USS GRENADIER SS 210

USS GRENADIER SS 210 Tambor Class

April 22, 1943. Sunk by aerial bombs. 4 men lost.

From: Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships

Grenadier
A soft-finned deep sea fish with a long, tapering body and short, pointed tail.

(SS-210: dp. 1,475; l. 307'2"; b. 27'3"; dr. 13'3"; s. 20 k. (surf.), 8.75 k. (suibm.); cpl. 80; a. 1 3", 10 21" tt.; cl. Tambor)

Grenadier departed Australia on March 20, 1943 on her sixth and final war patrol in the Straight of Malacca, gateway between the Pacific and Indian Oceans. During the night of April 20, she sighted two merchantmen and began closing to attack. Running on the surface on April 21, Grenadier spotted a Japanese plane and dove to between 120 and 130 feet. Aerial bombs rocked Grenadier and caused her to heel over 15 to 20 degrees. Power and lights failed completely and she settled to the bottom at 267 feet. She tried to make repairs while a fierce fire blazed in the maneuvering room. After 13 hours she managed to surface after dark to clear the boat of smoke and inspect damage, and it was determined that the damage to her propulsion system was irreparable. An attempt was made to bring the boat close to shore so that the crew could scuttle her and escape into the jungle. As dawn broke on April 22, two enemy ships began closing the boat and a Japanese plane attacked her, but the crew blazed away with machine guns and hit the plane on its second pass. The damaged plane veered off as one of its torpedoes exploded about 200 yards from the boat. The crew burned all confidential documents, opened all vents, and abandoned ship. A Japanese merchantman picked up 8 officers and 68 enlisted men and took them to Penang, Malay States, where they were questioned, beaten, and starved before being sent to other prison camps. Knowledge of their survival reached Australia on November 27, 1943. All but four of Grenadier's crew survived their 2 years in Japanese hands to tell rescuing American forces of their boat's last patrol and the courage and heroism of her skipper and crew.

Grenadier is credited with sinking the 14,457-ton cargo ship Taiyo Maru. She received four battle stars for World War II service.