USS Grunion (SS-216) Gato Class Submarine:

On August 22, 2007 the USS Grunion was found by the search team in the Bering Sea off the coast of the Aleutians in about 1000 feet of water.

GRUNION’s last transmission was received 30 July 1942. She reported heavy antisubmarine activity at the entrance to Kiska, and that she had ten torpedoes remaining. On the same day, GRUNION was directed to return to Dutch Harbor. She was not contacted or sighted after 30 July, despite every effort to do so, and on 16 August was reported lost. Planes observing the approaches to Kiska for indications of enemy salvage operations in connection with GRUNION reported negatively.

UPDATE - A gentleman in Japan, Yutaka Iwasaki, posted some interesting information on his website, about sunken Japanese ships during WWII, which includes information about the possible fate of the USS GRUNION.
The Kano Maru was sunk at Kiska Mr. Iwasaki kindly provided some very interesting information about the ship's history and the USS GRUNION. He provided the following on the history of the ship in connection to the loss of the:
Kano Maru
31 July, 1942 - 05:47 Torpedoed by Submarine Grunion (SS-216). One hit at machinery room starboard, main engine and generator stopped. No more escape nor radio. ?05:57 Second torpedo came, but passed below the ship. Kano Maru pretended to launch seaplane without pilot, failed to start propeller. ?06:07 Third and fourth torpedo came, hit fore bridge and amidships on the port but both dud. The Grunion intended to surface and sink by gunfire, ripples was seen 400m distance from her. Kano Maru had two old 8cm guns on forecastle and stern. Stern's one malfunction by the torpedo shock, but forecastle gun fired to the periscope. 13mm machine guns on bridge fired as well. Before the sub appear the whole, fourth shot from Kano Maru hit the conning tower of the sub. It is thought the last of Grunion. The attack had ceased. Later rescue came from Kiska, three seaplanes, cable layer Ukishima, and sub chaser No. 26.

For over 50 years the skipper’s three sons knew little about what happened to their father's submarine. In 2002, due to an update on this website which helped pinpoint where USS GRUNION may have sunk, the Abele brothers began working on a plan to find the submarine. Last August 2006, a team of side scan sonar experts hired by the brothers located a target near Kiska almost a mile deep which may be USS GRUNION. Efforts by the Abele brothers to determine their father's fate continued.

USS Grunion (SS-216) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Search for the USS Grunion - Lost WWII Submarine near Kiska Alaska

USS GRUNION

Submarine Photo Index

Thanks White flight......


It amazing how many shipwrecks are being descovered recently.

__________________
The war against Russia will be such that it cannot be conducted in a knightly fashion. This struggle is one of ideologies and racial differences and will have to be conducted with unprecedented, unmerciful and unrelenting harshness. -Adolf Hitler

I was thinking while reading about the sub, that the major submarine fleet users in the world today have already catalogued all the ship wrecks in the oceans by now and they have known where the wreck is for years. With GPS and computer and sonar mapping it would be easy to keep track to know a wreck sonar return from a "live" sub return. It is a shame the sons have to find the sub at their own expense and time.

__________________
Work Harder ! Millions on welfare are depending on you.

My thoughts are about how the Grunion may have never perished if the Subs had good torpedoes. Too many good men were put at risk or killed because of the incompetence at Ordinance.

__________________
Lord, let me be the person my dog thinks I am.

What the Naval Institute said in 1949
USS Grunion ... 2 vessels, 600 tons
subchaser No. 25, 52-02N, 177-42E, July 15th 1942
subchaser No. 27, 52-02N, 177-42E, July 15th 1942
A price was to be paid for Alaska's security. There were casualties among the American and Canadian air, surface and ground forces. Native Aleuts died in bombings and scrimmages. And in Aleutian waters the SubPac Force suffered its first submarine casualty.
On July 19th along with Triton and Tuna, Grunion was assigned to areas in the approaches to Kiska. American aircraft were scheduled to bomb on July 22nd, and the submarines were to ambush the enemy warships leaving the assailed harbor.
The bombardment was unexpectedly canceled (weather?), but the submarines were on the spot as ordered.
Attacked unidentified ship with 2 torpedoes, which missed (duds we now know), reported to Dutch Harbor on July 28th, evaded depth charge attack.
Last report was July 30th, reported tight anti-submarine screen off Kiska, and 10 torpedos left. Then ordered to return to Dutch Harbor.
Grunion never returned.
Reported lost on August 16th.
Apparently there were no enemy mine-fields in the area. Either she was the victim of an unrecorded attack, or her loss was "operational". She went out. She was in the fight. She did not come back.
Her requiem remains in the mourning of the northern winds and the "solemn surge of strange and lonely seas".

until now

__________________
There's one way to find out if a man is honest-ask him. If he says "Yes", you know he's a crook. Groucho Marx