USS ''Jack'' (SS-259), a

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

, was the first ship of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

to be named for the

jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, incl ...

(any of various fishes—young pike, green pike or pickerel, or large California rockfish).

Construction and commissioning

''Jack''′s

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...

by the

Electric Boat Company Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

at Groton,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, on 2 February 1942. She was launched on 16 October 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Frances Seely, and commissioned at

Naval Submarine Base New London Naval Submarine Base New London is the primary United States Navy East Coast submarine base, also known as the "Home of the Submarine Force." It is located in Groton, Connecticut directly across the Thames River from its namesake city of New L ...

in New London, Connecticut, on 6 January 1943,

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

Thomas. M. "Tommy" Dykers in command.

Service history

First and second war patrols, June – October 1943

''Jack'' underwent shakedown training along the

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

coast, sailing from New London 26 April 1943 for service in the Pacific. Reaching

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

21 May, the submarine took on supplies and departed on her first offensive war patrol 5 June 1943. Taking part in the submarine offensive against

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, she patrolled off

Honshū , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the seventh-largest island in the world, and the second-most populous after the Indonesian ...

. ''Jack'' came upon a five-ship convoy 26 June, and in a series of five well-executed attacks, sank the 4,000-ton passenger/cargo ship ''Toyo Maru'' and the 6,000-ton cargo ship ''Shozan Maru''. In attempting to

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

a third ship, the submarine was shaken by a bomb dropped by an airplane, but the alert crew corrected her dangerous diving angle and effected repairs. On 4 July 1943, ''Jack'' began to track smoke on the horizon and soon detected ''Nikkyo Maru'' with an escort. The submarine used three torpedoes to send the cargo ship to the bottom, and returned to Pearl Harbor for repairs 19 July 1943. This patrol is dramatized in the 1950s TV series, The Silent Service (S01 E01), produced by Universal Television and hosted by Tommy Dykers. ''Jack''s second war patrol (5 September–10 October 1943) brought no opportunities for attack as engineering difficulties forced her to return prematurely to Pearl Harbor. During her subsequent stay in Hawaii, an Allied tanker mistook her for a Japanese submarine and opened gunfire on her in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

northeast of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

at on 1 January 1944.

Third war patrol, January – March 1944

On her third war patrol, the submarine proceeded westward from Pearl Harbor 16 January 1944 bound for the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

. Prowling the pivotal

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

-Japan shipping lanes, she encountered convoy Hi-40 of five large oil tankers with three escorts early 19 February. The submarine reached attack position at about 04:40 and fired three torpedoes, scoring one hit. She then began an "end around," a long circling maneuver designed to bring her in front of the remaining four tankers, and late that afternoon she was again ready to attack. Two torpedoes sank two more of the frantically zigzagging ships, and ''Jack'' moved in on the trailing tanker. Her first spread of torpedoes missed and the tanker replied with a salvo from guns, but ''Jack'' returned three hours later to sink her with four torpedoes. In this remarkable series of attacks, the submarine sank four tankers (earning the nickname "Jack the Pack", after the convoy commander radioed that he was under attack from a " wolfpack"), all over 5,000 tons: ''Kokuie Maru'', ''Nanei Maru'', ''Nichirin Maru'', and ''Ichiyo Maru''. After several more attacks ''Jack'' set course for Fremantle, Australia, her new base, where she arrived 13 March 1944.

Fourth and fifth war patrols, April – July 1944

Departing Australia 6 April 1944, ''Jack'' returned to the South China Sea for her fourth war patrol. She chased the

Take Ichi convoy The was a Japanese naval convoy of World War II. The convoy left occupied Shanghai on 17 April 1944, carrying two infantry divisions to reinforce Japan's defensive positions in the Philippines and western New Guinea. United States Navy (USN) ...

through the afternoon of 25 April, and shortly after midnight next day attacked, sinking and damaging two others. ''Jack'' also used her deck gun to sink a radio-equipped trawler, ''Daisun'', 27 April before returning to Fremantle 10 May 1944. ''Jack'' left Fremantle for her fifth war patrol 4 June 1944, again returning to Japan's important lifelines in the South China Sea. Early 24 June she made an approach on a large convoy and fired three torpedoes, sinking a large tanker, ''San Pedro Maru'', before escorting aircraft forced her to retire. Five days later the submarine came upon another large convoy, and by early 30 June was in position. Three successive attacks sent cargo ships ''Matsukawa Maru'' and ''Tsukushima Maru'' to the bottom. ''Jack'' returned to Fremantle 14 July 1944. For her highly successful and aggressive first, third, and fifth war patrols, the submarine was awarded the coveted Presidential Unit Citation.

Sixth and seventh war patrols, August – December 1944

The submarine sailed from Fremantle 6 August 1944 to the

Celebes Sea The Celebes Sea ( ; ) or Sulawesi Sea (; ) of the western Pacific Ocean is bordered on the north by the Sulu Archipelago and Sulu Sea and Mindanao Island of the Philippines, on the east by the Sangihe Islands chain, on the south by Sulawes ...

for her sixth war patrol. Attacking a convoy 29 August, she sank a small

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

(''Minesweeper No 28'') and started in pursuit of a cargo ship. After her torpedo missed and she was raked with gunfire by her adversary, ''Jack'' deftly evaded the attacker and returned later to sink ''Mexico Maru''. ''Jack'' arrived at Fremantle following this patrol 24 September 1944. She departed Fremantle once more 27 October 1944, bound for the South China Sea. She attacked a coastal convoy 14–15 November, sinking cargo ships ''Nichiei Maru'' and ''Yusan Maru'' before shallow water forced her to break off the fight. The attrition of Japanese shipping was beginning to tell, and ''Jack'' found no more opportunities before ending her patrol at Pearl Harbor 24 December 1944. From there she returned to

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

for a major overhaul.

Eighth and ninth war patrols, April – August 1945

The veteran submarine returned to Pearl Harbor 1 April 1945, and departed on her eighth war patrol 26 April 1945. With most Japanese shipping sunk or reluctant to venture into the sea lanes, her major job was to act as lifeguard for the massive carrier strikes and bomber missions against the Japanese mainland. The submarine returned to

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

for refit 18 June and set out again 12 July for her ninth and last war patrol. Stationed between

Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...

and

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

, she again performed lifeguard duty until the Japanese surrender 15 August 1945. Her ninth patrol ended at

Midway Atoll Midway Atoll (colloquialism, colloquial: Midway Islands; ; ) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the United States and is an Insular area#Unorganized unincorporated territories, unorganized and unincorpo ...

29 August.

Greek service

''Jack'' sailed for the United States 5 September 1945, steaming via Pearl Harbor and the

Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone (), also known as just the Canal Zone, was a concession of the United States located in the Isthmus of Panama that existed from 1903 to 1979. It consisted of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending on each side o ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

3 October 1945. She decommissioned at Atlantic Reserve Fleet, New London 8 June 1946, and was placed in the

Atlantic Reserve Fleet The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and s ...

. She recommissioned briefly 20 December 1957, to prepare for transfer to the government of

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and after training operations was loaned to the

Royal Hellenic Navy The Hellenic Navy (HN; , abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Hellenic Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy historically hails from the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. ...

21 April 1958. She served as ''Amfitriti'' (S-17) (also spelled ''Amphitriti''), until 1967, when she was returned by Greece and sunk as a target by the

US 6th Fleet The Sixth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy operating as part of United States Naval Forces Europe and Africa. The Sixth Fleet is headquartered at Naval Support Activity Naples, Italy. The officially stated mission of the Sixt ...

, 5 September 1967, in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

Awards

''Jack'' was credited with sinking 76,687 tons of Japanese shipping. In addition to her

Presidential Unit Citation (US) The Presidential Unit Citation (PUC), originally called the Distinguished Unit Citation, is awarded to units of the uniformed services of the United States, and those of allied countries, for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed e ...

, ''Jack'' received seven

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or service period. T ...

s for

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

service. All patrols, except for her second and ninth, were designated successful.

In culture

''Jack'' is the subject of the series premiere of the syndicated

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

anthology series An anthology series is a written series, radio, television, film, or video game series that presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a different ca ...

''The Silent Service''. The episode, entitled "The Jack at Tokyo," aired 5 Apr 1957 and was hosted by Rear Admiral Thomas M. Dykers (ret). ''Jack''s operations during the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

are chronicled in '' Silent Running: My Years on a World War II Attack Submarine''.