USS Sea Owl ( SS - 405 ) USS " Sea Owl " ( SS / AGSS - 405 ) , a " Balao " - class submarine , was a ship of the United States Navy named for the sea owl , a lumpfish of the North Atlantic . " Sea Owl " was laid down by the Portsmouth Navy Yard in Kittery , Maine on 7 February 1944 ; launched on 7 May 1944 ; sponsored by Mrs . Thomas L . Gatch ; and commissioned on 17 July 1944 , Lieutenant Commander Carter L . Bennett in command . World War II . After shakedown off Portsmouth , N . H . , and New London , Conn . , " Sea Owl " transited the Panama Canal and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 23 October 1944 . Her first war patrol commenced on 19 November and was conducted in the East China Sea as part of a coordinated attack group with and . She carried trial versions of Mark 18 electric and Mark 27 ( " Cutie " ) homing torpedo es . After three weeks of searching for worthwhile targets , " Sea Owl " sank her initial victim , a Japanese destroyer escort , with one Mark 27 . She followed with a second escort , stopped by a Mark 27 and finished off with one Mark 18 , from about 1000 yd ( 910 m ) . This was the first combat success for both weapons . The remainder of the patrol was uneventful , and the submarine put into Guam on 15 January 1945 . For her second war patrol , " Sea Owl " joined " Piranha " and in patrolling in Luzon Strait and the South China Sea . She was off Wake Island early on the morning of 18 April and sent Japanese submarine RO - 46 ( of the " RO - 35 " class ) to the bottom . Her second patrol ended at Midway on 21 April . " Sea Owl " got underway for her third and final war patrol on 20 May in concert with " Puffer " and . This patrol was concentrated in the Yellow and East China Seas and was devoted to both lifeguard duties and offensive patrol . After 19 days , two Japanese destroyer s were contacted and six torpedoes were fired from a perfect set - up . The first torpedo hit one of the destroyers in her magazine amidships , blowing her up in the water and allowing the other torpedoes to pass under the target and miss . The other destroyer joined forces with two patrol craft and vengefully dropped 84 depth charge s during the following 14 hours but inflicted no material damage . Four days later , " Sea Owl " , in a gun attack , destroyed a large , rice - laden , four - masted schooner from which she captured two prisoners of war . On 2 July , she rescued six downed aviators after a race against darkness . All six were treated for wounds and were included in the crew for the remainder of the patrol . When the Japanese surrendered on 15 August , " Sea Owl " was in Pearl Harbor preparing for her fourth war patrol . 1945 – 1951 . Upon returning to the United States in September , " Sea Owl " was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet and was based at Balboa in the Canal Zone as a unit of Submarine Squadron 6 ( SubRon 6 ) . From October 1946 through March 1947 , she made a cruise along the west coast of South America and joined the other submarines of SubRon 6 in fleet exercises off Culebra Island in the West Indies . She next supported antisubmarine training at Guantanamo Bay , Cuba , and Key West , Fla . " Sea Owl " underwent overhaul at the Philadelphia Navy Yard from September 1947 to January 1948 followed by a brief period of refresher training in the Caribbean . She resumed her duties at Balboa on 12 January and , for the next 18 months , operated in the Panama area and Caribbean Sea participating in fleet training exercises . On 27 June 1949 , " Sea Owl " arrived at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for a regularly scheduled overhaul and , upon completion in October , was assigned to SubRon 8 in New London , Conn . For the next two years she operated in the Atlantic , participating in fleet exercises and antisubmarine training . 1951 – 1961 . " Sea Owl " was converted to a Fleet Snorkel submarine in the Philadelphia Navy Yard from April to August 1951 and , for the next year , she participated in Atlantic Fleet exercises in the Caribbean area . Early in 1953 , the submarine entered Charleston Naval Shipyard in South Carolina for overhaul and , upon completion , sailed to New London and then to the Caribbean as part of operation " Springboard . " After returning to New London in March , she departed for her first tour of duty with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean , participating in fleet exercises and in Operation " Keystone " and visiting France , Italy , Spain , Greece , and Turkey in a three - month tour . Returning to New London in August 1954 , " Sea Owl " spent the next two years in Atlantic and Caribbean waters training submarine school students and reserve personnel . After engaging in special operations in the late fall of 1956 and early 1957 , the submarine resumed normal duties in the New London area until 1 September when she departed to engage in NATO exercises “ Fishplay ” and “ Strikeback ” in the northern Atlantic , returning to New London in October . In April and May 1958 , " Sea Owl " participated in NATO Exercise “ New Broom ” and , upon returning to New London , engaged in local operations for the remainder of the year . After a five - month overhaul early in 1959 , she participated in NATO Exercise “ Fishplay ” and spent the latter months of 1960 in her second deployment to the Mediterranean . " Sea Owl " commenced 1961 with an extended upkeep period followed by local operations in the New London area . On 6 March , she departed for another Mediterranean tour followed by a scheduled overhaul in the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard . 1962 – 1969 . After the 1962 Christmas holidays , " Sea Owl " departed for the Caribbean to take part in the second phase of operation “ Springboard ” including antisubmarine warfare exercises and visits to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands . Immediately following , she was engaged in a two - week antisubmarine warfare exercise with surface and air units of the Royal Canadian Navy in the vicinity of Bermuda . In April 1963 , she participated in Exercise “ New Broom XI ” with joint forces of the United States and Canada . The remainder of the year consisted of submarine school operations and training exercises in the New London area . On 8 February 1964 , " Sea Owl " commenced a five - week availability at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard followed by participation in Exercise “ Long Hook ” with joint forces of the United States , British , Canadian , and Dutch Navies and in Exercise “ Canus Silex ” with Canadian and United States Naval forces . In September , the submarine participated in Exercise “ Master Stroke ” and Exercise “ Canus Slamex ” with United States , Canadian , and British forces and returned to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on 2 November for a five - month overhaul . On 7 July 1965 , " Seal Owl " put to sea for a four - month deployment to the Mediterranean and , after returning to New London , engaged in local exercises for the remainder of the year . " Sea Owl " spent 1966 providing services for the Submarine School and Operational Test and Evaluation Force in New London with time out for participation in Operation “ Springboard ” in the Caribbean . During 1967 , she participated in various fleet and training exercises ; and , on 22 May , deployed to northern European waters for a training and good will tour , returning in July . During a discharge physical examination , one of the crewman was discovered to have an active case of tuberculosis in an advanced stage . Due to the close environment and isolated atmosphere of the submarine , the crew was transferred to the United States Naval Hospital , St . Albans , N . Y . , for three days of intensive tests . Following laboratory analysis , it was found that no other active cases existed , and the crew was returned to the submarine . Because of the unique living conditions of submarine life , " Sea Owl " served as a control group for clinical research for the Tuberculosis Service , Bureau of Medicine and Surgery . Operations for the year 1968 included various fleet exercises , including antisubmarine warfare operations with destroyer units and various NATO and United States ASW naval air squadrons . Training exercises included both officer submarine school and weekend reserve training cruises . " Sea Owl " participated in the U . S . Navy ' s search for the overdue and missing USS Scorpion . On 30 June 1969 , " Sea Owl " was reclassified as an auxiliary submarine , AGSS - 405 . She departed New London on 7 July for her final deployment to the Mediterranean . Upon return , the submarine was ordered to commence preparations for deactivation . On 15 November , after more than 25 years of dedicated service , " Sea Owl " was decommissioned and struck from the Navy list . " Sea Owl " was sold for scrapping , 3 June 1971 . Honors and awards . " Sea Owl " received five battle star s for World War II .