USS Tang (SS-563)
USS Tang leaving Pearl Harbor
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History | |
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United States | |
Name | USS Tang |
Awarded | 16 May 1947 |
Builder | Portsmouth Naval Shipyard |
Laid down | 18 April 1949 |
Launched | 19 June 1951 |
Commissioned | 25 October 1951 |
Decommissioned | 8 February 1980 |
Fate |
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Stricken | 6 August 1987 |
Turkey | |
Name | Pirireis |
Acquired | 8 February 1980 |
Commissioned | 8 February 1980 |
Decommissioned | August 2004 |
Identification | S343 |
Fate | Museum ship |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Tang-class submarine Attack submarine |
Displacement |
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Length |
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Beam | 27 ft (8.2 m) |
Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m) |
Speed |
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Complement | 87 officers and men |
Armament |
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USS Tang (SS/AGSS-563), the
She was the first American submarine designed (as opposed to modified) under the Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program (GUPPY) for underwater performance rather than surfaced speed and handling. Key features included removing the deck guns, streamlining the outer hull, replacing the conning tower with a sail, installing new propellers designed for submerged operations, installing more air conditioning and a snorkel mast, and doubling the battery capacity.
The contract to build her was awarded to the
Service history
Following trials and training along the east coast, the submarine was assigned to Submarine Squadron 1 (SUBRON 1), Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet. From her base at Pearl Harbor, Tang operated in the Hawaiian Islands, providing services to surface and air antisubmarine warfare (ASW) forces. She also conducted type training. In October 1953, Tang commenced her first overhaul which she completed in July 1954.
Upon emerging from the yard, the submarine began training for her first western Pacific deployment. That cruise began in September and ended at Pearl Harbor in March 1956. She then operated in the Hawaiian area until June, when she headed back to sea for a training cruise in Alaskan waters. Tang returned to Pearl Harbor in August and, soon thereafter, began her second overhaul.
On 20 July 1956, Tang put to sea on her second deployment to the western Pacific. That deployment set the pattern for seven more between then and 1972. The submarine came under the command of the Commander, Seventh Fleet, and provided training services to units of the
In spring 1958 she rescued 5 CIA officers off the southern coast of Sulawesi. The officers were fleeing Sukarno's army after leading a failed coup against his rule.
On five occasions during those years, she cruised to the northwestern coast of
Two years later, she made her third voyage to the northwestern coast of the United States; this time to join in
Tang's ninth deployment came after a period of repairs and intense training around Hawaii and lasted from August 1970 until February 1972. Upon her return to Pearl Harbor, she resumed local operations until August, when she again entered the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard for extensive repairs and refurbishments, extensive sail modifications, and a hull stretch during which the boat was cut completely in two and a new section inserted to provide space for an extensive sonar, electronic and ventilation modernization. The modernization included both the PUFFS passive sonar and Prairie Masker installation. At the completion of these overhauls, Tang was more than 600 tons heavier and more than 22 feet longer than when originally launched.
In May 1972, she left the yard with a new AGSS
On 11 January 1976, Tang commenced overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard where she remained until completion on 20 January 1977. With the exception of a brief MIDPAC deployment in March, Tang operated out of her home port of San Diego for the remainder of 1977 and the first half of 1978. On 1 August, her home port was changed to Groton, Connecticut and her SS hull classification symbol was restored in anticipation of her forthcoming inter-fleet transfer.
Tang departed San Diego on 23 August, and, following a transit of the
TCG Pirireis (S 343)
On 8 February 1980, the oldest diesel-electric submarine in the Navy and the last operational one in the Atlantic Fleet at that time was decommissioned. Tang was struck from the U.S.
Awards
- National Defense Service Medal with star (2 awards)
- Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
- campaign stars for Vietnam Warservice
Notes
- ^ Galantin, I. J. Submarine Admiral: From Battlewagons to Ballistic Missiles, p. 139. Google Books. His exec was William R. Anderson, who commanded Nautilus on her famous North Pole transit.
References
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
External links