Lost Boats - August
It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died...rather we should thank God that such men lived...
~ George S. Patton
Lost on 13 AUG 1942 after grounding on submerged rocks off Rossel Island while on her third war patrol.
The USS S-39 soon took on a 35 degree list to port.
The entire crew was able to abandon ship and was rescued by the HMAS KATOOMBA (J204/M204).
The S-39 was abandonded and left to break up on the rocks.
Lost on 13 AUG 1944 with the loss of 78 officers and crew while on her second war patrol.
USS FLIER was transiting on the surface when she was rocked by a massive explosion (probably a mine) and sank within less than a minute.
Thirteen survivors, some injured, made it into the water and swam to shore. Eight of those survived and six days later friendly natives guided them to a Coast Watcher and they were evacuated by the USS REDFIN (SS 272).
Lost on 24 AUG 1944 with the loss of 79 officers and crew during a depth charge attack by a Japanese destroyer near Bataan while on her sixth war patrol.
USS HARDER earned a Presidential Unit Citation for her first five war patrols and is tied for ninth in the number of enemy ships sunk during WWII.
Commanding Officer CDR Dealey was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously.
Lost on 06 AUG 1945 with the loss of 84 officers and crew in the Lombok Strait while on her third war patrol.
USS BULLHEAD was presumed sunk by a depth charge dropped by a Japanese Army aircraft when U.S. and British submarines operating in the area were unable to contact her.
USS BULLHEAD was the last U.S. submarine lost during WWII.
Lost on 26 AUG 1949 after being hammered by a violent polar gale off Norway, causing an electrical fire and battery explosion that generated hydrogen and chlorine gasses.
In extremely bad weather, men of USS COCHINO and USS TUSK (SS-426) fought to save the submarine for fourteen hours, performing acts of skillful seamanship and high courage. After a second battery explosion, abandon ship was ordered and USS COCHINO sank at 71°35' N., 23°35' E.
USS TUSK's crew rescued all of USS COCHINO's men except for one civilian engineer. Six sailors from USS TUSK were lost during the rescue.