USS Shad (SS-235)
 Sliding down the launching ways, Shad, backs into the waters of the Portsmouth Navy Yard.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Builder | Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine[1] |
| Laid down | 24 October 1941[1] |
| Launched | 15 April 1942[1] |
| Sponsored by | Priscilla Alden Dudley |
| Commissioned | 12 June 1942[1] |
| Decommissioned | 1947[1] |
| Stricken | 1 April 1960[1] |
| Fate | Sold for scrap 11 July 1960[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 311 ft 9 in (95.02 m)[3] |
| Beam | 27 ft 3 in (8.31 m)[3] |
| Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m) maximum[3] |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | |
| Range | 11,000 nmi (20,000 km) surfaced at 10 kn (19 km/h)[2] |
| Endurance |
|
| Test depth | 300 ft (90 m)[2] |
| Complement | 6 officers, 54 enlisted[2] |
| Armament |
|
The second Shad was laid down by the
Atlantic war patrols
Following shakedown off the New England coast, Shad departed on a special patrol as a unit of Submarine Squadron (SubRon) 50 to a point off the coast of Mehdiya, French Morocco, to conduct reconnaissance in preparation for Operation Torch, the Allied occupation of North Africa. Upon completion, she sailed to Roseneath, Scotland, for repairs and further training.
Shad's second war patrol was conducted in the Bay of Biscay and Spanish coastal waters with other units of SubRon 50 under British command. Although the most of the vessels she sighted were neutral Spanish ships, the submarine sank an enemy trawler, a barge, and severely damaged a destroyer escort before she returned to Roseneath for refit on 12 February 1943.
With refitting completed, Shad departed Scotland for her third war patrol on 7 March, again heading for the Bay of Biscay. During this mission, the submarine damaged the blockade runner Pietro Orseolo, before returning to Scotland on 12 April.
Shad's fourth patrol, conducted in Norwegian waters, and fifth war patrol, conducted en route back to the United States, were uneventful.
Sixth war patrol
Following repairs in New London, the submarine was transferred to the Pacific front. Arriving at Pearl Harbor on 7 September, Shad underwent two weeks of voyage repairs and then departed on 28 September, for her sixth war patrol, and her first against the Japanese. This patrol was also the first American wolfpack, comprising Shad, Cero (SS-225), and Grayback (SS-208), commanded from Cero by Captain Charles Momsen.
Just before dawn on 22 October, Shad attacked a
Seventh war patrol, August – October 1944
After returning to Pearl Harbor on 11 May 1944, Shad underwent further repair work and training before departing on 12 August for her seventh war patrol, which she conducted in waters surrounding the Japanese home islands. While off
On 19 September, Shad torpedoed and sank escort ship Ioshima, and as expected, was forced to endure another lengthy depth charging. On 22 September, Shad narrowly escaped destruction by maneuvering around two torpedoes, probably fired by an enemy submarine. One passed just under her bow and the other about 20 yards (18 m) ahead. After a typhoon-racked passage from the patrol area, Shad terminated her seventh patrol at Midway on 1 October.
Eighth and ninth war patrols
Shad spent her eighth war patrol as a unit of a
Following repair work and recuperation for the crew, Shad departed Pearl Harbor on 31 January for her ninth war patrol. She refueled at Saipan on 12 February and then departed with Peto and Thresher for another wolfpack to patrol the Luzon Strait. During this patrol, the Shad attempted three attacks but all were thwarted. Twice the coming of dawn forced her to dive to evade enemy aircraft, and once patrolling escort ships forced her to leave the vicinity of an anticipated victim. On 5 March, Shad again was on the receiving end of an enemy torpedo attack, with three torpedoes passing just ahead of her bow. After this unproductive patrol, the submarine arrived at Apra Harbor, Guam, on 30 March.
Tenth war patrol, August – October 1944
On her tenth war patrol, Shad operated as part of yet another coordinated attack group with Balao, Dragonet, and Spikefish, this time in the Yellow and East China Seas. On the night of 17 May, the submarine contacted a large freighter and two escorts. Shad fired three torpedoes and quickly got out of range. One torpedo hit forward on the freighter Chosan Maru, blowing her bow completely off, and the target settled quickly to the bottom. The escorts gave chase, but Shad escaped and resumed patrol.
On 7 June, Shad destroyed a small junk by gunfire, and later in the day, attacked and sank the 1,370-ton cargo ship, Azusa Maru. With her torpedo store depleted, the submarine returned to Midway.
Eleventh war patrol and postwar service
On 11 July, Shad departed Midway on her 11th and final war patrol, consisting of lifeguard duty off
Following the war, Shad was decommissioned and placed "in service, in reserve" and assigned to the Naval Reserve Training Center at Salem Maritime National Historic Site,
Shad earned six
References
- ^ ISBN 1-55750-263-3.
- ^ a b c d e f U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 305-311
- ^ ISBN 0-313-26202-0.
- ^ 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
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-04-26. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
External links
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