USS Pomfret
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Pomfret (SS-391) |
| Builder | Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine[1] |
| Laid down | 14 July 1943[1] |
| Launched | 27 October 1943[1] |
| Sponsored by | Miss Marilyn Maloney |
| Commissioned | 19 February 1944[1] |
| Decommissioned | April 1952[1] |
| Recommissioned | 5 December 1952[1] |
| Decommissioned | 1 July 1971[1] |
| Stricken | 1 August 1973[2] |
| Fate | Transferred to Turkey, 1 July 1971, sold to Turkey 1 August 1973[1] |
 Turkey | |
| Name | TCG Oruçreis (S 337) |
| Acquired | 1 July 1971 |
| Commissioned | 3 May 1972 |
| Decommissioned | 1987 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 311 ft 6 in (94.95 m)[2] |
| Beam | 27 ft 3 in (8.31 m)[2] |
| Draft | 16 ft 10 in (5.13 m) maximum[2] |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | |
| Range | 11,000 nautical miles (20,000 km) surfaced at 10 knots (19 km/h)[3] |
| Endurance |
|
| Test depth | 400 ft (120 m)[3] |
| Complement | 10 officers, 70–71 enlisted[3] |
| Armament |
|
| General characteristics (Guppy IIA) | |
| Class and type | none |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 307 ft (93.6 m)[8] |
| Beam | 27 ft 4 in (8.3 m)[8] |
| Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m)[8] |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed |
|
| Armament |
|
USS Pomfret (SS-391), a
Construction and commissioning
Pomfret was
World War II
After training, the new submarine arrived at
On 10 September she departed Midway for the Luzon Straits-South China Sea area to conduct her second patrol. She sighted two enemy battleships on 26 September, but their speed and the presence of an enemy submarine prevented an attack.
On 2 October Pomfret sank Tsuyama Maru, a 6,962-ton passenger-cargo vessel. After the usual depth charging, she departed for Saipan and moored in Tanapag Harbor 12 October.
After refit and training, Pomfret reentered the same patrol area 1 November as part of a
The submarine began her fourth patrol 25 January 1945 in another wolf pack. The mission was a picket boat sweep ahead of a
On 16 February she rescued a pilot from the aircraft carrier Hornet, Lieutenant (jg) Joe Farrel. The next day, she saved a pilot from Cabot, Ensign Robert L. Buchanan. The incident was described in "Silent Victory" by Clay Blair (Lippincott, 1975) as follows:
Pomfret, commanded by John Hess, made a spectacular rescue. A pilot from the carrier Cabot was forced to ditch in the outer waters of Tokyo Bay. Fighters circled over Pomfret, guiding Hess to the rubber life raft. Hess fearlessly took Pomfret into these restricted waters and rescued the pilot, Ensign R. L. Buchanan. During this same bold operation, Hess picked up another pilot, Lieutenant Joseph P. Farrell from Hornet, and a Japanese pilot. War correspondent Ernie Pyle devoted a column to the rescue entitled 'Even If You Was Shot Down in Tokyo Harbor, the Navy Would Be In to Get You'.
That day she also captured two prisoners. Unsuccessfully attacked by a Japanese
On 2 July she departed for her sixth war patrol. After lifeguard duty south of Honshū, she began patrol in the East China Sea. On 19 July she sank the first of 44 floating
Post-war service
On 2 January 1946 Pomfret departed
Jimmy Carter, future President of the United States (1977–1981), served aboard Pomfret from 17 December 1948 to 1 February 1951 as his first shipboard assignment.[10] Carter is the only U.S. president to have qualified as a submariner. During this period Pomfret deployed to the Western Pacific Ocean and conducted operations in the waters off Japan and the coast of China.
In 1950 Pomfret arrived in
She departed for Far Eastern waters 7 July 1967 on a cruise which included anti-submarine warfare exercises in the Gulf of Tonkin off Vietnam. She returned to San Diego 23 January 1968 and spent most of that year in exercises off San Diego.
TCG Oruçreis (S 337)
In 1971, transfers to the
She served in the Turkish Navy until 1987.
Awards
- battle stars
World War II Victory MedalNavy Occupation Medal
China Service MedalNational Defense Service Medal with star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medalcampaign starsRepublic of Vietnam Campaign MedalCommemoration
Pomfret′s ship's bell is located in the officer's club of Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.
References
- ^ ISBN 1-55750-263-3.
- ^ ISBN 0-313-26202-0.
- ^ a b c d e f U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 305-311
- ^ ISBN 978-0-313-26202-9.
- ^ U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 261–263
- ^ a b c U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 305–311
- ^ ISBN 1-55750-260-9.
- ^ a b c d U.S. Submarines Since 1945 pp. 242
- OCLC 41977179. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
- ^ Jimmy Carter's Naval Service
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entries can be found here and here.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to USS Pomfret (SS-391).- Photo gallery of Pomfret at NavSource Naval History
- History of Turkish Submarines
