USS S - 43 ( SS - 154 ) USS " S - 43 " ( SS - 154 ) was a third - group ( " S - 42 " ) " S " - class submarine of the United States Navy . Her keel was laid down on 13 December 1920 by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in Quincy , Massachusetts . She was launched on 31 March 1923 sponsored by Mrs . John H . Brown , and commissioned on 31 December 1924 with Lieutenant C . E . Braine , Jr . , in command . Early years . Initially assigned to Submarine Division ( SubDiv ) 19 and then to SubDiv 11 , " S - 43 " completed trials off the Connecticut coast and , in April 1925 , moved south to Guantanamo Bay . Thence , she proceeded to the Submarine Base , Coco Solo in the Panama Canal Zone , where she was based for the next two years . Engaged in exercises — individual , division , and fleet — during that period , she was transferred with her division to the Battle Force in July 1927 and based at San Diego , California . From there , she continued her schedule of exercises and fleet problems into the 1930s . Annual overhauls and exercises off southern California were followed by summer operations in Hawaiian waters and autumn patrols and exercises off Mexico . December 1930 , however , brought changes to her schedule . Then reassigned to Pearl Harbor , she operated almost exclusively in the Hawaiian area until 1941 . Exceptions to these operations came with fleet problem deployment and inactive periods during her years , 1932 to 1935 , in the rotating reserve . In June 1941 , the boats of SubDiv 11 were ordered to New London , Connecticut . There , the division was redesignated SubDiv 53 , and the old S - boat s were ordered , in groups , to Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , for overhaul and alterations to increase their reliability in case of war . In August , " S - 43 " put back to sea only to suffer a complete power failure which foreshadowed future breakdowns . In September , however , she assumed patrol and training duties out of Bermuda . At the end of October , she returned to southern New England for similar operations in the New London , Connecticut - Newport , Rhode Island area ; and , in late November , she moved further north , to Newfoundland , to test the effects of weather there on the S - boats . World War II deployment . On 7 December , the United States entered World War II . The next day , " S - 43 " departed the Canadian coast for New London and Coco Solo . On 27 December , she reached the Panama Canal Zone ; and , on 9 January 1942 , she transited the canal to conduct a security patrol in the Pacific approaches to that vital area . Returning to Coco Solo on 2 February , she prepared for transfer to the Australia - New Zealand area . On 5 March , SubDiv 53 , accompanied by submarine tender , got underway for Australia . In mid - April the S - boats completed their 12 , 000 - mile voyage at Brisbane , Queensland , where they were joined by the Asiatic Fleet ' s S - boats to form TF 42 . First war patrol . Upkeep followed , and , on 11 May , " S - 43 " cleared Moreton Bay for her first war patrol . She ran submerged during daylight hours after passing 15 degrees south , despite her lack of air conditioning . She arrived in her patrol area , St . George ' s Channel between New Ireland and New Britain , on 21 May . On 24 May , her main engine air compressors broke down making both engines dependent on the ship ' s air banks . Two nights were spent removing and repairing the starboard air compressor . Her port air compressor remained out of commission . Leaks in sea valves ; contaminated fuel oil ; and a persistent fogging problem on the number - one periscope lens also plagued her for the remainder of the patrol . In early June 1942 , The port engine clutch collapsed and became irreparable rendering the port engine unusable . The starboard engine threw a connecting rod on one of the pistons . Engine parts were thrown through the side of the engine . After three days and three nights the engines were still not operating . The Captain decided that if the crew was unable to get the engine running soon the only alternative would be to scuttle the submarine on a reef near Guadalcanal 54 miles away . The 55 crew members could then wade ashore with small arms . There was just enough power left in the batteries for this trip . Fortunately , the next day the Machinist ' s Mate notified the Captain that emergency repairs had been made , broken parts removed , and holes welded in the cylinder wall and the submarine would be able to return to port on 7 ( of 8 ) cylinders . The " S - 43 " was able to make port in Brisbane , Australia . From 26 May to 1 June , " S - 43 " ran submerged during the day to clear the area and lay to at night to charge her batteries . On 2 June , she surfaced and , operating on one engine , continued at one - third speed to Brisbane , where she arrived on 10 June . Second war patrol . After docking and refit , " S - 43 " was again ordered out . On 8 July , she embarked Flight Officer C . F . Mason of the Royal Australian Air Force , liaison and rescue officer for friendly agents on New Ireland and Feni Island ; then got underway for the Bismarck Archipelago . On 18 July , she arrived off New Ireland and , on the night of 19 July , put Mason ashore . Twenty - three hours later , she returned to pick him up . He had been unable to contact the agent to be taken off . On the night of 21 July , " S - 43 " surfaced off Feni and , at 1924 , Mason went ashore to locate and bring off the agent there . At 19 : 20 on 22 July , the S - boat received a message from Mason to send in a boat ; his had been punctured . Another inflatable boat was dispatched and returned within two hours , with Mason but without the agent . The following night , " S - 43 " again surfaced near the Feni shore , and Mason returned to the island for the agent . On the night of 24 July , however , the S - boat received no answer to her signals . After numerous unsuccessful attempts to contact the liaison officer or the agent , " S - 43 " began the voyage back and arrived at Brisbane on 7 August . Third war patrol . Main engine failures postponed " S - 43 " ’ s third patrol departure from 27 August to 14 September . Initially assigned to intercept Japanese shipping headed for Milne Bay by patrolling east of Kiriwina in the Trobriand Islands , she was soon shifted to the Buka Island area of the Solomon Islands . During the patrol , she sighted no worthwhile targets ; and , on 14 October , she returned to Australia . Overhaul . The same month , SubDiv 53 was ordered back to Panama . Underway on 4 November , the boats , again accompanied by " Griffin " ( AS - 13 ) , reached Coco Solo on 9 January 1943 . There into the spring , " S - 43 " proceeded to Cuba in early April ; then retraced her route ; transited the Panama Canal ; and , on 26 April , arrived at San Diego , California , where she operated for the West Coast Sound School through the summer . In September , she commenced a five - month overhaul to prepare her for returning to the Solomons . Proceeding to Pearl Harbor in mid - February , she remained there through March for engine repairs ; and , on 31 March , got underway again . Five days later , a crank case explosion in the starboard main engine forced her to put into Espiritu Santo for repairs . Finally , on 22 April , she arrived in Purvis Bay , whence she conducted antisubmarine warfare ( ASW ) training operations with Allied surface and air units . In January 1945 , she returned to Australia , performed similar as operations through February ; and , on 2 March , departed Australian waters for the last time . Heading for the American West Coast , she was fired on by an Allied merchant ship during poor weather on 18 March , but submerged before suffering any damage . On 5 April , she reached San Diego . Retirement . In late September , " S - 43 " shifted to San Francisco , California , where she was decommissioned on 10 October 1945 . Stripped the same month , her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 13 November , and her hulk was sold for scrap to the Salco Iron and Metal Company in San Francisco the following year .