Happy Birthday, U.S. Submarine Force! Celebrating 112 Years of Undersea Dominance By Lt. Hayley Sims, Commander, Submarine Force, Atlantic Public Affairs NORFOLK, Va. – On April 11, 1900, the submarine force was born when the U.S. Navy bought the submersible Holland VI from John Holland. Since that historic day, undersea warfighters and submarines have used fortitude and creativity to sustain their superiority beneath the sea and develop the force into the indispensable asset that patrols world-wide today. As submariners celebrate their birthday around the world this month, they will honor the heroes on eternal patrol and those who have served past and present. Rear Adm. Frank Caldwell, Commander, Submarine Force U.S. Pacific Fleet, understands the value of submariners. “For 112 years, the broad military advantages created by undersea concealment have resulted in a wide range of undersea platforms and missions that have enhanced our national security,” said Rear Adm. Caldwell. “Throughout history, what has remained constant is the bold character of submariners.”Throughout the last eleven decades, submariners have advanced through four generations. The first generation produced fleet boats with the speed, endurance, weapons and payload that would make the submarine a warfighting platform. The second generation, defined by World War II heroes, made a decisive difference in the war and dominated the seas which set high standards of performance. The third generation of undersea warfare during the Cold War was defined by the advent of nuclear power – in weapons and propulsion. This advanced technologyprevented a nuclear world war and secured the nation’s interests. The current generation of submariners, Generation IV, is being defined by the increase of long-range precision sensors and weapons. Today’s submariners stay ahead of these threats and work hard to preserve their superiority in the undersea environment with the help of the “Design for Undersea Warfare” a guiding document which articulates how undersea warfighters provide “Ready Forces, Effective Employment, and Future Forces.” Vice Adm. John M. Richardson, Commander, Submarine Forces, recognizes the hard, outstanding work of submariners and their families. “I am incredibly proud of each and every member of the undersea warfare team, including our families who sacrifice along with us,” said Vice Adm. Richardson. “Just as earlier generations did before us, we fourth generation undersea warriors will be ready to surge to any crisis – first to arrive and last to leave. Let it always be a comforting reassurance to our friends and the worst nightmare for our enemies to know that the U.S. Submarine Force is on the job.” Today’s submarine force consists of 53 attack, 14 ballistic-missile and four guided-missile submarines that enable the Navy and the nation to win wars, deter wars, defeat terrorists, and ease disasters. Happy birthday U.S. Submarine Force and congratulations on 112 years of rich success running silent through history and running deep into the future.

A great "Sonar Attack" story. USS Tigrone AGSS 419 Now I have to assure you that this is an absolute, positive no-sh--ter... I know because I was there. I may have told some of you this story before, but as I'm now so old I can't remember which one of you have heard it and due to the fact that you're now all so old you probably don't remember it anyway, I'm going to tell all of you. The first boat I served on was the USS Tigrone AGSS-419. My original orders were for the USS Cobbler SS-344, but she was up North freezing the water in her bilges when I received my orders, so I was sent TAD to the Tigrone who was scheduled to make one of her runs to the Azores. The Tigrone was actually operated by USN/USL (US Navy/Underwater Sound Lab) and carried an experimental active sonar system called BRASS. We had both BRASS I and BRASS II and if you've ever seen a picture of the Tigrone during this time in her long and useful service life, she was a weird looking boat. The Tigrone was the only boat I was ever aboard which made no big deal about going to test depth. When we operated that monster sonar we always went directly to test depth and following the diving alarm, the diving officer would be given that depth to head for and if the various compartments got rigged for deep by the time we got there, good enough, if not, oh well, they would as soon as they could get to it! I cannot tell you how many watts the BRASS was capable of transmitting into the water, but suffice it to say it far exceeded anything else in anybody's Navy at that time and maybe even today's Navies for all I know. To give you an idea of the sound level it produced, all hands forward to the engine rooms were required to wear engine men's hearing protection when it was operating! The overhead of that boat was festooned with engine men's earmuffs, hanging from every possible location to be readily available when the word was passed: "Now rig for BRASS Ops!" There were no torpedo tubes on the Tigrone at that time. The after room had been turned into a bunk room and held tier after tier of racks for the crew. The forward room was dedicated to the sonar system including it's very own MG set to power that monster. The sonarmen stood their watches on a standard AN/BQR-2B passive sonar set which was in a little corner up forward where the tubes used to be. The Port half of the forward room was all the equipment the civilian USN/USL personnel used to operate the BRASS. It was a very sophisticated system, capable of varying both the amplitude and duration of the pulses it generated and if I can attach the picture, you will note a huge "s--t-can" mounted where the bow should be. Inside that huge and cumbersome protrusion was a transducer which looked like a huge log lying on it's side atop a round table. The round table could be rotated, thereby presenting the horizontal length of the "log" in whatever direction was desired. In addition to the horizontal training, this transducer "log" was constructed in staves (like a barrel) and the operators could select which staves were to be used, giving them the ability to direct the transmitted beam in whatever direction they would like it to go. We would go to test depth off the Azores and transmit a pulse in a South-Westerly direction so that it could be received by the USS Baya who would be operating off the Tongue of the Ocean in the Bahamas!!!! Like I said, BRASS put a LOT of power into the water. Needless to say our activities drew the attention of the Russians and one of those 'fishing boats' brisling with antenna, would follow us around, undoubtedly listening to and recording every transmission we made. Well one day we were pounding away with the BRASS when one of the civilians asked me where the Russian fishing boat was. I was standing a regular passive sonar watch and I need to explain that whenever the BRASS transmitted a relay in my sonar set would cut out my audio for the duration of the pulse and then cut back in. When the audio returned, I could hear the reverberations from the transmission bouncing off the bottom, off waves, off thermal-clines and maybe off the Azores themselves for several minutes, it was deafening! I reported that the 'fishing boat' was dead astern making 80 RPM's, just enough to keep up with our three knot submerged speed. "Keep us posted if anything changes." I was told and I sat up to pay closer attention. Pretty soon I noticed a decrease in the amplitude (power) of the transmitted pulses from the BRASS. The same was true of the pulses following that and so on, until the BRASS was barely making a 'b-e-e-p' for each transmission. "He's picking up speed and closing" I announced to the civilians who were twisting the dials on the BRASS equipment and watching me to see if their efforts were producing the desired results. "Tell us when he's directly overhead," was the request as the pulses became weaker still. Evidently the Russian figured that we had sped up and were leaving him behind, as the very loud transmissions we had been making were now so weak he could hardly hear them. "He's making 220 turns and coming right up our stern", I reported. The USN/USL boys made some more adjustments to their equipment, "Is he overhead yet?" they asked, "Almost", I said, wondering what in hell they were going to do. Just then he came out of our baffles and I could hear his diesel engine roaring above the sound of his cavitating propeller blades, as he picked up speed. "HE'S OVERHEAD NOW - NOW - NOW!!" I shouted and just then the relay in my audio circuit cut my sound. It didn't matter, I could hear the prolonged blast of a BRASS transmission coming right through our hull, it seemed that it would never end. I didn't realize they could extend the pulse length so long! The operators had turned the transducer table until the 'log' was crosswise to the length of our hull, then they had selected just the top staves so that all that transmitted energy went straight up to the Russian Trawler who listening equipment was undoubtedly turned up has far as it would go in an effort to hear our previously weaken signals over their own ships noise. You guys know what test depth was in those old boats, so you know just how far away his receiver was from probably a million or more watts being aimed directly at him. We fried his sonar system . . . cooked it . . . blew every transistor . . . toasted every tube . . . Probably rendered the operator deaf for life. You've heard the old saying, "That noise was ten dB above the threshold of pain" - well can you imagine what sound level BRASS could produce at that short a distance? It was a wonder we didn't blow a hole in his hull and sink him. For the next week the only time that 'Fishing Trawler' caught up with us was when we surfaced after a day's work. He could still pick us up when we were on the surface with his radar, but he couldn't find us when we were submerged and BRASS was transmitting. After about six or seven days, a second trawler showed up and relieved him. They would follow us, but never got real close to us. Once burned, twice shy.... And that's my Russian Trawler Sea Story... Roger Ramjet Here's the picture:

Received from Gene Dick, HMC(SS), aboard the Sea Fox 53-55. He survived Pearl Harbor when stationed aboard the Oklahoma. I’ve added the link below in case you can’t open the .docx file. http://www.navy.mil/ph70/interviews.asp?id=11 All the best. Geo.

Cold War Submarines a Pictorial Explanation of the Evolution of US Submarines after World War II The book shows the evolution of US Submarines during the Cold War without boring the reader with “too much technical detail” The “80-page” book shows pictures of each submarine type in chronological order with over 70 pictures – many “full color” and “full page”. The book is intended to be entertaining while informative. If you served on a US submarine during the Cold War, there is a picture that looks like it in this book! The book shows where each submarine fits into the Cold War! To preview the book click this link: http://www.coldwarsubmarines.com/store/page84.html Submitted by Mel Douyette USS Sea Fox

BUTCHER, Jr,, Steven, died in Swampscott, formerly of Bogart, CA, Niceville, FL and Winchester, MA, on 2/20/2012. Beloved husband of Irene J. Butcher. Loving father of Steven Butcher III of Billerica, Cathy Brown and her husband Scott of Winterville, GA and Janice James and her husband Ralph of Swampscott. He is also survived by seven grandchildren. Steven was a Chief Radio Technician in the submarine corps of the US Navy where he earned a Bronze Star in WWII. He graduated from Brown University with a BA in Engineering and from Northeastern University with a MA in Engineering. He was employed at Mitre Corporation for over 25 years. Steve enjoyed golf, bridge, fishing and spending time with his family. Services will be private. Arrangements by the Solimine, Landergan and Richardson Funeral Home, LYNN. Guestbook at www.solimine.com. Published in The Boston Globe on February 21, 2012. Sailor, Rest your Oars. God bless you and thank you for your service. Steven served aboard the Sea Fox in 1945 as RTC(SS).

Submariners unsung heroes of Cold War. Received from Buzz Bussard (62-63) : FW: Submariners unsung heroes of Cold War - CNN.com.htm D2b Just received this and wanted to pass it on due to the timing. I told most, but for those that do not know I did a local TV show that can be seen on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4QJuj6sw_I&noredirect=1 Subject: Submariners unsung heroes of Cold War - CNN.com.htm Submariners unsung heroes of Cold WarBy Bob Crowley, CNN Photojournalistupdated 1:51 PM EST, Thu November 10, 2011Submarine sailors of the Cold WarSTORY HIGHLIGHTS· The USS Nautilus was the first submarine to reach the North Pole in 1958· Submarines played pivotal role in intelligence gathering and nuclear deterrence in Cold War· Submariners face rigorous training and high standards to qualifyEditor's note: Tune in at 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday for a special Veterans Day edition of CNN's "In Focus." The award-winning series produced by CNN photojournalists brings you stories of America's heroes as told by the men and women who fight for our country every day. (CNN) -- When Al Charette traveled to the North Pole, he went under it.The USS Nautilus, the world's first nuclear-powered submarine, made history when it reached the North Pole on August 3, 1958, beneath the ice.Charette, who was part of that Cold War crew, recalls how this milestone was of much more significance than being a historical first."What we did," he says, "is really expose 3,000 miles of coastline of the U.S.S.R."Submarines, which submariners call boats, played a pivotal role in intelligence gathering and nuclear deterrence at a time of political tension between the United States and Soviet Union. Attack submarines sought out and tracked Soviet ballistic missile submarines, while U.S. Navy missile boats tried to keep from being discovered."We didn't want to make any kind of a noise that a fish didn't make, " the 79-year-old Charette remembers.The Cold War may be remembered as a conflict without any battles, but for submariners, the danger on the front lines was real.Jack Gallimore started on diesel-electric submarines, including the USS Hardhead and the USS Sablefish in 1958. Cat-and-mouse games of two superpowers aside, risks remain even today for sailors who head out beneath the waves, says Gallimore, now 73."All the submariners," he says, "when they go to sea, they're in harm's way."Gallimore remembers an incident that happened during the turnover of older diesel subs to the Greek navy. He and other crew members acted as observers during the training phase. During a dive, the boat angled down steeply and the propellers shook. The sub managed to surface eventually, yet Gallimore insisted the danger was part of the job."We've all experienced when something went wrong," Gallimore says.Before any sailor can be called a submariner, he has to earn his "dolphins," a pin that's the equivalent to a pilot's wings. The sailors must qualify on the submarines they are to serve by knowing the systems inside and out. The training and testing are rigorous.Greg Kane, 63, another Cold War veteran, qualified on the ballistic missile sub USS George C. Marshall. Earning that qualification was an enormous source of pride, he says."When you had those dolphins on," he says, "you were a submariner. You were a part of the brotherhood of the fin."The standards to be part of that "brotherhood" exist to this day. Surrounded by a hostile environment at all times while submerged, any mistake by a single submariner could prove dangerous or even fatal for the entire crew."My life depended on my other shipmates," says retired Master Chief Bud Atkins, 77, "and it didn't matter whether they were a seaman or a captain." Atkins, who spent time in diesel-electric and nuclear-powered boats, served below the waves from 1950 to 1980, when he retired.In addition to meeting these tough standards, submariners also faced the responsibility of knowing their boats might have to launch nuclear warheads at a foreign country. Kane, who maintained the launching systems for Polaris missiles during the Vietnam War era, says crew members underwent vigorous psychological testing well before even seeing a submarine.Various scenarios were thrown at them: What if your boat was called to launch a strike? Could you do it?"The whole idea was really being aware of what the world situation was, what the dire consequences would be if you ever had to go through it and what would happen ... if you didn't have a deterrent force out there to stop something like that from happening," Kane says.Tom Russell, whose 20-year Navy career took him on a variety of vessels, also served on fleet ballistic missile boats in the 1960s."We just hoped that every time we went to battle stations that it was a drill because we all knew if it was not a drill, home would be in pieces," says Russell, 82.All these retired submariners speak of their service with pride, but they are guarded when it comes to details of their missions long ago.Charette grows nostalgic when recalling how a submarine could be in harbor or along a coastline and go unnoticed. Or suddenly surface somewhere unexpectedly just to send a message.Asked if he could describe any of these experiences, he replies with a grin, "Not that I care to talk about."

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY Submarine Veterans at Mountain Home, AR

and all veterans. May there be peace and friendships in your lives.