U-Boat Scourge

by J Eugene Porter

  Brand smiled knowing he was now able to leave the stuffy air of the high command. “Yes sir, we need to get our group together so we can leave.”

  Just then, one of Admiral King’s aides came up to Willson and said something in his ear.

  “Understood, Commander, where are they now?”

  The commander pointed out of the room to the hallway beyond and said, “Sir, the pilots are out there, and the admiral wants the commander and the ensign present for the presentation.”

  “Very well, Commander. Go get the pilots, and I will bring the commander and ensign.”

  Willson turned to face the other two officers and said, “Sorry, but I need to borrow these two again because they are going to watch the two pilots who sank the German submarine get a medal.”

  Willson ushered in the two latecomers and stood at the back of Admiral King’s office as he talked to each of the pilots about their attack and how they accomplished the mission. Both were somewhat shy in their explanation about the attack but then Lieutenant Commander Hamlin said, “Sir, we would have never sunk that submarine, let alone find it, without the help of Ensign Brand and the eyesight of Lieutenant Flannigan. They are the ones who made this attack not only possible but also a success.”

  King smiled at the commander and replied, “Yes, I know that both fine officers were there and providing you with a plan to make this attack a success but it was you two gentlemen who flew the plane and dropped the bombs.” He turned and nodded to an aide who immediately barked, “Attention to orders!”

  Everyone in the room snapped to attention including Admiral Andrews and Willson. The aide, a full captain, then took a piece of paper off the admirals’ desk and began to read.

  “Commendation for action on the Eastern Sea Frontier, the nineteenth of February 1942.

  “On this day, a PBY flown by Lt. Comdr. George F. Hamlin and Lt. (jg) Robert K. Henson successfully located and sank an enemy submarine. The following awards are made to these officers.

  “Commander Hamlin awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.”

  King took the medal from the desk behind him and pinned it on the commander and shook his hand.

  The aide continued, “Lieutenant Junior Grade Henson awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.”

  King took the second medal on his desk and pinned it on the young co-pilot and shook his hand as well.

  King looked at the aide who backed away from the admiral and then looking at the two flyers said, “I am very proud of you and what you have accomplished. I hope that this is the first of many a German submarine that you and your squadron sink. With your continued leadership, we will win this war. Well done.”

  King again shook their hands and then made one more last comment. “Gentlemen, I know that it takes more than the pilots to make these missions successful. I am authorizing each member of the plane’s crew to receive the Air Medal for their service. I am also doing the same for Captain Young and his crew for their meritorious service in this attack.”

  This seemed to please the two flyers more than receiving the DFCs. They immediately smiled and caught the glance of the aide standing next to the admiral and realized no further comment was needed. The aide then said, “Thank you, gentlemen, you are dismissed.”

  Everyone came back to attention as the two young flyers were escorted out of the office.

  King looked at Jameson, Brand, and Flannigan and then smiled saying, “Does that make you envious gentlemen?”

  The commander did not flinch. “No sir, we were passengers on the plane and did not attack the submarine. They did the work. Thank you for honoring the entire crew of both planes, sir.”

  “Brand,” King looked right at him, “what do you say?”

  Brand was quick and right to the point, “Sir, they are the pilots, and we were just cargo trying to figure out what actually occurs in these missions. I was glad we could be of assistance. We were just doing our job.” Brand stood silent, then added, “But, sir, I think Lieutenant Flannigan deserves recognition for finding the sub in the first place. If it were not for his amazing eyesight, we would have never seen the U-boat.”

  Flannigan was not pleased to hear the comment but knew better than to say anything, especially to the admiral.

  King, smiling again which was such a rarity that Willson had to struggle to maintain a straight face, looked at Brand and then at Flannigan and said, “Mr. Brand, you are full of surprises and at least you are not afraid to tell me what you think.” King thought for a moment and then said, “I was not going to do this now, but each of you is to receive the DFC for this effort. It was you that made this happen. The pilots were just doing what they have been trained to do. But, I want you to know there will be no ceremony for you or any member of your team. You will be awarded the medals, and the sergeants who were on the plane with you will receive the Air Medal. Your records will show this award, and I am going to have Admiral Willson pin it on you. Now, get out of here before I transfer you all to the army.”

  Willson was almost about to laugh as was Admiral Andrews at this last comment. Willson then said, “Admiral, your meeting at the White House will be starting soon so with your permission, I’ll get these men back to their plane so they can continue their mission.”

  King nodded and Willson escorted the officers out of the admiral’s office and into his office where his aide stood by with three medals.

  Part 4

  20

  22 February 1942

  New London Submarine Base

  Connecticut

  • President Roosevelt orders General MacArthur to leave the Philippines.

  • United Kingdom--Headquarters of U.S. Bomber Command, USAFBI is established under Gen. Ira C. Eaker.

  The office of the commander-submarines, Atlantic Fleet, was in a constant state of flux. The commanding officer was temporary, and he knew he could be replaced at any moment, but still he had a job to do. His name was Capt. E. F. Cutts. He had been the chief of staff to Rear Adm. R. S. Edwards who commanded the fleet submarines and the New London Base, but he had been sent to Washington on January 2 to become the assistant chief of staff to Admiral King. So, until a new man was named, and he knew it would not be him, he held the title and all the problems.

  The naval base at New London went back before World War I and was the original location for submarine construction and development in the United States. Up until the expansion of the fleet beginning in early 1940, all submarines were built in the nearby shipyards and all the training was conducted at this location. It had expanded very fast over the past two years, nearly tripling in land area and more than doubling in active duty personnel. He had been doing a near thankless job of juggling priorities and problems for his predecessor, Rear Admiral Edwards but now that he was gone, Cutts owned the entire base and every single complaint or slowdown was his responsibility.

  His able assistant came in late yesterday with a signal from Admiral King which got his dander up because he was going to have visitors who would be needing his assistance. From his long navy experience, this usually meant VIPs or Congressmen intent on some demonstration of how submarines work. What was even more troubling was the signal he received early in the morning from the Atlantic Fleet Commander, Admiral Ingersoll, who also encouraged the captain to inform him of any problems in complying with the requests made by this group of visitors. All Cutts knew for sure was the group was led by a Commander Jameson of whom he had no knowledge.

  At 0930, his aide announced the special visitors were on their way from the guard shack that sealed the navy base from the outside world. The marine sentry informed the aide that there were two staff cars and a truck carrying some armed marines. The sentry had been told to wave them through as soon as they arrived and alert the captain’s office of their arrival. Cutts had been going through dozens of quintuplet forms that required his signature on each copy and these pieces of paper were for important things like transfers of people to mundane things such as requi
sitions for more forms. Captain Cutts was not looking forward to visitors, but at least it got him out of signing his name. He put on his jacket and made sure he was in proper uniform, then told the aide to send the visitors in as soon as they came into the outer office.

  Within ten minutes there was a knock on the door. Captain Cutts spoke up very loudly, “Enter.” The aide opened the door and in came a full commander—Must be Jameson, he thought—a marine first lieutenant, a navy ensign who looked like he was sixteen at best and a grizzled marine gunnery sergeant. Both marines had .45 Colt pistols on their belts, and each of these men looked like they knew how to use them. The small group approached the desk, spread out, and came to attention. The commander spoke, “Captain Cutts, my name is Jameson, and this is the rest of the team you were told to expect.”

  The captain said, “At ease, gentlemen, and welcome to Naval Base New London. How can we be of assistance to you? The information I received from Admiral King’s office was sparse to say the least, but I will comply with any request you have.”

  “Sir,” the commander said, “may I introduce the members of the team. This is First Lieutenant Flannigan, in charge of security. Next to him is Ensign Brand and next to him is Gunnery Sergeant Jones. We have several requests involving you and that of some of your submarine commanders. If I could, sir, I would like to give you an overview of what this is all about.”

  The captain said, “That would be helpful. Please, all of you sit down.”

  The three officers sat down, but the gunny excused himself by telling the commander, “Sir, I need to get our men situated, so by your leave, I will get them organized.”

  Jameson smiled. “Sure, Gunny, you already know the story we are going to tell so get the lay of the land and see what else you’re going to need.”

  Captain Cutts quickly added, “Gunny, my chief yeoman’s name is Patterson, and he can get you anything you need without a lot of fuss.”

  “Thank you, sir. Patterson, right?” the gunny looked back at the captain who nodded.

  As soon as the gunny left the room, the commander began to speak. “Captain, as you are aware, our orders come directly from Admiral King. That does not mean we are here to disrupt any training or other war-related activities. We will do our job quickly and as quietly as possible. Please note, sir, what we are doing here is top secret and what we divulge to you and possibly other senior officers is strictly confidential and shall not be discussed, reviewed, or in any way communicated without the direct consent of Admiral King. Is that understood sir?”

  Jameson looked directly at Captain Cutts who was maybe seven or eight years older. He had been briefed by Admiral Willson as to the nature of the temporary assignment the captain had assumed in early January. The admiral told him Cutts would revert to his previous assignment as chief of staff to the commander of submarines Atlantic Fleet as soon as a new admiral was put in charge.

  The captain, having been made aware by two four-star admirals as to the secretive nature of this mission said earnestly, “Commander, I accept the terms that you have stated and what has been previously communicated to me. I will also be happy to inform you of other officers in this command who can be trusted with any information you wish to share. As you know, we pride ourselves on being the ‘silent service’ and the men in this command and those serving in our navy’s submarines continue this tradition.”

  Commander Jameson said, “Thank you, sir, for being so understanding about this. We are working toward a joint goal which is to protect and defend your boats and submarines and at the same time, we are here today to figure out new tactics to kill U-boats.”

  The captain’s eyes widened when he heard this and was immediately intrigued with this dual mission. He leaned back in this chair. “To kill a submarine, you must understand a submarine, correct?”

  “Yes sir, and what we need to understand is how you not only train your crews, but also some of the technical aspects of your boats, the tactics and strategies for both offense and defense. We would like to have an open and honest discussion with some of your boat commanders concerning what they think about when they are attacking or being attacked.”

  The captain leaned forward in a thoughtful pose. “How do we start?”

  Jameson looked at Brand and replied, “Captain, I want Mr. Brand to brief you on what he wants to see, do, and accomplish in the next few days at your base. He is the chief architect of the effort to reduce the attacks by U-boats and then help our submarines improve their defensive capabilities.”

  He let this comment sink in for a moment as the captain looked rather incredulously at the very young ensign and then Jameson added, “Captain, a few days ago, off the coast of Carolina, a PBY successfully attacked and sank a U-boat using some of the tactics developed by Mr. Brand. For the sake of security, this information is not being divulged to the public nor within the navy except for very few individuals. You are now one of these, and it is very important this information is not revealed without the express approval of Admiral King. Is that understood, sir?”

  The captain immediately replied, “Yes, of course. I have heard of German subs being sunk by the Brits on convoys, and I guess they have had success with their planes, but I did not know we are killing them off our coast. I have a lot of questions about how this was done. This information could save the lives of our men as well.”

  The commander added, “Captain, we will be glad to review what we know, although in guarded terms, with you and select submarine commanders. What we want to do is to perform additional tests to strengthen our strategies. Hopefully, this work will help in developing tactics to further advance our ability to nullify the U-boat menace.” Jameson looked at Captain Cutts and then at Brand as he continued, “By doing this, we will, of course, learn how this applies to our submarines and with the help of your officers, we can improve the effectiveness of our boats, but even more importantly, save the lives of the men who man them.”

  The captain was now held in rapt attention for whatever was to come next and waited for the information to flow. Brand stared at the captain and with a deep breath began a thirty-minute monologue on what he had theorized, what had worked in the attack on the U-boat, and what he wanted to learn from the navy submariners.

  Brand finished by saying, “Captain, I will be happy to clarify some of my calculations on the performance of the German U-boats and the various methods we might employ to sink them. What I need from you and your officers is not only an understanding of how they are trained to operate a boat, but how they think, and how quickly they can adapt to an attack situation. By understanding these things, perhaps we can build some models for them to evade an attack or reduce the likelihood of them receiving a mortal blow.”

  The captain had been a serving officer in the submarine service since the early 1920s and knew the risks that those who served on these cramped, wet and always dangerous vessels face. He thought about the sinking of the Squalus in 1938 and the use of the new Monson diving bell to rescue some of the crew from the depths of Long Island sound. He knew a lot of the young men who were being trained at this facility would not survive the war. If there was anything that could help improve their odds, he would do whatever it takes. He looked at Brand with a new amount of awe for the human mind and especially the one inhabiting this young man’s body.

  He asked Jameson, “Commander, tell me when you want to go meet some boat commanders, and I will arrange it immediately. As to getting on a boat and conducting your tests, we have one which is about to go operational shortly. It has been working up, has conducted all its tests, and was commissioned on January 21. It is due to leave for the Pacific in about two weeks. It would be perfect for your mission, plus it would give the crew some real-life situations to master.”

  The commander looked at Brand who was always eager to begin a new project and said, “Sir, that would work out well. A boat in the last weeks of preparation for deployment should have a high degree of capability established, and the
crew should be ready for the real conditions of war. How soon can we meet the captain of this vessel?”

  Cutts looked down at a sheet of paper that was always on his desk. It listed the boats that were either about to launch, ready to commission, and those set to finalize their training before actual deployment. His finger went down the page and then looking up at the three officers said, “The boat is SS-213 named Greenling. She is a new Gato class boat and her captain is Lt. Comdr. H. C. Burton.”

  Commander Cramer, chief of staff to Captain Cutts, found Burton and his executive office, Lieutenant Hayden, on the Greenling. Both were sitting on the deck in the forward torpedo room with grease all over their khakis, on their hands and on their faces. They were working with the chief of the boat storing torpedoes, called pigs by the crew, in their racks and were having a tough time making everything fit.

  The commander knowing both officers well, looked at the two and chided them, “Mr. Burton, you look like you are working on a scow not a warship. Do you like playing in the grease?”

  Burton looked at the visitor and having served with him on several old S-Class boats yelled back, “Look, men, that’s a staff officer come to tell working men how to work. Now, what can he add to our discussion with this greasy pig that would make our life easier?”

  There were a few chirps of laughter from the enlisted crew which was only found in the submarine service. The notion of rank and power came from respect and experience, not the uniform. Working in extremely close conditions for weeks at a time requires trust not blind obedience to senior rank. The commander laughed retorting as well, “Burton, I have come to save you and your exec from the grease pits. Let the real men who know what they are doing get the job done. You are both required at the captain’s office now. Please join me in the nice clean staff car, and if you get any grease on it, it’s your funeral.”