Welcome aboard the USS Bowfin, a Gato Class WWII Submarine moored at Pearl Harbor Hawaii. Launched December 7th 1942, exactly one year after the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese, she patrolled the Pacific Ocean during her service until the end of WWII.
Her duties included interdiction of Japanese merchant and warship for which she sank a total of four, including one Vichy French vessel. She is also credited with the sinking of another thirty “Maru” or merchant ships. Some of her other duties included lifeguard duties, the rescuing of downed pilots and seamen whose ships were sunk as the result of enemy action, and mine detection duties, mapping of enemy minefields.
The Bowfin had many close calls during her service, including multiple depth charge attacks by enemy warships. She has the singular distinction of having actually sunk an enemy bus that was parked on a pier while it was being loaded with enemy soldiers.The Bowfin is open to the public, and for anyone interested in the history of naval warfare in the Pacific during WWII, it is a must see, along with the USS Arizona Memorial and the Battleship USS Missouri.
To easily navigate this page, you can click each thumbnail below and see its photo on the right, or you can click "Next" to page through the thumbnails. You can click the photo on the right anytime and get an enlarged image, and you can click "Next" also if you don't want to click each thumbnail. To return to the previous page you were viewing, or any page including the Home Page, just click the string of opened pages in the upper left hand corner of any page.
Her duties included interdiction of Japanese merchant and warship for which she sank a total of four, including one Vichy French vessel. She is also credited with the sinking of another thirty “Maru” or merchant ships. Some of her other duties included lifeguard duties, the rescuing of downed pilots and seamen whose ships were sunk as the result of enemy action, and mine detection duties, mapping of enemy minefields.
The Bowfin had many close calls during her service, including multiple depth charge attacks by enemy warships. She has the singular distinction of having actually sunk an enemy bus that was parked on a pier while it was being loaded with enemy soldiers.The Bowfin is open to the public, and for anyone interested in the history of naval warfare in the Pacific during WWII, it is a must see, along with the USS Arizona Memorial and the Battleship USS Missouri.
To easily navigate this page, you can click each thumbnail below and see its photo on the right, or you can click "Next" to page through the thumbnails. You can click the photo on the right anytime and get an enlarged image, and you can click "Next" also if you don't want to click each thumbnail. To return to the previous page you were viewing, or any page including the Home Page, just click the string of opened pages in the upper left hand corner of any page.
The design of the Japanese Kaiten was originally based on the highly successful surfaced-launched Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedo. Nearly 400 Type 1's were built, and were the only type used operationally. The Type 4 oxygen-kerosene engine produced 1,500 horsepower on one shaft. Top speed was 40 knots. Range for Type 4 is listed as 38.52 miles at 20 knots, 23.61 miles at 30 knots, and 16.78 miles at 40 knots. The warhead contained 3,960 pounds of TNT. Approximately 45-50 Type 4's were built in 1945, but were never used operationally. An escape hatch was not provided for Kaiten built late in the war, and in any case, no pilot is known to have attempted to escape from his speeding torpedo as it approached its target. Many Type 4 weapons were found at the Kure Naval Base after the War.
Kaiten were carried piggyback aboard mother submarines, and possibly aboard a few surface ships adapted for that purpose. At least three could be carried at a time on one mother sub; some I-boats carried as many as six Kaiten. Maximum depth was 264 feet, which placed that limit on the mother boat. The most successful attack was the sinking of the fleet tanker Mississinewa in Ulithi anchorage on 20 November 1944; the destroyer escort Underhill was also sunk on 24 July 1945. A few other ships were damaged. In the Japanese human torpedo program, eight mother submarines and almost 900 lives were lost.
Kaiten were carried piggyback aboard mother submarines, and possibly aboard a few surface ships adapted for that purpose. At least three could be carried at a time on one mother sub; some I-boats carried as many as six Kaiten. Maximum depth was 264 feet, which placed that limit on the mother boat. The most successful attack was the sinking of the fleet tanker Mississinewa in Ulithi anchorage on 20 November 1944; the destroyer escort Underhill was also sunk on 24 July 1945. A few other ships were damaged. In the Japanese human torpedo program, eight mother submarines and almost 900 lives were lost.
The design of the Japanese Kaiten was originally based on the highly successful surfaced-launched Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedo. Nearly 400 Type 1's were built, and were the only type used operationally. The Type 4 oxygen-kerosene engine produced 1,500 horsepower on one shaft. Top speed was 40 knots. Range for Type 4 is listed as 38.52 miles at 20 knots, 23.61 miles at 30 knots, and 16.78 miles at 40 knots. The warhead contained 3,960 pounds of TNT. Approximately 45-50 Type 4's were built in 1945, but were never used operationally. An escape hatch was not provided for Kaiten built late in the war, and in any case, no pilot is known to have attempted to escape from his speeding torpedo as it approached its target. Many Type 4 weapons were found at the Kure Naval Base after the War.
Kaiten were carried piggyback aboard mother submarines, and possibly aboard a few surface ships adapted for that purpose. At least three could be carried at a time on one mother sub; some I-boats carried as many as six Kaiten. Maximum depth was 264 feet, which placed that limit on the mother boat. The most successful attack was the sinking of the fleet tanker Mississinewa in Ulithi anchorage on 20 November 1944; the destroyer escort Underhill was also sunk on 24 July 1945. A few other ships were damaged. In the Japanese human torpedo program, eight mother submarines and almost 900 lives were lost.
Kaiten were carried piggyback aboard mother submarines, and possibly aboard a few surface ships adapted for that purpose. At least three could be carried at a time on one mother sub; some I-boats carried as many as six Kaiten. Maximum depth was 264 feet, which placed that limit on the mother boat. The most successful attack was the sinking of the fleet tanker Mississinewa in Ulithi anchorage on 20 November 1944; the destroyer escort Underhill was also sunk on 24 July 1945. A few other ships were damaged. In the Japanese human torpedo program, eight mother submarines and almost 900 lives were lost.