View source for USS Gurnard (SS-254)

{{short description|Submarine of the United States}}
{{other ships|USS Gurnard}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=USS Gurnard (SS-254) 1944.jpg
|Ship caption=USS ''Gurnard'' (SS-254) in 1944 after an [[wikt:overhaul|overhaul]] at [[Mare Island Naval Shipyard]], [[Vallejo, California|Vallejo]], [[California]]
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1945}}
|Ship name=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[General Dynamics Electric Boat|Electric Boat Company]], [[Groton, Connecticut]]<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-dates">{{cite book
  | last = Friedman
  | first = Norman
  | authorlink =
  | title = U.S. Submarines Through 1945: An Illustrated Design History
  | publisher = [[United States Naval Institute]]
  | year = 1995
  | location = [[Annapolis, Maryland]]
  | pages = 285–304
  | url =
  | doi =
  | isbn = 1-55750-263-3 }}</ref>
|Ship laid down=2 September 1941<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-dates"/>
|Ship launched=1 June 1942<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-dates"/>
|Ship sponsor=Miss Suzanne Slingluff
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=18 September 1942<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-dates"/>
|Ship decommissioned=27 November 1945<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-dates"/>
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=1 May 1961<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-dates"/>
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship honors=*[[Navy Unit Commendation]]
*Six [[battle star]]s
|Ship fate=Sold for scrap, 29 October 1961<ref name="Register">{{cite book
  | last = Bauer
  | first = K. Jack
  | authorlink =
  |author2=Roberts, Stephen S.
   | title = Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775-1990: Major Combatants
  | publisher = Greenwood Press
  | year = 1991
  | location = [[Westport, Connecticut]]
  | pages = 271–273
  | url =
  | doi =
  | isbn = 0-313-26202-0 }}</ref>
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class=[[Gato class submarine|''Gato''-class]] [[diesel-electric]] [[submarine]]<ref name="Register"/>
|Ship displacement=*{{convert|1525|LT|t|abbr=on}} surfaced<ref name="Register"/>
*{{convert|2424|LT|t|abbr=on}} submerged<ref name="Register"/>
|Ship length={{convert|311|ft|9|in|abbr=on}}<ref name="Register"/>
|Ship beam={{convert|27|ft|3|in|abbr=on}}<ref name="Register"/>
|Ship draft={{convert|17|ft|0|in|abbr=on}} maximum<ref name="Register"/>
|Ship propulsion={{Fleet-boat-propulsion-HOR-4-GE}}
|Ship speed=*{{convert|21|kn|km/h|lk=in|abbr=on}} surfaced<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-specs">''U.S. Submarines Through 1945'' pp. 305-311</ref>
*{{convert|9|kn|km/h|abbr=on}} submerged<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-specs"/>
|Ship range={{convert|11000|nmi|km|lk=in|abbr=on}} surfaced at {{convert|10|kn|km/h|abbr=on}}<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-specs"/>
|Ship endurance=*48 hours at {{convert|2|kn|km/h|0|abbr=on}} submerged<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-specs"/>
*75 days on patrol
|Ship test depth={{convert|300|ft|m|-1|abbr=on}}<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-specs"/>
|Ship complement=6 officers, 54 enlisted<ref name="FriedmanSubs1-specs"/>
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament={{Fleet-boat-armament-3-inch}}
}}
|}

'''USS ''Gurnard'' (SS-254)''', a [[Gato class submarine|''Gato''-class]] [[submarine]], was the first ship of the [[United States Navy]] to be named for the [[sea robin|gurnard]].

==Construction and commissioning==
''Gurnard''′s [[keel]] was [[Keel-laying|laid down]] by the [[Electric Boat Company]] at [[Groton, Connecticut|Groton]], [[Connecticut]], on 2 September 1941. She was [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 1 June 1942, sponsored by Miss Suzanne Slingluff, and [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 18 September 1942.

==Atlantic Patrol==
Following [[shakedown cruise|shakedown]] from [[Naval Submarine Base New London|New London]], Connecticut, ''Gurnard'' sailed for [[Rosneath, Scotland]], 2 November 1942 and reached that port 13 days later. Her first war patrol, 28 November to 27 December 1942, brought her to the [[Bay of Biscay]] where she lay off the [[Spain|Spanish]] coast awaiting [[Nazi Germany|German]] [[blockade#Blockade running|blockade runners]] bound for Spanish ports. The patrol was uneventful; no enemy ships were sighted and subsequently ''Gurnard'' returned to New London 9 February 1943 for repairs and alterations.

==Pacific Patrols==

=== Second, third, and fourth war patrols, May 1943 – January 1944 ===

After reaching [[Pearl Harbor]] 26 May, the submarine got underway 12 June for her second war patrol. She patrolled off [[Toagel Mlungui Passage]] and on 29 June saw action for the first time, damaging two [[Japan]]ese [[cargo ship|merchantmen]] and surviving 24 [[depth charges]] thrown by an enemy [[destroyer]]. Varied damage was inflicted on other ships in these waters before ''Gurnard'' made her first kill, sinking [[cargo ship]] ''Taiko Maru'' at {{coord|12|53|N|131|49|E|}}. on 11 June 1943. Having expended all torpedoes, the submarine returned via [[Midway Island]] to Pearl Harbor, arriving 26 July for refit.

On 6 September, she set sail once again, this time heading towards the [[South China Sea]] for her third war patrol. In the early hours of 7 October, a five-ship convoy came into view, prompting Gurnard to initiate a pursuit. By 01:39 on 8 October, Gurnard had closed in on the convoy and successfully sunk the cargo ship Taian Maru and the passenger-cargo ship Dainichi Maru west of [[Luzon]]. This highly successful patrol concluded on 28 October when Gurnard arrived at Pearl Harbor.

One month later she sailed on her fourth patrol to prowl off the southeast coast of [[Honshū]] and soon found good hunting. A convoy was sighted 24 December and at 07:10 ''Gurnard'' attacked. Two minutes later cargo ship ''Seizan Maru No. 2'' had broken in two and sunk; she was soon joined by cargo ship ''Tofuku Maru''. Japanese destroyers attacked the submarine with over 80 depth charges without success. The crew celebrated by taking a couple of snaps of Mt. Fuji. They then had their Christmas dinner in Tokyo Bay.  After damaging another merchantman on 27 December, ''Gurnard'' returned to Pearl Harbor 7 January 1944. From there she was sent [[United States|States]]ide for overhaul.

=== Fifth, sixth, and seventh war patrols, April – November 1944 ===

[[File:USS Gurnard;0825404.jpg|thumb|''Gurnard'' on 14 March 1944 off [[Mare Island]], [[California]], following an [[wikt:overhaul|overhaul]].]]Following overhaul at [[San Francisco]] ''Gurnard'' departed Pearl Harbor 16 April on her fifth war patrol, bound for the eastern [[Celebes Sea]]. On this patrol she chalked up one of the highest single-patrol tonnage scores of the Pacific war, attacking the [[Take Ichi convoy]] on 6 May and sinking 6,886-ton cargo ship ''Tenshinzan Maru'', 6,995-ton passenger-cargo vessel ''Taijima Maru'', and 5,824-ton passenger-cargo ship ''Aden Maru''. Nearly a hundred depth charges rained down around her but she eluded the hunters and escaped undamaged. This vital convoy carried 40,000 troops intended to oppose Gen. [[Douglas MacArthur|MacArthur]] in [[New Guinea]], and the embarked units suffered losses of nearly 50 percent. ''Gurnard'''s next kill occurred 24 May when several torpedoes sent to the bottom the 10,090-ton tanker ''Tatekawa Maru''. No further opportunities presented themselves; and ''Gurnard'' put in at [[Fremantle, Western Australia|Fremantle]], 11 June 1944 with the completion of the patrol.

The submarine stood out on her sixth patrol 8 July for the [[Banda Sea|Banda]], [[Molucca Sea|Molucca]], Celebes, [[Sulu Sea|Sulu]], and [[Mindanao Sea]]s. After topping off at [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]] she patrolled off the [[Peleng Straits]] and damaged one merchantman before returning to Fremantle 5 September.

''Gurnard'''s seventh patrol commenced 9 October after refit. While cruising off [[Borneo]], she detected a five-ship enemy convoy. A successful attack was pressed home 3 November at the end of an 18-hour hunt, and two torpedoes demolished cargo ship ''Taimei Maru''. ''Gurnard'' returned to her Australian port 17 November after this victory.

=== Eighth and ninth war patrols, December 1944 – May 1945 ===

The submarine's eighth and ninth patrols (11 December 1944 – 1 February 1945 and 10 March – 9 May 1945) included reconnaissance off [[Camranh Bay]] and patrols with submarines {{USS|Hammerhead|SS-364|2}} and {{USS|Boarfish|SS-327|2}}, but hunting was poor and no ships were sunk. ''Gurnard'' finished her final patrol at Pearl Harbor 9 May and put in at [[Mare Island Naval Shipyard|Mare Island]], California, nine days later for a major overhaul. Following a round-trip voyage thence to Pearl Harbor and Midway, she returned to [[San Francisco]] 11 September 1945 and decommissioned there 27 November 1945.

''Gurnard'' remained in reserve until 1 July 1949 when she reported to the [[San Francisco Naval Shipyard]] for activation as an armory for naval reserve submarine training. Towed to Pearl Harbor 27 November to 9 December 1949, the submarine served there until returning under tow to [[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma, Wash.]], 18 May 1953 to continue reserve training duties in that port until June 1960. She was then inactivated in preparation for disposal. Her name was stricken from the [[Naval Vessel Register|Navy List]] 1 May 1961. She was sold for scrapping 26 September 1961 to the [[National Metal and Steel Corporation]], [[Terminal Island]], [[Los Angeles, California]]

==Awards==
* [[File:U.S. Navy Unit Commendation ribbon.svg|106px]] [[Navy Unit Commendation]]
* {{ribbon devices|number=6|type=service-star|ribbon=Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}} [[Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal]] with six [[battle star]]s for service in [[World War II]]

''Gurnard''′s war patrols numbers two through seven were designated "successful."

== Notes ==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite journal |last1=Wright |first1=C. C. |title=Question 17/03: Replacement of US Submarine Diesel Engines |journal=Warship International |date=2005 |volume=XLII |issue=4 |pages=431–434 |issn=0043-0374}}
*{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/g10/gurnard-i.htm}}
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08254a.htm NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive Gurnard (SS-254) Keel Laying - WW II Service] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090827150939/http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08254a.htm |date=2009-08-27 }}
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08254b.htm NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive Gurnard (SS-254) Decommissioning] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505062646/http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08254b.htm |date=2010-05-05 }}
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08254c.htm NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive Gurnard (SS-254) Naval Reserve Training Vessel - Scrapping] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505061033/http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08254c.htm |date=2010-05-05 }}

{{Gato class submarine}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurnard (SS-254)}}
[[Category:Gato-class submarines]]
[[Category:World War II submarines of the United States]]
[[Category:Ships built in Groton, Connecticut]]
[[Category:1942 ships]]