Gallant Lady: A Biography of the USS Archerfish

By Ken Henry and Don Keith

Book Overview

She looked like just about like the other diesel powered, Balao-class submarines crafted in the '40s. But there the similarity ends. Because the Archerfish--named for a fish that kills its victims with a lethal blast of water from below--won a unique, heroic place in military history and the memories of her crew members. Here is her story: from her assembly in New England, her dedication at the hand of Eleanor Roosevelt, her service in World War II, where she broke the back of the Japanese Navy and sank the largest ship ever sunk by a submarine, to the details of her critical role in the Cold War, crisscrossing the oceans for six years to foil Soviet naval intelligence. Here too, is the story of her officers and enlsited men, who waited years to serve on the Archerfish. In their own words, these men tell how, against all odds, they sent a Japanese aircraft carrier to the ocean floor . . . served in peacetime in the Navy's only all bachelor crew . . . steered their ship into exotic ports all over the world . . . welcomed B-girls, Japanese war veterans, royalty, Playboy bunnies and a goat aboard ship, with equal hospitality. As they helped their sub outlast fires and even an earthquake, they worked hard, played hard and lived even harder. An extraordinary real-life odyssey, Archerfish is a vivid, unforgettable portrait of submariners' life.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0765305682
• ISBN13: 9780765305688
• Release Date: June 2004
• Publisher: Forge
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.44 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Gallant Lady...gallant submarine

The USS Archerfish is one of the WWII fleet submarines with a very unusual story. Whilst her career might not be spectacular, the Archerfish did manage to sink the largest Imperial Japanese Navy warship, the Shinano, in WWII. (A good accompanying edition would be Captain Enright's own book of this historic war patrol). But what is more fascinating was the post-WWII history of the Archerfish and her exploits with an all-bachelor crew. And equally poignant were the pages describing the 1960's encounter with the former Executive Officer of the Shinano at Yokosuka or the encounter with Eugene B. Fluckey, ComSubPac (of "Thunder Below"). As more tales of the "Silent Service" emerge, this book is a must for any historian of submarine warfare.