USS S - 38 ( SS - 143 ) USS " S - 38 " ( SS - 143 ) was a " S " - class submarine of the United States Navy . Her keel was laid down on 15 January 1919 by the Union Iron Works in San Francisco , California . She was launched on 17 June 1919 sponsored by Mrs . Grace M . Collins , and commissioned on 11 May 1923 with Lieutenant Clifford H . " Stony " Roper ( Class of 1916 ) in command . Service history . Fitted out at Mare Island , " S - 38 " joined Submarine Division 17 ( SubDiv 17 ) at San Pedro , California , on 24 May and immediately began preparations for a cruise to the Aleutian Islands . On 9 June , she moved north with submarine tender s , , and three other S - boat s . On 21 June , they reached Dutch Harbor , whence the boats conducted evaluation tests and exercises for the next three and a half weeks . On 16 July , the force put into Anchorage , Alaska . On 17 July , while performing routine maintenance on " S - 38 " ' s motors , a crewman removed a valve cover , creating an opening to sea below the boat ' s waterline , flooding the motor room . No personnel were injured , but the motors were crippled . Temporary repairs took until 23 July , when the boat was taken in tow by " Ortolan " . Asiatic Fleet . " S - 38 " reached Mare Island on 1 August , remained there for repairs and alterations until April 1924 , then returned to San Pedro , whence she conducted local exercises into the summer . In August , she prepared for duty with the Asiatic Fleet , and , in mid - September she headed west across the Pacific . She stood into Manila Bay on 4 November 1924 and , for the next 17 years , operated out of Cavite , with annual summer deployments to the China coast . Division operations occupied Asiatic Fleet submarines during most of the period ; but , as hostilities intensified on the mainland , submarine schedules became more varied . Annual deployments and regular exercises of the boats as a division were shortened in length , while exercises and patrols of individual boats were increased in number , duration , and range . During these operations , the submarines cruised off the Philippines , along the Indo - China coast , and into the Netherlands East Indies . World War II . In June 1940 , " S - 38 " completed her last cruise to China ; and , from then into the fall of 1941 , she conducted exercises , including joint Army - Navy war games , and practice war patrols in the waters off Luzon and neighboring islands . On 8 December 1941 ( 7 December east of the International Date Line ) , the attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II , and " S - 38 " ( in the hands of " the much loved but not exceptionally bright " Wreford G . " Moon " Chapple , Class of 1930 ) departed Manila Bay on her first war patrol . 1941 . Initially assigned to patrol in Verde Island Passage , she shifted to the west coast of Mindoro on 9 December . On 11 December , " S - 38 " mistakenly torpedoed and sank Norwegian freighter " Hydra II " west of Mindoro ' s Cape Calavite . On 12 December , she moved into the Cape Calavite area and , on the night of 19 / 20 December , set a course toward the Luzon coast . The following night , she put into Camens Cove ; repaired damage caused by an explosion of pressure built up in the port engine lube oil cooler ; and , with dawn on 21 December , resumed her patrol . Receiving orders to penetrate shallow , hazard - filled Lingayen Gulf and attack hostile shipping , she entered the gulf just before dawn on 22 December . At 06 : 45 , she sighted an enemy convoy of four transports , escorted by two destroyer s . Waiting for the range to drop to a very short , at 07 : 10 , she fired four bow tubes — all misses . As she reloaded , the enemy destroyers closed in , pinging , but no depth charge s came . At 07 : 58 , she launched two torpedoes at an anchored enemy cargo ship . Less than a minute later , the 5445 - ton " Hayo Maru " blew up . Enemy destroyers again closed the submarine , and she went " deep " , to , and lay doggo as depth charges rained , none close . From 08 : 04 to 09 : 30 , the S - boat ran silent , using evasive tactics . At 09 : 30 , she grounded on the muddy bottom ; she remained there most of the day , destroyers , joined by small boats , continuing to search , without success . At 21 : 30 , the hunted submarine began efforts to clear by backing . During the maneuvering , her port propeller was damaged ; but , by 22 : 01 , she was free and underway for the Hundred Islands area on the western side of the gulf . " S - 38 " surfaced to change the air and charge batteries , then dove at dawn , remaining on the bottom all the next day , giving her crew a rest . " S - 38 " remained undetected through 23 December ; on 24 December , she moved to the southern section of the gulf where she closed a formation of six large auxiliaries just prior to 11 : 30 . At 11 : 52 , there was a huge explosion on her port side , evidently a patrol plane ' s bomb . She went deeper . Between 12 : 06 and 12 : 08 , eight more exploded around her . At 12 : 09 , she stopped all motors and sank to the bottom in 180 feet of water . The depth charging continued , but the explosions were more distant . At 12 : 30 , the submarine began to move again . At 12 : 45 , the enemy hunters again located her and resumed depth charging . " S - 38 " again settled to the bottom . The depth charging continued until after 13 : 00 . The search continued until after 18 : 00 . At 18 : 42 , the submarine got underway , heading back to the Hundred Islands area . At 22 : 35 , she surfaced to recharge her batteries . Five minutes later , her improperly - vented after battery exploded . At 23 : 04 , she went ahead on her starboard engine , making her way out of Lingayen Gulf . Soon after 02 : 00 on 25 December , she sighted two enemy destroyers , but remained undetected . At 03 : 46 , however , she sighted a third , which sighted her . " S - 38 " submerged . The destroyer closed the submarine ' s last surface position and , at 03 : 50 , commenced depth charging . From then until after 09 : 00 , the submarine evaded the destroyer , using her one quiet propeller . She then grounded on a steep bank at . For the next two hours , the destroyer circled . " S - 38 " slid down to , used her motor to bring herself up , then repeated the maneuver . The destroyer moved off and , at 12 : 35 , the S - boat got underway for Manila . An hour later , she grounded , but only briefly ; and , at 21 : 45 on 26 December she entered the outer minefield at the entrance to Manila Bay . 1942 . Cavite had now become untenable , and " S - 38 " was ordered to Soerabaja ( whence her skipper was detached , to , in favor of Henry G . Munson ) ; after repairs , " S - 38 " was to operate with other Allied forces attempting to stem the Japanese thrust into the East Indies . On 14 January 1942 , the submarine arrived at the Dutch base on the north coast of Java . On 15 January , the ABDA Command was officially established . On 24 January , the Japanese reached Balikpapan . On 25 January , " S - 38 " , hurriedly repaired , departed Soerabaja to patrol in Makassar Strait off Balikpapan . During the next two weeks , " S - 38 " underwent two severe depth charge attacks . On 7 February , she penetrated close to Balikpapan to examine shipping in the harbor , activity along the coast road , and new defenses in the area . On 8 February , she resumed offensive operations , but poor weather hindered success . On 9 February , the Japanese moved on Makassar City , and " S - 38 " was ordered to patrol off Cape William on the Celebes side of the strait , where she remained until 12 February . Then ordered back to Soerabaja the submarine arrived at her Javanese base on 16 February . Six days later , she again put to sea . Moving east , she patrolled initially off Meinderts Reef , off the northeast coast of Java ; then headed north to round the eastern end of Madoera Island en route to Bawean Island . On 26 February , she shelled Japanese facilities at Sangkapura ; then patrolled between Bawean and the western approach to Soerabaja . On 28 February , she picked up 58 survivors from destroyer , sunk the day before at the Battle of the Java Sea ; and , on 1 March , transferred the British sailors to a surface ship in Madoera Strait . She then resumed her hunt for Japanese shipping which had put the enemy ashore at Batavia , Indramajoe , and Rembang , the latter the last large oil center in the Netherlands East Indies and only from Soerabaja . On the morning of 2 March , " S - 38 " fired four torpedoes at a Japanese light cruiser and two at a destroyer , believing he damaged the cruiser , perhaps sank it , then waited on the bottom as destroyers searched for her . In mid - afternoon , she moved out of the immediate area . That evening , she unsuccessfully attacked another enemy warship and , although damaged , survived another hunt by hiding beneath a halocline . On 3 March , she was ordered to western Australia . " S - 38 " transited the whirlpool and rapids area at the lower end of Lombok Strait on 5 March . On 13 March she arrived at Fremantle ; and , at the end of the month , proceeded to Brisbane to join other Asiatic Fleet S - boats in forming the nucleus of TF 42 and to prepare for operations in the New Guinea - Bismarck Archipelago - Solomon Islands area . During March and April , enemy air raids against Port Moresby intensified in preparation to move into Papua from northeast New Guinea . On 28 April , " S - 38 " cleared Moreton Bay and headed north to patrol the Papuan coast . In mid - May , she shifted to Jomard Passage , where she remained , unable to communicate with Brisbane , until the night of 18 April . She then set a course for the Queensland coast . On 20 April , she passed debris believed to be a result of the Battle of the Coral Sea , and that night she successfully transmitted a message to Brisbane . On 24 April , she returned to Moreton Bay . A month - long repair and test period followed during which cells damaged in the battery explosion on her first war patrol were finally replaced . On 24 June , she again stood down the Brisbane River , cleared Moreton Bay , and entered the Coral Sea bound for the Solomons . On 29 June , she entered her assigned patrol area and headed for the passage between Russell Island and Guadalcanal . On 30 June , she was standing down Lunga Roads , and , on 1 July , she arrived off Tulagi where she closed her first target of the patrol . Detected as she prepared to fire , she evaded a depth - charging destroyer and gradually gained sea room . The depth charging , however , aggravated problems of old age and corrosion . Depth control became difficult as leaks developed in an auxiliary tank and in the motor room bilges . The leaks in the latter worsened as she moved out of the immediate area and resulted in a stream of air bubbles which led to aerial detection two hours after she had left the destroyer behind . Thereafter , mechanical problems multiplied ; and " S - 38 " , unable to remain effective on her station , set a course for Brisbane , arriving on 7 July . For the better part of the next 20 days , " S - 38 " underwent intensive , round - the - clock repairs at the Queensland Government Dry Dock , and , on 28 July , she again headed out across the Coral Sea . On 4 August , she entered her assigned area , New Britain - New Ireland , and commenced patrolling along the Rabaul - New Guinea traffic lanes . By 6 August , she had moved eastward along the New Britain coast , crossed the shipping lanes at the southern entrance to St . George ' s Channel , and closed the coast of New Ireland . On 7 August , she shifted her search for Japanese shipping further seaward and within hours sighted several targets ; but distance , lack of speed and maneuverability , and mechanical breakdowns precluded successful attacks . On 8 August , however , approximately eight miles south of Cape St . George , she sighted a transport escorted by a destroyer and approaching so as to pass close ahead . At 23 : 09 , " S - 38 " rigged for depth charging and prepared to fire . At 23 : 24 , she fired two torpedoes at the transport . Less than a minute later , both exploded on target . The 5628 - ton " Meiyo Maru " went dead in the water . " S - 38 " commenced evasive tactics . At 23 : 30 , the destroyer dropped its first depth charge . At 23 : 32 , " Meiyo Maru " began breaking up ( the second of just two ships confirmed sunk by " S - 38 " ) and , at 23 : 39 , " S - 38 " headed south . The sunken transport ' s escort continued searching but , by 01 : 45 on 9 August , " S - 38 " had moved out of the area and all sounds of the search had faded behind her . On the night of 9 / 10 August , the S - boat returned to the traffic lanes eight miles ( 15 km ) off the southwest coast of New Ireland , where she continued her hunting until 12 August . She then moved westward returning to the southeastern coast of New Britain to attempt to intercept traffic between Rabaul and New Guinea . On 15 August , she headed for Australia and reached Brisbane a week later . Fleet submarines were now ranging the Pacific , and the S - boats were being ordered back to the United States for modernization overhauls . On 21 September , " S - 38 " , carrying only four torpedoes to avoid depleting the supply at Brisbane , departed Australia for the United States . Ordered to reconnoiter several of the Gilbert Islands en route , she fueled and took on lube oil and provisions at Nouméa on 25 and 26 September , then moved toward the Gilberts . On 30 September , she altered her course and headed for Anuda in the Santa Cruz Islands where she transferred an acute appendicitis case to a Navy PBY Catalina on 1 October ; then resumed her original mission . On 5 October , she was in the Gilberts and two days later was off Tarawa where she attempted to sink a tanker as it emerged from the lagoon . The " fish " , however , exploded on the reef and " S - 38 " was forced to clear the area as the Japanese sent both aerial and surface antisubmarine forces into the action . By midnight , the submarine was patrolling the Makin - Tarawa traffic lane , and , on 10 October , she completed her reconnaissance mission at Makin and headed for Pearl Harbor . 1943 - 44 . From Hawaii , " S - 38 " went to San Diego , California , arriving on 6 November . Overhaul followed . Her engines , motors , and all auxiliary equipment were removed and completely overhauled ; the superstructure was modified to reduce her silhouette , air conditioning and new radar , sound , and radio equipment were installed , and a four - inch ( 102 mm ) / fifty caliber gun replaced her three - inch . On 13 April 1943 , she completed overhaul ; and , on 15 April , she sailed west . The next day , she began suffering mechanical breakdowns again , and , on 29 April , she arrived at Pearl Harbor . Repairs took her into June . Tests followed and , on 26 June , she again moved west to the Marshall Islands where she conducted her last war patrol which , although scoreless and plagued by mechanical failures , was successful in gaining photographs of Japanese activity on future target islands . On 22 July , she set a course for the New Hebrides ; and , on 27 July , she arrived at Espiritu Santo to commence antisubmarine warfare training duties . With only two interruptions , she remained in the New Hebrides - New Caledonia area on that duty into the summer of 1944 . On 27 August of that year , she departed Espiritu Santo for California ; and , on 7 September , she arrived at San Diego . The following month , she was ordered inactivated . " S - 38 " was decommissioned on 14 December 1944 , struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 20 January 1945 , and expended as a target by aerial bombing on 20 February 1945 . " S - 38 " earned three battle star s during World War II . The " S - 38 " is the subject of an episode of the syndicated television anthology series , " The Silent Service " , which aired during the 1957 - 1958 season .