USS Tusk

USS Tusk (SS-426)
Tusk, after the GUPPY II conversion
History
United States
NameUSS Tusk
BuilderCramp Shipbuilding Company, Philadelphia[1]
Yard number560
Laid down23 August 1943[1]
Launched8 July 1945[1]
Commissioned11 April 1946[1]
Decommissioned18 October 1973[1]
Stricken18 October 1973[2]
IdentificationSS-426
FateTransferred to the Republic of China, 18 October 1973
Republic of China
NameROCS Hai Pao
Acquired18 October 1973
IdentificationSS-792
StatusAfloat at Tsoying Naval Base, Kaohsiung as of November 2020
General characteristics (As completed)
Class and typeBalao-class diesel-electric submarine[2]
Displacement
  • 1,526 long tons (1,550 t) surfaced[2]
  • 2,424 long tons (2,463 t) submerged[2]
Length311 ft 9 in (95.02 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) surfaced[6]
  • 8.75 knots (16.21 km/h) submerged[6]
Range11,000 nautical miles (20,000 km) surfaced at 10 knots (19 km/h)[6]
Endurance
  • 48 hours at 2 knots (3.7 km/h) submerged[6]
  • 75 days on patrol
Test depth400 feet (120 m)[6]
Complement10 officers, 70–71 enlisted[6]
Armament
General characteristics (Guppy II)
Class and typeGUPPY II
Displacement
  • 1,870 long tons (1,900 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]
  • Batteries upgraded to GUPPY type, capacity expanded to 504 cells (1 × 184 cell, 1 × 68 cell, and 2 × 126 cell batteries)[7]
Speed
  • Surfaced:
  • 18.0 knots (33.3 km/h) maximum
  • 13.5 knots (25.0 km/h) cruising
  • Submerged:
  • 16.0 knots (29.6 km/h) for ½ hour
  • 9.0 knots (16.7 km/h) snorkeling
  • 3.5 knots (6.5 km/h) cruising[7]
Range15,000 nm (28,000 km) surfaced at 11 knots (20 km/h)[8]
Endurance48 hours at 4 knots (7.4 km/h) submerged[8]
Complement
  • 9–10 officers
  • 5 petty officers
  • 70 enlisted men[8]
Sensors and
processing systems
  • WFA active sonar
  • JT passive sonar
  • Mk 106 torpedo fire control system[8]
Armament

USS Tusk (SS-426), a Balao-class submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for the tusk, an alternate name for the cusk, a large edible saltwater fish related to the cod. Her keel was laid down on 23 August 1943 at Philadelphia by the Cramp Shipbuilding Company. She was launched on 8 July 1945 sponsored by Mrs. Carolyn Park Mills, and commissioned on 11 April 1946.

Tusk and Trumpetfish are erroneously listed with the Tench class in some sources, as their hull numbers are in the sequence assigned to that class.

  1. ^ a b c d e 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 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. 275–282. ISBN 978-0-313-26202-9.
  4. ^ U.S. Submarines Through 1945 pp. 261–263
  5. ^ a b c 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 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 e f g h U.S. Submarines Since 1945 pp. 242