One of the most outstanding of those 288 submarines was the uss tang, launched on august 16, 1943, at the mare island calif. On 27 september she topped off with fuel at midway and left there the same day, heading for an area between the northwest coast of formosa, and the china coast. Uss tang submarine experience places visitors aboard the most successful submarine in world war ii for its fifth and final war patrol on october 25, 1944. On october 25, 1951, the second uss tang ss 563 was commissioned and was the first of the modern fast attack submarines and surrogate parent of the u. Noted naval historian theodore roscoe described morton as an undersea ace in his book submarine. Firstperson account by the tang s skipper later a japanese pow is a classic. Tang was among the best submarines deployed in the pacific. Tang averaged one enemy ship sunk every 11 days, a rate twice that of any other u. The bravest man theres no margin for mistakes in submarines. Whether rescuing navy fliers off truk or stalking enemy convoys off japan, tang carried the war to the enemy with unparalleled ferocity. Submarine books store used and rare submarine and uboat. American submarine war patrol reports during five war patrols under the command of richard h. Despite the dangers, american submarines performed admirably.
Both of these books are recommended reading for any sub buff. At least one submarine, the uss tang, was sunk this way. Tuohy captures the daytoday feel of life on board a wwii submarine as well as any, and his descriptions of tangs war patrols are a fitting tribute to dick okane and the men of the silent service. Construction began 194950 and tang ss563 commissioned in 1951, the remainder in 1952. Thunder below the uss barb revolutionizes submarine. Tangs first war patrol, conducted in the central pacific during january and february 1944 during which she sank. Nineteen fortyfour, cruising, i think, north of formosa ph, present day taiwan, the final torpedo onboard was fired. Okane personalizes tangs history by including some of the stories of the men who served on her. Okane, the balao class fleet submarine uss tang was credited with sinking a total of 31 japanese ships, for a wartime total of 227,800 tons.
He died 24 october 1944 in the tragic sinking of uss tang ss306. Uss tang and uss tullibee, victims of their own faulty, circling torpedoes, had few survivors, five of whom managed to escape from the sunken, burning tang when it was 180 feet below the. So in november 2011, my colleague seth paridon then our manager of research services and i accompanied staff members from cortina productions to the ling to document what the. Wwii submarine history books us submarine rc submarine model submarine ww2 submarine book store submarine plan submarine models submarine picture nuclear submarine book store specializing in new, used, and rare submarine and u boat books. Gripping and gritty novel of uboat crewmen at war and. I read unbroken about a year or so ago and that book moved me greatly. If you like action, accuracy, and professionalism reading about wwii, you cant go wrong with these two books.
Life aboard wwii submarines was brutal americas military. In her short career in the pacific war, tang sank 33 ships totalling 116,454 tons. Aug 20, 2000 the tang had been making a nighttime surface attack when it was sunk by one of its own torpedoes, which ran errantly in a circle, hitting the 300foot sub in the stern. The patrols of americas most famous world war ii submarine. The story of tang and her gallant crew ranks with the most amazing of naval history.
You may have read the history and headlines article there is no such thing as friendly fire. Richard hetherington dick okane february 2, 1911 february 16, 1994 was a united states navy submarine commander in world war ii, who was awarded the medal of honor for commanding uss tang in pacific war against japan to the most successful record of any united states submarine ever. Tangs skipper on all five of her war patrols, rear admiral richard h. Signed autographed submarine and uboat books beach, captain edward submarine heinemann 1953. Okane also wrote a book about his earlier experiences as exec officer of the sub, uss wahoo. The book is a very accurately detailed telling of the final mission of wwiis most decorated submarine, the uss tang. Top 10 submarine books armchair general magazine we. The tang s skipper, richard okane, was a survivor of the sinking.
My father served on uss 212 gato, as mentioned in this book. Okane is acknowledged as the top submarine skipper of world war ii. Following trials and training along the east coast, the submarine was assigned to submarine squadron 1, submarine force, pacific fleet. This wonderful book about the record breaking uss barb is unique in its first person voice and story of naval heroics for which we can be forever proud. There, she joined submarine division 32 of subron 3. The book also covers the story of other fearless submariners all set against the backdrop of the pacific war. Richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang. The tonnage of the ships sunk by silversides amounted to 90,080 tons, second only to tangs total. Listed below are 4 books covering ww2 usn submarine action. From its initial planning, the new tang introduced the fast. Mar 14, 2020 the uss tang, a balao class fleet submarine of the united states navy, is todays subject. On lifeguard duty in 1944, okane and his men rescued 22 navy flyers. Shop online for 106 submarine models at discounts up to 32%.
Dec 07, 2012 uss tang was a 1525ton balao class submarine that was built at the mare island navy yard, california. Richard okane was the executive officer on wahoo and authored that book. The tang sank 33 ships more than any other american submarine before okanes luck ran out. Uss tang ss306 was a balaoclass submarine of world war ii, the first ship of the united states navy to bear the name tang. Richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang,pulitzer prize winning author william tuohy weaves a multicolored blanket of history about the silent service of the early 1940s, and especially about the tang and her only commanding officer, commander richard dick okane, a naval academy graduate from. But uss tang s last torpedo turned out to be faulty. That book was about the experience of one man while this book is really about an entire crew and ultimately the 9 survivors of that crew. The second piece of evidence is a document named the loss of the uss tang, pages 250259. The bravest man richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang by william tuohy by william tuohy by william tuohy by william tuohy by william tuohy read by e. Clear the bridge privides a well written and consise chronology of the operations of tang. Uss tang ss 306 was a balao class submarine of world war ii, the first ship of the united states navy to bear the name tang. Uss tang ssagss563, the lead ship of her class was the second ship of the united states navy to be named for the tang.
The uss tang portion of this report is part of a larger document titled medical study of the experiences of submariners as recorded in 1,471 submarine patrol reports in world war ii. Commander richard okane received the medal of honor for her last two engagements 23 and 24. In order to reach her area, tang had to pass through narrow waters known to be heavily patrolled by the enemy. The true story of one of americas topscoring world war ii submarine s uss tang ss306, written by her only skipper, richard dick okane. The leadership skills during wwii submarine patrols in the pacific demonstrated every day by the captain the author and his officers were spectacular.
Judged by such standards, silversides has the most prolific combat record of any stillextant american submarine. See more ideas about uss tang, submarines and world war ii. Okane went on to command uss tang ss 306 and to receive the medal of honor. Uss sculpin and uss s44 went down fighting, with only fortytwo men from the sculpin being taken prisoner and half of them perishing on the way to japan. Richard okane hailed as the ace of aces, captain richard okane, winner of the congressional medal of honor for his consummate skill and heroism as a submarine skipper, sank more enemy ships and saved more downed fliers than anyone else. Richard hetherington dick okane february 2, 1911 february 16, 1994 was a united states navy submarine commander in world war ii, who was awarded the medal of honor for commanding uss tang in pacific war against japan to the most successful record of any united states submarine. She is credited with sinking 23 ships, the thirdmost of any allied world war ii submarine, behind only the uss tang and uss tautog.
He then became a naval and submarine legend on the u s s tang. Submarine books store used and rare submarine and uboat books. The tonnage of the ships sunk by silversides amounted to 90,080 tons, second only to tang s total. On her fifth war patrol, tang launched a surface attack against a japanese transport. Welcome to torpedo junction since 1994, the industry leader specializing in submarine and uboat books and memorabilia. The world war two combat patrols of uss trigger, seawolf, tang, harder, archerfish, wahoo and other famous u. Signed autographed submarine and uboat books torpedo. The tang had been making a nighttime surface attack when it was sunk by one of its own torpedoes, which ran errantly in a circle, hitting the 300foot sub in the stern. The worlds largest inventory and the finest selection of new, used and rare submarine and u boat books. The uss tang, a balao class fleet submarine of the united states navy, is todays subject.
History through the viewfinder the national wwii museum. Oral history appendectomy performed on fourth war patrol. Escape from the deep, published in 2008, is available for. Tuohy captures the daytoday feel of life on board a wwii submarine as well as any, and his descriptions of tang s war patrols are a fitting tribute to dick okane and the men of the silent service. This is the 1144 scale deutsches uboot type xxi german submarine with interior plastic kit by revell. The true story of one of americas topscoring world war ii submarinesuss tang ss306, written by her only skipper, richard dick okane.
The fastpaced, factdriven, backseat game show fans can now play without hailing a taxi. Okane, set out from pearl harbor on 24 september 1944, to begin her fifth war patrol. Tang arrived at the naval submarine facility at san diego. Uss wahoo ss565 the second wahoo ss565 was laid down on 24october 1949 by the portsmouth n. Okane personalizes tang s history by including some of the stories of the men who served on her. Aug 24, 2016 the second piece of evidence is a document named the loss of the uss tang, pages 250259. Wahoo the patrols of americas most famous wwii submarine. Her commander, richard okane, a 1934 graduate of the naval academy, would earn the medal of honor and the tang would receive two presidential unit citations. The victim of a circular running torpedo during her fifth war patrol, only eight members of her crew, including okane, survived to spend the rest of the war in japanese captivity. Used and rare submarine and uboat books alden, john d. During five war patrols under the command of richard h. Commissioned in october 1943, she deployed to hawaii in december 1943 to begin an intense and eventful combat career under the leadership of commander richard h. Written by richard o kane, the top scoring american submarine skipper of world war two, it tells of o kanes life in both uss wahoo, serving as executive officer to the legendary mush morton and on uss tang as captain.
Books similar to clear the bridge the war patrols of the. Before taking command of the submarine uss tang, lieutenant okane was the executive officer on the illfated uss wahoo ss238. Okane some thirty years after the war, it is a rollicking and compelling story about one of the elite boats of the submarine service. Books similar to clear the bridge the war patrols of the u. In the pacific, american crews sank almost 1,400 japanese ships of different types, totaling more than 5. Navy submarine tang was legendaryshe had sunk more enemy ships, rescued more downed airmen, and pulled off more daring surface attacks than any other allied submarine in. Richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang ebook written by william tuohy. Richard hetherington dick okane february 2, 1911 february 16, 1994 was a united states navy submarine commander in world war ii, who was awarded the medal of. The bravest man richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang. From this pulitzer prizewinning journalist comes the powerful true story of richard okane, americas undersea ace of aces. Commander richard okane received the medal of honor for her last two engagements 23 and 24 october 1944 tang was sunk during the last engagement. Enjoy the best, most challenging, and most popular questions from the hit discovery show cash caband theyre all no fare.
See more ideas about uss tang, submarines and wwii. The uss tang was a balaoclass submarine, and fortunately the new jersey naval museum in hackensack, new jersey, features another balaoclass submarine, the uss ling. On eternal patrol the loss of uss tang ss 306 tang ss306 compiled by paul w. Guests relive the last epic battle of the uss tang and feel a deeper appreciation for the bravery and sacrifice of those who served in the intense, confined world of underwater warfare. Uss tang was a 1525ton balao class submarine that was built at the mare island navy yard, california. Navy says wreck found off japan is legendary sub uss wahoo. The bravest man richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang richard okane and the amazing submarine adventures of the uss tang by william tuohy by william tuohy by william tuohy by william tuohy by william tuohy read by. Submarine losses world war ii, navpers 15,784, 1949 issue. Oral history appendectomy performed on fourth war patrol of. Bright, agressive officers like dick okane were the ramaining element to gain ultimate seccess. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the bravest man.