USS Razorback

USS Razorback (SS-394)
Port-side view of USS Razorback (SS-394) off Hawaii, ca. the 1960s, after GUPPY IIA conversion
Razorback off Hawaii ca. the 1960s after GUPPY IIA conversion.
History
United States
BuilderPortsmouth Naval Shipyard, KitteryMaine[1]
Laid down9 September 1943[1]
Launched27 January 1944[1]
Sponsored byMrs. H. F. D. Davis
Commissioned3 April 1944[1]
DecommissionedAugust 1952[1]
Recommissioned1954[1]
Decommissioned30 November 1970[1]
Stricken30 November 1970[2]
FateSold to Turkey, 30 November 1970[2]
Turkey
NameTCG Muratreis (S-336)
Acquired30 November 1970
Commissioned17 December 1971
Decommissioned8 August 2001
Fate
General characteristics
Class and typeBalao-class diesel-electric submarine[2]
Displacement
  • 1,526 long tons (1,550 t) surfaced[2]
  • 2,391 long tons (2,429 t) submerged[2]
Length311 ft 6 in (94.95 m)[2]
Beam27 ft 3 in (8.31 m)[2]
Draft16 ft 10 in (5.13 m) maximum[2]
Propulsion
Speed
  • 20.25 knots (37.50 km/h; 23.30 mph) surfaced[6]
  • 8.75 knots (16.21 km/h; 10.07 mph) submerged[6]
Range11,000 nmi (20,000 km; 13,000 mi) surfaced at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)[6]
Endurance
  • 48 hours at 2 knots (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph) submerged[6]
  • 75 days on patrol
Test depth400 ft (120 m)[6]
Complement10 officers, 70–71 enlisted[6]
Armament
General characteristics (Guppy IIA)
Class and typenone
Displacement
  • 1,848 long tons (1,878 t) surfaced[7]
  • 2,440 long tons (2,480 t) submerged[7]
Length307 ft (94 m)[8]
Beam27 ft 4 in (8.33 m)[8]
Draft17 ft (5.2 m)[8]
Propulsion
  • Snorkel added[7]
  • One diesel engine and generator removed[7]
  • Batteries upgraded to Sargo II[7]
Speed
  • Surfaced:
  • 17.0 knots (31.5 km/h; 19.6 mph) maximum
  • 13.5 knots (25.0 km/h; 15.5 mph) cruising
  • Submerged:
  • 14.1 knots (26.1 km/h; 16.2 mph) for 12 hour
  • 8.0 knots (14.8 km/h; 9.2 mph) snorkeling
  • 3.0 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph) cruising[7]
Armament
USS Razorback(SS-394)
USS Razorback is located in Arkansas
USS Razorback
LocationNorth bank of the Arkansas River at the Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum near I-30 Bridge, North Little Rock, Arkansas
Coordinates34°45′13″N 92°15′49″W / 34.75361°N 92.26361°W / 34.75361; -92.26361
Arealess than 1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built1943
ArchitectPortsmouth Naval Shipyard
NRHP reference No.04001502[9]
Added to NRHP1 September 2005

USS Razorback (SS-394), a Balao-class submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named after the razorback, a species of whale (Balaenoptera physalus) found in the far southern reaches of the Pacific Ocean. She is arguably the longest-serving combat front-line submarine still existing in the world, having been commissioned by two different countries for 56 years of active duty. She was in Tokyo Bay during the surrender of Japan. In 2004, the state of Arkansas adopted the submarine (although she was not named after the University of Arkansas Razorbacks mascot) and she is now a museum ship at the Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum.

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Friedman, Norman (1995). U.S. Submarines Through 1945: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute. pp. 285–304. ISBN 1-55750-263-3.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Bauer, K. Jack; Roberts, Stephen S. (1991). Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775–1990: Major Combatants. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. pp. 275–280. ISBN 0-313-26202-0.
  3. ^ a b c d e Bauer, K. Jack; Roberts, Stephen S. (1991). Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775–1990: Major Combatants. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. pp. 275–280. ISBN 978-0-313-26202-9.
  4. ^ U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 261–263
  5. ^ U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 305–311
  6. ^ a b c d e f U.S. Submarines Through 1945, pp. 305–311
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Friedman, Norman (1994). U.S. Submarines Since 1945: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute. pp. 11–43. ISBN 1-55750-260-9.
  8. ^ a b c d U.S. Submarines Since 1945 pp. 242
  9. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 9 July 2010.