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USS Angler SS-240

The USS Angler was launched on July 4, 1943, and commissioned on October 1 of the same year. She was awarded six battle stars for her service in World War II.

The USS Angler during World War II

After sailing for Pearl Harbor on November 27, 1943, the USS Angler began her first war patrol on January 10, 1944. After downing the Shuko Maru north of the Mariana Islands, however, she developed structural problems that prevented her from operating as quietly as was necessary. Although her patrol had been scheduled to terminate at Fremantle in Australia, she was forced to head for Midway Island for repairs.

The USS Angler began her second war patrol on February 15, this time in the Mindanao Sea, off the east coast of the Philippines. As she neared the area, General Douglas MacArthur requested that a submarine help provide an escape for around twenty civilians who needed evacuation from Panay Island. The twenty turned out to be 58, and the Angler brought them on board, providing berths in any available spaces. With limited food and many passengers and crew members becoming inexplicably nauseas, the Angler made for Fremantle, arriving on April 9.

Before departing on her next patrol, the water tanks of the Angler were cleaned in the hope that the source of the illness would be removed. She sailed from Fremantle on May 3, having been assigned to support a carrier strike on Surabaya, Java by destroying retreating enemy ships, providing lifeguard services, and guarding the major access points between the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean. During the action, the Angler torpedoed and sank the cargo ship Otori Maru on May 20, and herself escaped damage from vessels that had been escorting the downed ship.

The next day, however, the Angler crew began suffering from nausea again, and the situation was severe enough that the submarine was immediately ordered to return to Fremantle. By May 23, she had to make the rest of the journey submerged, as there were not enough able-bodied crew members available to maintain a surface watch. After her arrival on May 29, the Angler was investigated, and it was concluded that a forbidden can of carbon tetrachloride which had been taken on board was the cause of the sickness.

The Angler's fourth patrol began on June 21, and after a false start in which her propeller was damaged, she was forced to return for repairs. Leaving again on June 29, she met with two other vessels to carry out the first of the so-called “wolf pack” patrols, in which the three patrolled and attacked together in organized fashion. Much of the patrol was uneventful, but by working together, the patrol sank a total of six ships on July 25. The Angler returned to Fremantle on August 23.

She departed for her next patrol on September 18, bound for the Sulu Sea. On October 14 she was back in action, sinking the transport ship Nanrei Maru, before becoming involved in tracking a Japanese task force, beginning on October 23. She managed to track the force for several hours, providing contact reports that proved invaluable to American forces near Leyte. After rendezvousing with the Hardhead on November 1 to receive a pilot who had been rescued from the water, she returned to Fremantle, arriving on November 9.

The sixth war patrol of the USS Angler began on December 3. This patrol was largely uneventful, as she moved from Saipan to Pearl Harbor before ending the patrol at the Bethlehem Steel Company Shipping Yard in California for an overhaul.

The seventh and final patrol of the USS Angler began on June 12. After stopping at Saipan to refuel, she sailed east of Honshu to patrol the waters there. She found few targets in these waters, but on July 26 located and bombarded a Japanese installation on Kinkasan Island. On July 31, she surfaced off the shore of Hokkaido near Tomakomai, firing at a factory installation before joining other submarines in a coordinated bombardment of boats and buildings.

After the War

After the official cessation of hostilities the USS Angler sailed for Pearl Harbor, arriving at the end of August, before leaving for home. She arrived at New Orleans on September 20, and after a month of leave sailed to New Hampshire to undergo preparations for deactivation. She was decommissioned on February 12, 1946.

The USS Angler was not inactive for long, however. After being recommissioned on April 2, 1951, she recovered an overhaul and rejoined the Atlantic fleet, operating largely in the West Indies for the next two years. She took part in many exercises before undergoing another overhaul early in 1956. After visiting the West Indies and northern Europe she participated in exercises along the east coast in 1957 before departing in September to participate in NATO exercises. The pattern continued over the next several years, as she was deployed to locations in the Mediterranean Sea, Europe, and the Caribbean for training exercises and other activities, before being decommissioned for the last time on April 1, 1967. The USS Angler was removed from the Naval Register on December 15, 1971, and sold for scrap in 1974.

Many United States Navy vessels—submarines as well as ships—contained large amounts of asbestos, as the substance was once used extensively as an insulator and fire-proofing material. Many people who served onboard these vessels, or were involved in building, repairing, or outfitting them, have subsequently developed asbestos-related diseases due to asbestos exposure. If you've developed an asbestos-related disease as a result of involvement with Navy vessels, contact us for information about your legal options.

Submarines Index

USS Albacore SS 218 USS AmberJack SS 219 USS Angler SS 240 USS Apogon SS 308 USS Archer-fish SS 311 USS Argonaut-SM-1 USS Argonaut SS 475 USS Aspro SS 309 USS Atule SS 403 USS Balao SS 285 USS Bang SS 385 USS Barbel SS 316 USS Barbero SS 317 USS Barb SS 220 USS Barracuda SS 163 USS Bashaw SS 241 USS Bergall SS 320 USS Besugo SS 321 USS Billfish SS 286 USS Blackfin SS 322 USS Blackfish SS 221 USS Blenny SS 324 USS Blower SS 325 USS Blueback SS 326 USS Bluefish SS 222 USS Bluegill SS 242 USS Boarfish SS 327 USS Bonefish SS 223 USS Bonita SS 165 USS Bowfin SS 287 USS Bream SS 243 USS Brill SS 330 USS Bugara SS 331 USS Bullhead SS 332 USS Bumper SS 333 USS Burrfish SS 312 USS Cabezon SS 334 USS Carbonero SS 337 USS Hake SS 256 USS Hammerhead SS 364 USS Harder SS 257 USS Hardhead SS 365 USS Hawkbill SS 366

USS Herring SS 233 USS Hoe SS 258 USS Icefish SS 367 USS Jack SS 259 USS Jallao SS 368 USS Kete S 369 USS Kingfish SS 234 USS Kraken SS 370 USS Lagarto SS 371 USS Lizardfish SS 373 USS Loggerhead SS 374 USS Macabi SS 375 USS Mackerel-204 USS Manta SS 299 USS Mapiro SS 376 USS Marlin SS 205 USS Mingo SS 261 USS Moray SS 300 USS Muskallunge SS 262 USS Narwhal SS 263 USS Nautilus-ss-0024 USS Paddle SS 167 USS Pampanito SS 383 USS Parche SS 384 USS Pargo SS 264 USS Perch SS 176 USS Permit SS 178 USS Peto SS 265 USS Pickerel SS 177 USS Picuda SS 382 USS Pike SS 173 USS Pilotfish SS 386 USS Pintado SS 387 USS Pipefish SS 388 USS Pirahna SS 389 USS Plaice SS 390 USS Plunger SS 179 USS Pogy SS 266 USS Pollack SS 180 USS Pomfret SS 391 USS Pompano SS 181 USS Pompon SS 267 USS Porpoise SS 172

USS Puffer SS 268 USS Queenfish SS 393 USS Quillback SS 424 USS Rasher SS 269 USS Raton SS 270 USS Ray SS 271 USS Razorback SS 394 USS Redfin SS 272 USS Redfish SS 395 USS Robalo SS 273 USS Rock SS 274 USS Ronquil SS 396 USS Runner SS 275 USS Runner SS 476 USS S-1 SS 105 USS S-20 SS 125 USS S-46 SS 157 USS Sailfish SS 192 USS Salmon SS 182 USS Sand Lance SS 381 USS Sargo SS 188 USS Saury SS 189 USS Sawfish SS 276 USS Scabbardfish SS 397 USS Scamp SS 277 USS Scorpion SS 278 USS Sculpin SS 191 USS Sea Cat SS 399 USS Sea Devil SS 400 USS Sea Dog SS 401 USS Seadragon SS 194 USS Sea Fox SS 402 USS Seahorse SS 304 USS Sealion SS 195 USS Seal SS 183 USS Sea Owl SS 405 USS Sea Poacher SS 406 USS Searaven SS 196 USS Sea Robin SS 407 USS Seawolf SS 197 USS Segundo SS 398 USS Sennet SS 408

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