAC to divert from his patrol orders for a revenge attack. 4 torpedoes were expended against the HATSUTAKA during a prolonged attack that lasted two days. A final lucky MK14 mod 3 torpedo fired from a distance of nearly 3 miles through an allied minefield, finally blew the HATSUTAKA into two pieces while an attempt was being made by Japanese naval forces to take her under tow for repairs caused by the damage from the HAWKBILL’s earlier attacks. No survivors of the HATSUTAKA’ s sinking permitted themselves to be rescued.

On May 7th 1995 on the 50th anniversary of the LAGARTO’ s sinking, Commander Vaughn from the Los Angeles class Nuclear submarine USS New York City laid a Wreath at the presumed final resting place of the USS-Lagarto.

The exact location where USS-Lagarto was attacked and sunk remained a mystery until 19th May 2005. When just after the 60th anniversary of her sinking, Koh Tao Divers Jamie Macleod & Stewart Oehl diving from the Koh Tao based shipwreck research vessel M.V. Trident descended a shot line in 73 meters of water to investigate an underwater anomaly rising some 15 meters from the seabed close to the LAGARTO’ s last reported position of N007.55, E102.00....http://www.thaiwreckdiver.com/uss_lagarto_discovered.htm

Photo source: www.thaiwreckdiver.com/lagarto.htm




 

 

[3rd Herd]

The Usual Discliamer:
http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/03/01/1860079.htm

Aust WWI submarine believed found off PNG
Posted Thu Mar 1, 2007 10:14am AEDT

Australia's first submarine which was lost during the outbreak of World War I might have been found off Papua New Guinea.

It has been more than 90 years since Australia's first-ever submarine, the AE1, was last seen near the Duke of York Islands in East New Britain.

The 60-metre sub and its entire crew disappeared during a routine mission in 1914.

Sonar detectors on board Australian Navy ship HMAS Benalla detected an object a similar shape and size to that of the AE1 sub, near Rabaul.

The location has been marked for future investigation and will be kept secret to deter trophy hunters.

Assistant Defence Minister Bruce Billson says he is cautiously optimistic but it is too early to say whether it is the wreck of the AE1.

Mr Billson says special Navy equipment will be sent to the area later this year to check whether the object is the wreck of the missing submarine.

"It's man-made, it's not precisely in the dimensions of the AE1 but given that it's thought to have collided with something that led to its sinking and the rather fierce currents in the area, it could well be AE1," he said.

"But it's too early to speculate about that at this time until further investigations are carried out."

 

[3rd Herd]

"September 26, 2001

SHIPWRECKS EMERGE FROM SANDY GRAVES

A Dutch submarine, lost off the NSW coast near Seal Rocks in the final stages of World War II, has re-emerged from its sandy grave after king tides in the area.

“This is an exciting and rare event,” said Deputy Premier and Minister responsible for Heritage, Dr Andrew Refshauge.

A large section of the K-IX submarine has been exposed, allowing maritime archaeologists from the NSW Heritage Office a new opportunity to study and record the structure.

The wreck was relocated by the NSW Heritage Office when completely buried under sand in 1999. It briefly appeared in mid 2000, but has not been exposed to the current extent since 1974.

“Submarines are always intriguing archaeological sites, and the K-IX is of particular interest for its association with the Japanese midget submarine raid at Sydney Harbour on 31 May 1942," said Dr Refshauge.

“Then a unit of the Royal Netherlands Navy, the submarine was damaged when an enemy torpedo passed under it and destroyed the ex-ferry HMAS Kuttabul, killing 21 sailors on board."

The submarine was later commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy as an anti-submarine training vessel before becoming lost in a towing accident towards the end of World War II.

The Heritage Office earlier released a Shipwreck conservation management plan that documents the discovery of K-IX.

“Another shipwreck, off Blacksmiths Beach at the entrance to Lake Macquarie, has been reported in the surf near Swansea by members of the NSW Water Police," said Dr Refshauge.

One possibility is that it is the iron paddle steamer, Lowestoft, that wrecked there in 1864. Built in the United Kingdom, the 29-metre vessel was swamped in high seas while travelling from Newcastle to Sydney.

Heritage Office records suggest that 24 vessels were wrecked near Lake Macquarie and Swansea during the nineteenth century. Some 1800 historic wrecks are known to lie in the coastal and inland waters of NSW." http://www.dutchsubmarines.com/specials/special_kix_found.htm

photo source: http://www.dutchsubmarines.com/pictures/pictures_kix_wreck.htm

 

[3rd Herd]

Not World War Two but interesting none the less:
The Usual Disclaimer:
The Lost Sub Is Found, and Israelis Can Grieve

By DEBORAH SONTAG

May 31, 1999, New York Times, JERUSALEM -- For three decades, a missing submarine has haunted Israel. Accustomed to bloody battle and gruesome terrorism, the country was lastingly unsettled by the quiet tragedy of an unresolved mystery.

One January night in 1968, the Dakar, a British submarine newly refurbished for the Israeli navy, disappeared in the midst of its maiden voyage, from England to Haifa. A 69-man crew vanished with it, lost without a trace in a maritime enigma that became a legendary part of Israeli history.

On Friday, the wreck of the Dakar was found 9,500 feet beneath the Mediterranean Sea, between Crete and Cyprus. On Saturday night, the Israeli navy confirmed the findings of a joint Israeli-American search team. Underwater photographs taken by an aquatic robot proved that the hull belonged to the Dakar........................... http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/3132/features/f62Lost_Sub_Dakar_Found.htm

 

[3rd Herd]

The Usual Disclaimer:
http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=26378

Navy Says Wreck Found Off Japan is Legendary Sub USS Wahoo

From Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet Public Affairs

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (NNS) -- Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet declared Oct. 31 that the sunken submarine recently discovered by divers in the Western Pacific is, indeed, the World War II submarine USS Wahoo (SS 238).

"After reviewing the records and information, we are certain USS Wahoo has been located," said Adm. Gary Roughead, the U.S. Pacific Fleet commander. “We are grateful for the support of the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park, and appreciate greatly the underwater video footage of the submarine provided by our Russian navy colleagues, which allowed us to make this determination. This brings closure to the families of the men of Wahoo - one of the greatest fighting submarines in the history of the U.S. Navy."

In July, the Russian dive team “Iskra” photographed wreckage lying in about 213 feet (65 meters) of water in the La Perouse (Soya) Strait between the Japanese island of Hokkaido and the Russian island of Sakhalin. The divers were working with The Wahoo Project Group, an international team of experts coordinated by Bryan MacKinnon, a relative of Wahoo’s famed skipper, Cmdr. Dudley W. “Mush” Morton................

For those who are into technology and maps:
Submarine Wreck Map (interactive)
http://sub-log.com/submarine_wreck_map