USS Redfish (SS-395)
History of the USS Redfish Submarine
The USS Redfish was ordered for the U.S. Navy during World War II. Her keel was laid down at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in New Hampshire on September 9, 1943. She was launched on January 27, 1944 and commissioned on April 12, 1944 under the command of Commander Louis D. McGregor.
The USS Redfish arrived at Pearl Harbor on June 27, 1944. She began her first war patrol on July 23 in Luzon Strait. On August 18, she damaged the Japanese merchant tanker Eiyo Maru with her torpedoes. Seven days later, she damaged the army cargo ship Batopaha Maru, which was later beached and declared a total loss. The submarine sank the fleet tanker Ogura Maru No. 2 on September 16 and the troop transport Mizuho Maru five days later. Her patrol ended on October 2 at Midway.
After refitting, the USS Redfish sailed for her second war patrol on October 25 in the East China Sea. On November 20, she sank a Japanese sailing vessel with her gunfire, and another two days later. She sank the merchant cargo ship Hozan Maru on November 23. Her torpedoes damaged the carrier Junyo on December 9. Ten days later, she sank the carrier Unryu and was damaged in the resulting depth charge attack. The submarine was forced to end her patrol early at Pearl Harbor on January 2, 1945.
The USS Redfish headed to Portsmouth Naval Shipyard via San Francisco, California for her repairs. Repair work was finished by July 2, and she arrived back at Pearl Harbor on July 22. The war ended before she could begin her third war patrol.
After World War II, the USS Redfish spent several months on duty at Guam. For the next few years, she was based out of San Diego, California, making occasional cruises to Guam, Japan, and Korea. In 1954, the submarine appeared in the Disney film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea as Jules Verne’s Nautilus. Three years later, she appeared as the USS Nerka in the film Run Silent, Run Deep.
The USS Redfish was reclassified as an auxiliary submarine, AGSS-395, on July 1, 1960. She made annual training cruises from San Diego to the Western Pacific until she was decommissioned on June 27, 1968. The submarine was struck from the Naval Vessel Register three days later and sunk as a target on February 6, 1969 off the coast of San Diego. She earned two battle stars for her service in World War II.
The use of asbestos was common in shipbuilding components for much of the 20th Century because of its resistance to heat, fire, water and corrosion. Because of their asbestos exposure onboard ship and in the shipyards, seaman, shipyard workers and longshoreman are at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma.
Sources include:
Asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences, by John Hedley-Whyte and Debra R Milamed
