USS Bowfin - "The Pearl Harbor Avenger"

I have always been fascinated by submarine warfare during WWII. The technology was sufficiently mature that a submarine, in the hands of a competent skipper and crew, was a fearsome weapon of war. Not until the advent of nuclear power would a true submarine become possible which could operate completely submerged for extended periods of time – limited only by the needs of the crew.Like all submarines of the day, the American fleet boats of WWII could only remain submerged as long as their batteries would provide power. As battery power was nearly exhausted, the boats needed to surface in order to run the main diesel engines and recharge the batteries. This need greatly affected the strategy and tactics employed in submarine warfare.Launched on December 7, 1942, the USS Bowfin was nicknamed “The Pearl Harbor Avenger”. The Bowfin had 9 successful patrols during the war damaging or sinking 213,580 tons of enemy shipping. Early in 1945 Bowfin was fitted with a new type of sonar which could