USS Flier ( SS - 250 ) , a " Gato " - class submarine , was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for the flier , a round sunfish widely known in the United States . Her keel was laid down 30 October 1942 by Electric Boat Company of Groton , Connecticut . She was launched on 11 July 1943 ( sponsored by Mrs . A . S . Pierce ) , and commissioned on 18 October 1943 with Lieutenant Commander John D . Crowley in command . First war patrol . " Flier " reached Pearl Harbor from New London , Connecticut , on 20 December 1943 , and prepared for her first war patrol , sailing 12 January 1944 . However , the submarine ran aground near Midway Island on 16 January . , a submarine rescue ship , attempted to pull " Flier " free but ran aground herself and sank . " Flier " was eventually saved by and towed to first Pearl Harbor and then the Mare Island Navy Yard for repairs . On 21 May she sailed again for action , heading for a patrol area west of Luzon . She made her first contact on 4 June , attacking a well - escorted convoy of five merchantmen . Firing three torpedo es at each of two ships , she sent the transport " Hakusan Maru " to the bottom and scored a hit on another ship , before clearing the area to evade countermeasures . On 13 June 1944 , " Flier " attacked a convoy of 11 ships , cargo carriers and tankers , guarded by at least six escorts . The alert behavior of the escorts during the attack resulted in a severe counterattack on " Flier " before she could observe what damage she had done to the convoy . On 22 June , she began a long chase after another large convoy , scoring four hits for six torpedoes fired at two cargo ships that day , and three hits for four torpedoes launched against another cargo ship of the same convoy the next day . Second war patrol . " Flier " put in to Fremantle , Australia , to refit between 5 July and 2 August 1944 , then sailed on her second war patrol , bound for the coast of Indochina via the Lombok Strait , Macassar Strait and Balabac Strait . At about 2200 on 12 August , while transiting Balabac Strait on the surface , she struck a naval mine . She sank in about a minute , but 13 officers and men were able to clamber out . Eight of them reached the beach of Mantangula Island after 15 hours in the water . Friendly natives guided them to a coast - watcher , who arranged for them to be picked up by submarine , and on the night of 30 – 31 August , they were taken on board by . " Flier " received one battle star for World War II service on her single war patrol , designated " successful . " She is credited with having sunk 10 , 380 tons of Japanese shipping . See also List of U . S . Navy losses in World War II . Wreck . On 1 February 2009 , the U . S . Navy announced the discovery of " Flier " near the Philippines ' Balabac Strait ( ) . The discovery of a " Gato " - class submarine was made during an expedition by YAP Films , based in part on information provided by a survivor of the sinking of " Flier " . Further research by the Naval History and Heritage Command revealed that no other submarine , American or Japanese , had been reported lost in that general vicinity . In addition , footage of the wreck showed a gun mount and radar antenna , both of which were similar to the same equipment seen in contemporary photographs of " Flier " . The ship rests in of water .