USS Sea Poacher ( SS - 406 ) USS " Sea Poacher " ( SS / AGSS - 406 ) , a " Balao " - class submarine , was a ship of the United States Navy named for the sea poacher , a slender , mailed fish of the North Atlantic . " Sea Poacher " ( SS - 406 ) was built by the Portsmouth Navy Yard in Kittery , Maine ; launched on 20 May 1944 ; sponsored by Mrs . J . H . Spiller , wife of Commander Spiller , hull superintendent at the Navy Yard ; and commissioned on 31 July 1944 , Commander Francis M . Gambacorta in command . World War II . Following underway trials , training , and shakedown in the Portsmouth , N . H . , and New London , Conn . , areas , " Sea Poacher " transited the Panama Canal and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 25 October 1944 . Although her first two war patrols were unproductive , during the third , conducted in the Kuril Islands area , " Sea Poacher " torpedoed and sank a Japan ese trawler and , four days later , sent two fishing boats to the bottom in a surface attack . During the latter action , three crewmen were injured when the 20 millimeter gun exploded . Due to the seriousness of their injuries , the patrol was terminated ahead of schedule , and the submarine returned to Midway . After conducting her fourth war patrol off the eastern coast of Honshū and Hokkaidō , " Sea Poacher " was undergoing refitting at Pearl Harbor when the war ended on 15 August 1945 . 1946 – 1974 . From 1946 to 1949 , " Sea Poacher " was based at Balboa , Canal Zone , as a unit of Submarine Squadron 6 ( SubRon 6 ) engaging in fleet exercises and antisubmarine training , and , on 1 June 1949 , was transferred to Key West , Fla . , as a unit of SubRon 4 . In 1951 , the submarine became the first GUPPY IA conversion performed at the Charleston Naval Shipyard . For the remainder of her 25 - year career , " Sea Poacher " operated for the most part in the Key West , Fla . , and Caribbean areas , providing services to various units of the Atlantic Fleet with time out for tours of duty with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean and various exercises with NATO forces . On 10 July 1952 , while operating in the Key West area , the submarine had the unique experience of rescuing a blimp which had suffered an engine casualty and was floating helplessly in the water . The submarine promptly came to the aid of the stricken airship and proceeded to tow it the back to its base at Naval Air Station , Boca Chica , Fla . In July 1959 , " Sea Poacher " was transferred to SubRon 12 , also based at Key West , and continued to serve as a unit of this squadron for the remainder of her active service . In the fall of 1962 , " Sea Poacher " was deployed with other Atlantic Fleet units maintaining the quarantine imposed on Cuba during the missile crisis . In 1969 , " Sea Poacher " concluded her service with a three and one - half month deployment to the eastern and northern $ 3 areas to participate in antisubmarine training exercises with units of the Spanish and Portuguese navies . Upon returning to Key West , the submarine operated locally and in the Caribbean until 20 October when she set sail for Philadelphia and in - activation . " Sea Poacher " was reclassified an Auxiliary Submarine AGSS - 306 on 1 November , decommissioned on 15 November 1969 , and was assigned to the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Philadelphia . On 30 June 1971 , she reassumed the designation of a fleet submarine ( SS ) . On 15 August 1973 , her name was struck from the Navy List , and the submarine was sold to Peru in July 1974 . Honors and awards . " Sea Poacher " received four battle star s for World War II service . BAP " La Pedrera " ( S - 49 ) . " Sea Poacher " was transferred ( sold ) under terms of the Security Assistance Program , to Peru , 1 July 1974 . She was commissioned into the Peruvian Navy , initially as BAP " Pabellón de Pica " ( S - 49 ) , but her name was changed a few weeks later to La Pedrera . She was taken out of service in 1995 , and relegated to pierside training .