Museum

Search for Lost Subs

Search for Lost Submarines

In the first sixty years after the end of World War II, no one was able to find any of the 52 American submarines lost during the War whose exact locations were not already known. In most cases, the submarines were lost with all hands, and the exact locations of their sinkings were "lost to history."

Advances in technology and the dedication of those who seek to explore the depths has changed all that. Since 2005, divers have discovered five sunken submarines.

USS Lagarto (SS-371) - confirmed discovery in the Gulf of Thailand
USS Wahoo (SS-238) - confirmed discovery in the La Peruse Strait
USS Grunion (SS-216) - confirmed discovery off Kiska
USS Perch (SS-176) - discovery in the Java Sea
USS Flier (SS-250) - confirmed discovery in the Balabac Strait

Further discoveries are expected.

Secrets of the Sub

Submarine Rescues

A critical task performed by the US submarine force during World War II, was the rescuing of downed pilots and air crews; They were so efficient at it, that they rescued 520 US airmen from the Pacific Ocean waters. One of those rescued, went on to become President of the United States.

Rescueing George H. W. Bush

Former US President George H. W. Bush Sr. He was rescued by the USS Finback after being shot down while he was on an air strike mission over Chichi Shima in the Bonin Islands during 2 September 1944.

USS Tang Group Photo

Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Richard H. O'Kane (center), poses with the twenty-two aircrewmen that Tang rescued off Truk during the carrier air raids there on 29 April-1 May 1944. The photograph was taken upon Tang's return to Pearl Harbor from her second war patrol, in May 1944.