on Aug 11, ‘42 in the Mediterranean LCDR Helmut Rosenbaum in U-73 sank the Brit. aircraft carrier HMS EAGLE with 4 torpedoes? It sunk within 10 minutes. In that time almost the entire crew was saved - 67 officers and 652 men.

The Biggest

What was the biggest ship ever sunk by submarine? Come on; you must have known this one. From the data compiled by CAPTAIN ROBERT THEW (333-+-1987) we confirm that the biggest ship ever sunk by submarine was the 60,589 Japanese super-secret, super aircraft carrier SHINANO. This giant sister to the super battleships YAMATO and MUSASHI was converted to a carrier but sunk by USS ARCHER-FISH (SS 311) under command of CAPTAIN JOSEPH ENRIGHT (2142-1992).

Trivia

George Washington endorsed the use of the American submarine ‘TURTLE’ during the Revolution. Following the vessel’s attack on a British frigate, he discussed the potential use of submarines in a letter to Thomas Jefferson.

The first periscope used by the United States Navy was not built for a submarine. The ironclad monitor ‘OSAGE’ utilyzed a periscope to discover Confederate cavalry which was taking cover behind the high banks of the Red River in Arkansas.

Shooting Leads to War

JOE CASSANO (1218-1989) sent a clipping a while back, which may have some meaning today. It reads in part:

“In 1941 the United States, a neutral nation, was selling war supplies to a Great Britain at war with Adolf Hitler. But German U-Boats were patrolling the gray North Atlantic, and the US Neutrality Act forbade these goods to be carried in American ships. Lend-Lease would permit such shipments, but that, its opponents warned, would lead to convoying - convoying would lead to shooting - and shooting would lead to war.

In July, President Roosevelt ordered American destroyers to escort American ships to Iceland from whence they were accompanied by Royal Navy ships to Britain. He next ordered that other neutral nations’ ships be convoyed, then British ships.

Incidents were inevitable.”

Little Known Submarine Facts

First, a correction from JIM TAYLOR (4158-1995) who writes: “I am writing in response to an error that appeared in ‘Little Known Submarine Facts’ in KTB #113. The report that USS PENNSYLVANIA was the only battleship to escape damage in the Pearl Harbor attack was at least partially incorrect. I am quite active with the local Pearl Harbor Survivors Association and I attend meetings regularly. There have been several members in the chapter who were on the PENNSYLVANIA during the December 7th attack. They have all confirmed that the PENNSYLVANIA was indeed damaged in the attack.”

There is a battle report of sorts accompanying his letter, which we will run in KTB #117 next month. Thanks for the sharp eye and the ‘heads up’ JIM.

Here are the answers to the quiz in KTB #114:

61. The first Japanese ship captured by the US was a sampan in the restricted waters at the mouth of Pearl Harbor at 0648 on December 7, an hour before hostilities. The skipper of the sampan cut his engines and displayed a white flag when challenged by the destroyer USS WARD.

62. I.J.N. Admiral Ugaka, with an eleven plane group on August 15, 1945 led a KAMIKAZE attack on Okinawa. He flew a YOKOSUKA D4Y2, code-named ‘JUDY’ by the Allies. Just over 2,000 of these planes were manufactured.

63. CINCLANT is Commander in Chief - Atlantic Fleet, and so CINCPAC is Commander in Chief - Pacific Fleet.

64. The famous ‘LACONIA Order’ forbade German U-Boats to pick up survivors of sunken ships. This was prompted due to what is called the ‘LACONIA INCIDENT’ - September 12, 1942 an American bomber (a B-24 LIBERATOR) attacked U-Boats that had picked up 1,100 survivors from the British transport LACONIA. You’ll read a full report on this ‘LACONIA Incident’ when we profile U-156, the boat that sank LACONIA.

65. The 14th most successful USN submarine Skipper was John S. Coye who commanded USS SILVERSIDES on 6 war patrols, sinking 14 ships. Coye retired as an Admiral, lives in California & enjoys radio-controlled submarine models.

For KTB #117 next months, do you know . . .

66. What German passenger ship was stalked by a U. S. Navy warship until the German Captain decided to scuttle rather than being sunk or seized - and why he did this?

67. What was Japanese troop strength on Okinawa, April 1945?

68. What name did the German blockade-breaker ODENWALD use while she was disguised as an American vessel?

69. There was a hospital ship in Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 during the Japanese attack and the Japanese pilots avoided this ship. What was the name of this ship?

70. Who was the 13th most successful USN submarine Skipper?

‘AMBER ROOM’ Found?

The German Government will soon excavate the cellar of a ruined castle to look for the famed ‘AMBER ROOM’ that was given to Peter the Great of Russia by Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm I in 1716, taken back by German forces during World War II, then lost in 1945. It was last seen (in crates) at a depot at Königsberg Castle in that city, now called Kaliningrad, Russia.

A 58 year old businessman, whose father gave him this story on his deathbed, told the German Government that the treasure is in the cellar of this ruined castle in northern Hesse.

What will they find? We will find out and put the answer in our KTB Magazine as soon as we learn anything.

Thanks to BUD DANA (245-A/LIFE-1987) for this info.

Who ‘OWNS’ CSS HUNLEY

Several dive groups have located or claim to have located, this historic Confederate submarine and most have laid claim to it. Of course, there is bickering among some of these groups as to who found it first, who found an old sewerpipe instead of HUNLEY, who is jumping whose claim etc. All this is expected in a find such as this. But the question really is not who found CSS HUNLEY first - but who really has title to this historic wreck.