Kangaroo Express: The Epic Story of the Submarine Growler: With Recollections by "Skipper" Arnold Schade

Lanigan, Richard J.

ISBN 10: 0965999505 / ISBN 13: 9780965999502

Published by RJL Express Publications, Laurel, FL, 1998

About this Item

173, [3] pages. Illustrations. Diagrams. Maps. Bibliography. No dust jacket. Inscrbed by author on t-p. Pencil erasure residue on fep. The author was a close friend of Admiral Schade. He was a veteran (Army paratrooper).The author has included numerous vivid accounts from crew members. USS Growler (SS-215), a Gato-class submarine, was the third ship of the United States Navy named for the growler, a large-mouth black bass. Her keel was laid down by the Electric Boat Company of Groton, Connecticut. She was launched on 2 November 1941 and sponsored by Mrs. Lucile E. Ghormley, wife of Vice Admiral Robert L. Ghormley, Special Naval Observer to the United Kingdom. The boat was commissioned on 20 March 1942 with Lieutenant Commander Howard W. Gilmore in command. 1 January 1943 saw Growler sail from Brisbane. Entering her patrol area, again athwart the Truk-Rabaul shipping lanes, on 11 January, she waited only five days before sighting an enemy convoy. Maneuvering inside the escorts, Growler launched two torpedoes and saw them hit; then, as her war diary reports, she was in the unfortunate predicament of being about 400 yards (370 m) from the destroyer and had to dive without being able to continue the attack. She was credited with sinking Chifuku Maru, a passenger/cargo ship. The patrol continued as normal with two further attacks, but no sinkings until shortly after 01: 00 7 February when Growler stealthily approached a gunboat for a night surface attack. The small fast ship suddenly turned to ram. Unable to avoid the collision, Gilmore ordered left full rudder and all ahead flank, and rammed the enemy amidships at 17 knots (31 km/h), bending Growler's bow 18 feet to the port side. As machine gun fire raked them at point-blank range, Commander Gilmore ordered the bridge cleared. As the commanding officer, Gilmore was the last to leave the bridge, but was grievously wounded before he could get below. Realizing that he was jeopardizing his boat's escape, he ordered "Take her down! ". The XO, Lt Cdr. Schade, shut the hatch and dived the boat. By saving his command at the expense of his own life, Gilmore became one of the seven World War II submariners to earn the Medal of Honor. A seaman and another officer also lost their lives in this incident. Seller Inventory # 71406

Bibliographic Details

Title: Kangaroo Express: The Epic Story of the ...

Publisher: RJL Express Publications, Laurel, FL

Publication Date: 1998

Binding: Trade paperback

Condition: GoodVery good

Signed: Signed by Author(s)

Edition: Presumed first edition/first printing.

About this title

Synopsis:

The epic story of the submarine Growler: with recollections by "Skipper" Arnold Schade