 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (February 2013) |
 USS PC-815, a US PC-461-class submarine chaser that served in World War II
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders | (13 companies in 11 states) |
| Operators |
|
| Preceded by | USS SC-451 and USS SC-452 |
| Succeeded by | PC-1610 class |
| Built | 1941-1944 |
| Planned | 403 |
| Completed | 343 |
| Cancelled | 60 |
| Active | 0 |
| Lost | 8 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Submarine chaser |
| Displacement | 450 tons |
| Length | 173 ft 8 in (53 m) |
| Beam | 23 ft 0 in (7 m) |
| Draft | 6 ft 2.5 in (2 m) |
| Propulsion | 2 × 1,440 bhp (1,070 kW) diesel engines (various models) 2 × shafts |
| Speed | 20.2 knots (37.4 km/h; 23.2 mph) |
| Range | 3000 nautical miles at 12 knots |
| Complement | 65 |
| Armament | Varies over time. Typically 1 3”/50 gun forward, 1 3"/50 or 40mm Bofors aft, 3 or 5 20mm single mount cannons bridge/amidships. 2 or 4 K-guns, 2 depth charge racks. |
| Aircraft carried | None |
| Aviation facilities | None |
The PC-461-class submarine chasers were a class of 343 submarine chasers constructed mainly for the US Navy and built from 1941 to 1944. The PC-461s were based primarily on two experimental submarine chasers, PC-451 and PC-452. While PC-461 began the series, the first of the class to enter service was PC-471. As part of the Lend-Lease program, 46 ships of this class were transferred to allies of the United States. Fifty-nine PC-461s were converted to other types of patrol vessels. Eight vessels of this class were lost, and one vessel was lost after conversion to a PGM-9-class motor gunboat. Only one of the class, USS PC-566 commanded by Lieutenant Commander (later Captain) Herbert G. Claudius, actually sank a submarine, U-166, during World War II;[1] however, the website 'Patrol Craft Sailors Association' cites PC-461-class ships sinking or assisting sinking up to 6 German and Japanese subs.[2]
PC-461 submarine chasers were used in the Pacific, Atlantic, Caribbean, and Mediterranean. Numerous PC-461 class vessels were used to aid in amphibious assaults, including the Normandy invasion.[3][4]
One member of this class, USS PC-1264, was one of only two ships in the US Navy during World War II that had a mostly African-American crew.[5]
An unknown member of the class still survives as of June 17th, 2021 in the Columbia River just north of the Troutdale Airport.[1]
- ^ Brian Clark Howard. "72 Years Later, Snubbed Captain Credited With Downing German U-Boat". National Geographic. Archived from the original on July 29, 2018.
- ^ "WWII PCs - World War 2 Patrol Crafts - PCSA". www.ww2pcsa.org.
- ^ Gary Hyde. "Louis Hyde: Crew Member on PC 1225 During WW2". Historynet.com.
- ^ Barry Svrluga. "My Grandfather's Secret D-Day Journal". The Washington Post.
- ^ Jonathan Sutherland. African Americans at War: An Encyclopedia, Vol. 1. p. 301.