Action of 5 July 1942 The Action of 5 July 1942 was a naval engagement fought during the Aleutian Islands Campaign of World War II . During the action , the American submarine attacked three Japanese warships anchored off Kiska island . It was the first action of " Growler " s career and ended with the loss of dozens of Japanese sailors . Background . Over the course of the Pacific War , " Growler " — under various commanders — sank 17 enemy vessels , including many armed ships . She was a " Gato " - class submarine and had a complement of 60 officers and men . Her armament included ten torpedo tube s and one / 50 - caliber deck gun . On her first patrol from Pearl Harbor to Alaska , she was commanded by Lieutenant Commander Howard Gilmore . Japanese forces included the " Kagero " - class destroyer with 240 crewmen and six gun s , several anti - aircraft gun s , eight large torpedo tubes and 36 depth charges . There were also the two " Asashio " - class destroyer s and , each with about 200 men and mounting the same armament as " Shiranui " . The three vessels were assigned to the occupation of Kiska and had participated in the Battle of Pearl Harbor . Action . Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army troops had occupied the island since 6 June 1942 and had met little resistance . The following action proved to be the deadliest encounter between the opposing forces in the Kiska area . " Growler " was cruising east of Kiska Harbor naval base when she came across the three Japanese destroyers at anchor a fair distance away . Submerged , the submarine closed on the enemy and launched a spread of torpedoes from her six forward torpedo tubes at a position in which the enemy vessels appeared to be overlapping one another . " Growler " then surfaced . The Japanese were completely unaware of Lieutenant Commander Gilmore ' s attack , of the six torpedoes fired , at least three struck their targets . Two of the destroyers were hit amidship almost simultaneously and were severely damaged . Just before the third destroyer was hit in the bow , it maneuvered and fired two torpedoes of her own . " Growler " was almost destroyed when one of the torpedoes swished by just off her port side and the other off her starboard . Both missed their target though so the Americans dived deep to avoid depth charges and escaped . Japanese forces did not continue the battle however , " Arare " exploded , so " Shiranui " moved to rescue the survivors while " Kasumi " was out of action . Over 200 Japanese naval personnel were killed or wounded . Of " Arare " s 200 man complement , only 42 men were saved by " Shiranui " , while the Americans sustained no damage or casualties . Aftermath . Finding no more enemy ships in Aleutian waters , " Growler " returned to Hawaii and ended her first patrol . For his distinguished leadership , Howard Gilmore was promoted to the rank of commander and received the Navy Cross . Gilmore was later killed off the Philippines during the Action of 7 February 1943 when he rammed " Growler " into a Japanese gunboat . In a quick surface action , Commander Gilmore was wounded by machine gun fire and ordered his ship to submerge while he was still on deck . The commander became one of the seven American submariners to be awarded the Medal of Honor for duty in World War II . " Growler " went on the engage in nine more successful patrols in the Pacific .