Allied Warships

Devilfish (SS-292)

Submarine of the Balao class


USS Devilfish during the war.

NavyThe US Navy
TypeSubmarine
ClassBalao 
Pennant292 
Built byCramp Shipbuilding Co. (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.) 
Ordered24 Dec 1941 
Laid down31 Mar 1942 
Launched30 May 1943 
Commissioned1 Sep 1944 
End service30 Sep 1946 
History

Decommissioned 30 September 1946.
Laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet.
Stricken 1 March 1967.
Sunk as a target by USS Wahoo (SS-565) of San Francisco, California 14 August 1968.

 

Commands listed for USS Devilfish (292)

Please note that we're still working on this section
and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War.

CommanderFromTo
1T/Cdr. Edward Clark Stephan, USN1 Sep 19443 Mar 1945
2T/Lt.Cdr. Stephen Stafford Mann, Jr., USN3 Mar 1945

You can help improve our commands section
Click here to Submit events/comments/updates for this vessel.
Please use this if you spot mistakes or want to improve this ships page.

Notable events involving Devilfish include:


The page dealing with the wartime history of USS Devilfish was created in July 2023.

[No deck logs of this submarine are currently available to us so therefore some details, particularly regarding trials and exercises, might be missing on this page.]

6 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed Philadelphia for New London. She was escorted until New York by USS SC-1296 (Lt.(jg) E.J. Adams, Jr., USNR).

7 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) arrived at New London from Philadelphia.

15 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) is docked on the marine railway at New London.

17 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) is put back in the water.

18 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed New London for the Naval Torpedo Station at Newport, Rhode Island where she arrived later the same day for her torpedo discharge trials.

21 Sep 1944
With her torpedo discharge trials completed, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed the Naval Torpedo Station at Newport, Rhode Island for New London where she arrived later the same day.

24 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed New London for a three day trials including a deep submergence test on the 24th.

28 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises in Long Island Sound with USS Durik (T/Lt.Cdr. R.W. Gavin, USN, USN) and USS SC-642 (?).

29 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted attack exercises in Long Island Sound with USS Bernadou (Lt.Cdr. W.C. Meredith, USNR) and USS Dallas (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Coolidge, USNR).

30 Sep 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted attack exercises in Long Island Sound with USS Bernadou (Lt.Cdr. W.C. Meredith, USNR) and USS Dallas (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Coolidge, USNR).

1 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted attack exercises in Long Island Sound with USS Bernadou (Lt.Cdr. W.C. Meredith, USNR) and USS Dallas (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Coolidge, USNR).

11 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed New London, Connecticut for Key West, Florida.

She is to proceed through positions;
B) 35°09'N, 70°00'W at 0010Q/13.
C) 26°45'N, 70°00'W at 2200Q/14.
D) 25°41'N, 76°39'W at 0715Q/16.
E) 26°09'N, 79°10'W at 2000Q/16.
F) 24°39'N, 80°25'W at 0615Q/17.
G) 24°25'N, 81°47'W at 1310Q/13.
Bombing restrictions were in place.

She was to be joined by USS PC-1147 (Lt. J.A. Hickman, USNR) in position D for onward escort to Key West.

17 Oct 1944
Around noon, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) arrived at Key West, Florida from New London, Connecticut. She is now temporary assigned for duty with the Fleet Sound School.

She had been escorted since the vicinity of the Bahamas by USS PC-1147 (Lt. J.A. Hickman, USNR).

17 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed Key West for exercises.

19 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) returned to Key West from exercises.

21 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

22 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

23 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

24 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

25 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

26 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

27 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

28 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

30 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

31 Oct 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

1 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Key West.

2 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed Key West, Florida for the Panama Canal Zone.

6 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) arrived in the Panama Canal Zone from Key West, Florida.

8 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) and USS Threadfin (T/Cdr. J.J. Foote, USN) conducted exercises in the Gulf of Panama with USS MacLeish (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Fitzpatrick, USNR).

9 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) and USS Threadfin (T/Cdr. J.J. Foote, USN) conducted exercises in the Gulf of Panama with USS MacLeish (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Fitzpatrick, USNR).

10 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises in the Gulf of Panama with USS MacLeish (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Fitzpatrick, USNR).

11 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises in the Gulf of Panama with USS MacLeish (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Fitzpatrick, USNR).

15 Nov 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN), USS Boarfish (T/Cdr. R.L. Gross, USN) and USS Threadfin (T/Cdr. J.J. Foote, USN) departed the Panama Canal Zone for Pearl Harbor.

2 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN), USS Boarfish (T/Cdr. R.L. Gross, USN) and USS Threadfin (T/Cdr. J.J. Foote, USN) arrived at Pearl Harbor from the Panama Canal Zone. They were then taken in hand for voyage repairs and alterations.

16 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

18 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

19 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour with USS Doherty (Lt. W.J. O'Brien, USNR).

20 Dec 1944
During 20/21 December 1944, USS Greenling (T/Cdr. J.D. Gerwick, USN) and USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour with USS Whitman (Lt.Cdr. R.G. Coan, USNR) and USS Cabana (Lt.Cdr. R.L. Bence, USNR). These included night exercises.

23 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

24 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

26 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour with USS Doherty (Lt. W.J. O'Brien, USNR) and USS Whitman (Lt.Cdr. R.G. Coan, USNR).

27 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

28 Dec 1944
USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

31 Dec 1944
Around 1330VW, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) departed from Pearl Harbor for her 1st war patrol. She was escorted out until 1900VW by USS PC-602 (Lt.(jg) H.P. Benton, Jr., USNR)

She was ordered to patrol off the Kii Suido and Bungo Suido. She was to make a stop at Saipan before proceeding to her patrol area.

31 Dec 1944
For the daily positions of USS Devilfish during her 1st war patrol see the map below.

12 Jan 1945
Around 0915K/12, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) arrived at Saipan from Pearl Harbour. She was escorted in by USS LCI(L)-371 (Lt.(jg) B.M. Daniel, USNR) which she had made rendezvous with around 0200K/12.

At Saipan, USS Devilfish was taken in hand for voyage repairs by the submarine tender USS Fulton (T/Capt. A.A. Clarkson, USN).

15 Jan 1945
Around 1100K/15, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN), USS Bang (T/Cdr. A.R. Gallaher, USN), USS Atule (T/Cdr. J.H. Maurer, USN) and USS Spadefish (T/Cdr. G.W. Underwood, USN) all departed Saipan for their patrol areas. They were escorted out until around 1720K/15 by USS PC-1126 (Lt. J.F Carrere, USNR).

17 Jan 1945
At 0010K/17, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) is ordered to proceed to position 18°30'N, 138°50'E to search for a downed aviator, however at 0540K/17, orders were received to continue the passage to the patrol area.

At 1430K/17, USS Devilfish is ordered to proceed to position 28°00'N, 136°00'E for lifeguard duties.

19 Jan 1945
At 0129K/19, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) is ordered to proceed to position 31°00'N, 136°00'E for lifeguard duty.

At 0915K/19, she is ordered to proceed to her patrol area.

At 1545K/19, a ship was sighted through the high periscope in position 30°03'N, 135°52'E. Range was about 8 miles. The ship was subsequently identified as a small sampan of about 150 tons.

20 Jan 1945
At 1403K/20, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) sighted a small 2-mast junk in position 33°20'N, 135°35'E. Again no attack was made so as not to give away the presence of the submarine.

23 Jan 1945
At 1425K/23, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) sighted the top of a ship in position 33°00'N, 133°45'E. Range was about 10000 yards. Went to battle stations and commenced an approach. However what was thought to have been an abnormally large stack at long range turned out to be the bridge structure of a small wooden coastal lugger or sea truck.

At 1437K/23, the top of a second ship was sighted but this turned out to be another lugger running on the same course as the first one that had been sighted. The estimated tonnage of these vessels was about 150 to 200 tons.

25 Jan 1945
At 1408K/25, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) sighted a small sampan in position 30°33'N, 134°27'E. Again no attack was made on such a small vessel despite the fact that it was thought to be a guard boat.

1 Feb 1945
At 2120K/1, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) picked up the sound of a fast vessel in position 30°28'N, 132°43'E. The target could initially not be picked up by radar but was later seen to be barely visable at a range of 3500 yards. It was thought to be a small patrol vessel not worth attacking as it was too small for a torpedo and the sea was too rough for the use of the deck gun.

8 Feb 1945
At 2148K/8, USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) receives a signal ordering her to leave patrol and to proceed to Guam.

13 Feb 1945
Around 0445K/13, the submarine USS Spadefish (T/Cdr. G.W. Underwood, USN) made contact with USS Roe (T/Cdr. J.P. Craft, Jr., USN) which was to escort her to Guam.

Around 0630K/13, the submarine USS Devilfish (T/Cdr. E.C. Stephan, USN) also joined and course was then set for Apra Harbour, Guam.

They arrived at Guam between 1000K/13 and 1030K/13 thus ending the 1st war patrol of USS Devilfish and the 3rd war patrol off USS Spadefish.

At Guam, USS Devilfish and USS Spadefish were both taken in hand for repairs by the submarine tender USS Proteus (T/Capt. C.N. Day, USN).

7 Mar 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Guam with USS George (Lt.Cdr. F.W. Just, USNR).

8 Mar 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Spadefish (T/Cdr. W.J. Germershausen, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Guam with USS Alvin C. Cockrell (T/Lt.Cdr. M.M. Sanford, USN) and USS PC-1082 (Lt. N.P. Bard, USNR).

9 Mar 1945
During 9/10 March 1945, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Spadefish (T/Cdr. W.J. Germershausen, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Guam with USS Baron (Lt.Cdr. W.M. Dickerson, USNR). These included night exercises.

In the morning of 10 March 1945, USS PC-824 (Lt. J.D. Ludwig, USNR), USS PC-1082 (Lt. N.P. Bard, USNR) and USS ATR-50 (Lt. A.P. Woronick, USN) joined for more exercises.

11 Mar 1945
During 11/12 March 1945, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Spadefish (T/Cdr. W.J. Germershausen, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Guam with USS Baron (Lt.Cdr. W.M. Dickerson, USNR), USS Raby (Lt. J.L. Slade, USNR) and USS PC-824 (Lt. J.D. Ludwig, USNR). These included night exercises.

15 Mar 1945
Around 0600K/15, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Spadefish (T/Cdr. W.J. Germershausen, Jr., USN) departed Guam for Saipan where they arrived around 1745K/15. During this passage they were escorted. [We have been unable to find out which ship was the escort.]

16 Mar 1945
Around 1645K/16, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) departed Saipan for her 2nd war patrol. She is ordered to patrol to the South of Japan / Bonin Islands. She is escorted until 2250K/16 by USS SC-536 (Lt.(jg) R.M. Heilman, USNR).

16 Mar 1945
For the daily positions of USS Devilfish during her 2nd war patrol see the map below.

20 Mar 1945
At 1645K/20, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr.) is damaged by a Japanese Kamikaze aircraft off the Volcano Islands in position 25°36'N, 137°30'E and is forced to terminate her patrol.

Sighted a Japanese Zero fighter diving from the clouds astern at about five miles distance. Dived. While passing 50 feet heard a light explosion which sounded like a light bomb, not close. In about 10 seconds water commenced pouring through the bottom of the SJ radar mast and through APR lead in. The latter leak could be closed but the leak through the SJ radar mast could not be closed. Water came in at such a rate that the drain pump could just keep up with it. Devilfish then leveled off at at 80 feet. The conning tower bilges filled rapidly and a regular waterfall came down the hatch into the control room. In order to prevent a fire, circuits were pulled to conning tower equipment which was being showered.

All loose cancas, rain clothes, etc that could be found was put over electrical equipment in the conning tower and control room to protect them from further damage. In a while the crew managed to trough the water from the SJ radar mast into the periscope well thus decreasing the cascade into the control room.

It was difficult to imagine how so small an explosion could have done so much damage. Prior to surfacing it was discovered that the SD radar and APR were inoperative. Number two periscope could not be raised. Number 1 periscope could be raised but neither trained nor seen through. Because of the extensie damage, decided to repair what we could while submerged and wait until dark to surface.

after dark surfaced on a course to return to Saipan. All clear. Transmitted a signal on the state of the boat and that we were returning. The following damage was found topside; SD and SJ radar masts sheared completely off. An 8" hole was discovered in the after periscope shears. APR and VHF amtennas destroyed. Under water loop destroyed. Upper periscope bearings distorted. Amazingly enough the searchlight was intact. Draped across the shears were several pieced of aluminum which appeared to be parts of a planes wing section. On the cigarette deck was found a piece of aluminum fairing, mounting a piece of tubing which looked like a section of a planes landing gear. Closer examination revealed Japanese symbols on some of the pieces. A name plate in Japanese was also found. It never occurred to us that we had been the victims of a suicide attack until after we had surfaced.

24 Mar 1945
At 0544K/24, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) is joined by USS Sprangler (Lt.Cdr. H.M. Edwards, USNR) which is to escort her to Saipan.

They arrived at Saipan shortly after 1300K/24.

USS Devilfish was then taken in hand for repairs to make her fit for onward passage to Pearl Harbour by the submarine tender USS Fulton (T/Capt. A.A. Clarkson, USN).

26 Mar 1945
At 1625K/26, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) departed Saipan for Pearl Harbour. She is escorted out until 2200K/26 by USS YMS 292 (Lt.(jg) W.D. Hughs, Jr.).

6 Apr 1945
At 1115X/6, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) ended her 2nd war patrol at Pearl Harbor. She was escorted in by USS PC-782 (Lt.(jg) R.L. Essick, USNR) which had joined at 0626X/6.

1 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted post repair trials off Pearl Harbour.

7 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

8 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

10 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Thornback (T/Cdr. E.P. Abrahamson, USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour with USS Coolbaugh (Lt.Cdr. S.T. Hotchkiss, USNR).

11 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour with USS Coolbaugh (Lt.Cdr. S.T. Hotchkiss, USNR).

12 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

13 May 1945
During 13/14 May 1945, the following submarines conducted tactical exercises off Pearl Harbour; USS Dace (T/Cdr. O.R. Cole, Jr., USN), USS Lapon (T/Lt.Cdr. D.G. Baer, USN), USS Redfin (T/Lt.Cdr. C.K. Miller, USN), USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN), USS Manta (T/Lt.Cdr. E.P. Madley, USN) and USS Thornback (T/Cdr. E.P. Abrahamson, USN).

They were attacking a dummy convoy of 13 (other source says 16) transports which were escorted by the destroyer USS Chew (Lt.Cdr. J.J. Mannion, USNR), destroyer minelayer USS Pruitt (Lt. D.B. Harby, USNR), destroyer escorts USS Whitman (Lt. E.A. Sandor, USNR), USS Coolbaugh (Lt.Cdr. S.T. Hotchkiss, USNR), USS Darby (Lt.Cdr. M.W. Martin, USNR) and USS PC-782 (Lt.(jg) R.L. Essick, USNR).

15 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

16 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

17 May 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Pearl Harbour.

20 May 1945
Around 1330VW/20, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) departed from Pearl Harbor for her 3rd war patrol. She was ordered to patrol in the Bungo Suido area and off northern Honshu. She is to call at Midway en-route to top off with fuel, water and provisions and also for voyage repairs.

Around 2030VW/20, the escort [identity not known to us] was detached.

For the daily and attack positions of USS Devilfish during this patrol see the map below.

24 May 1945
Around 0915Y/24, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) arrived at Midway. She departed for her assigned patrol area around 1630Y/24.

31 May 1945
Around 2213K/31, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) received a signal ordering her to patrol off the entrance to Tokyo Bay.

2 Jun 1945
At 1825K/2, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) sighted a Japanese patrol vessel, fitted with an tremendous radar antenna for its size, at about 5000 yards range in position 33°32'N, 138°16'E. The patrol boat was pinging and kept on bows on toward USS Devilfish which went deep and rigged for depth charging. The patrol boat was considered to be too small to be attacked with torpedoes. The enemy passed at a range of 500 yards but appeared not to be in contact.

4 Jun 1945
Around 2204K/4, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) received a signal ordering her to be in position 31°16'N, 136°34'E the following day for lifeguard duties.

5 Jun 1945
Around 2212K/5, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) received a signal ordering her to be in position 33°00'N, 136°45'E on 7 June for lifeguard duties.

7 Jun 1945
Around 2240K/5, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) received a signal ordering her to remain near her current position.

12 Jun 1945
Around 2307K/12, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) received a signal ordering her to patrol off the Bungo Suido.

16 Jun 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) attacked the Japanese submarine I-165 (offsite link) with two torpedoes in position 32°36'N, 132°39'E. No hits were obtained.

1736I/16, Picked up a contact on the hydrophones. Went to battle stations.

1737I/16, Sighted a Japanese submarine with two midget submarines on deck forward of her conning tower. Range was about 2500 yards. Visibility was about 3000 yards with high seas. Two stern tubes were quickly brought to the ready but unfortunately the other two tubes were being serviced at that moment. Depth control was difficult in the heavy sea conditions. Setup for the attack was very poor but the Commanding Officer decided to attack and fire two torpedoes but he had no high expectations from this attack so at ...

1741I/16, two torpedoes were fired from around 1500 yards. Both missed and the enemy was able to evade them and then crash dived.

1749I/16, heard two end of run explosions.

18 Jun 1945
At 1727I/18, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) received a signal ordering her to be in position 34°30'N, 141°00'E on 20 June for lifeguard duties.

24 Jun 1945
At 0020K/24, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) is ordered to proceed northwards and patrol to the east of the northern tip of Honshu.

26 Jun 1945
At 0927K/26, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) sighted a small freighter proceeding northwards in position 41°19'N, 141°27'E. Started to close but was unable to get any closer then 4500 yards so reluctantly broke off the approach. No escort was seen.

At 1617K/26, a frigate was sighted in position 41°19'N, 141°33'E. She was proceeding at a rather high speed while pinging and came strait towards. When the range had come down to 3500 yards, USS Devilfish, went deep and kept bows on the frigate which eventually passed about 1000 yards ahead. She apparently never was in contact with the submarine and it was regretted that USS Devilfish had gone deep and that no attack had been made, if needed by a down the throat shot.

29 Jun 1945
At 2149K/29, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) is ordered to proceed southwards to the area off Inubosaki for lifeguard duties.

1 Jul 1945
Around 2345K/1, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Trepang (T/Cdr. A.R. Faust, USN) made rendezvous. Seven aviators and one injured / sick crewmember of were then transferred by USS Trepang to USS Devilfish which in turn transferred 20 shells of 5" ammunition and several movies to USS Trepang. They parted company around 0056K/2.

2 Jul 1945
Around 0545K/2, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Sea Robin (T/Cdr. P.C. Stimson, USN) made rendezvous. One aviator which the USS Sea Robin had rescued, was towed across in a lifebelt. During the transfer USS Sea Robin hit the stern of USS Devilfish with her bow but damage was minor.

Around 1749K/2, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Springer (T/Lt.Cdr. J.F. Bauer, USN) made rendezvous. One aviator which the USS Springer had rescued, was put across in a rubber boat.

7 Jul 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) ended her 3rd war patrol at Guam. At 0405K/7, she had made rendezvous with USS PC-596 (Lt. J.C. Bigham, Jr., USNR) which then escorted her into Apra Harbour arriving around 0730K/7.

At Guam, USS Devilfish was taken in hand for a post patrol overhaul by USS Fulton (T/Capt. A.R. St. Angelo, USN).

24 Jul 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted exercises off Guam.

26 Jul 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted attack exercises off Guam with USS Seid (Lt. A.F. Craft, USNR).

27 Jul 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) conducted attack exercises off Guam with USS Steele (Lt. Seymour, USNR) and USS Seid (Lt. A.F. Craft, USNR).

28 Jul 1945
During 28/29 July 1945, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Tigrone (Lt.Cdr. Vincent Edward Schumacher, USN) conducted attack exercises off Guam with USS Steele (Lt. Seymour, USNR), USS Crouter (Lt. C.F. Braught, USNR) and USS Seid (Lt. A.F. Craft, USNR). These exercises included night exercises.

30 Jul 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) returned to Guam from several days of exercises.

2 Aug 1945
Around 1500K/2, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) and USS Torsk (T/Cdr. B.E. Lewellen, USN) departed from Guam for their 4th and 2nd war patrols. USS Devilfish was ordered to patrol off the Bonin Islands and USS Torsk was to patrol in the Sea of Japan.

They were escorted until around 1845K/2 by USS SC-1275 (Lt.(jg) M.L. White, USNR).

The submarines parted company with each other around 1530K/5.

2 Aug 1945
For the daily positions of USS Devilfish during her 4th war patrol see the map below.

10 Aug 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) bombarded the Japanese W/T and radar station on Tori Shima.

0512K/10, Dived to study Tori Shima for the location of the radio and radar installations.

0952K/10, Surfaced and commenced to bombard the above installations from a range of about 3500 yards. A total of 44 rounds of 5" ammunition were expended. The shooting was good. Several rounds fell right in the settlement.

1015K/10, ceased fire and proceeded to our assigned lifeguard station. That night it was noticed that the usual radar was not detected from Tori Shima so the bombardment must have caused enough damage for the radar to be inoperable.

16 Aug 1945
At 1750K/16, USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) is ordered to leave patrol and to proceed to Midway.

22 Aug 1945
USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN) ended her 4th war patrol at Midway. She had met the escort around 0600Y/22. At Midway she was taken in hand for some repairs by the submarine tender USS Aegir (T/Capt. J.M. Boyd, USN).

1 Sep 1945
The submarine tender USS Aegir (T/Capt. J.M. Boyd, USN) and the submarines USS Gurnard (T/Lt.Cdr. G.S. Simmons, 3rd, USN), USS Devilfish (T/Lt.Cdr. S.S. Mann, Jr., USN), USS Hackleback (T/Cdr. F.E. Janney, USN), USS Lionfish (T/Lt.Cdr. B.M. Ganyard, USN), USS Moray (T/Cdr. F.L. Barrows, USN), USS Aspro (T/Cdr. J.H. Ashley, Jr., USN) and USS Piranha (T/Cdr. D.G. Irvine, USN) departed Midway for the Mare Island Navy Yard where they arrived on 11 September.

Media links


U. S. Submarines in World War II

Kimmett, Larry and Regis, Margaret


U.S. Submarines Through 1945

Friedman, Norman


amazon.co.uk
(£ 56.95)

Return to the Allied Warships section



As an Amazon Associate uboat.net earns a commission from qualifying purchases.