USS Lionfish SS 298
The USS Lionfish SS 298 was a Balao-class submarine that was originally launched on November 7th, 1943 from the Portsmouth Naval Shipbuilding. out of Kittery, Maine and was sponsored by a Mrs. Harold C. Train. The newly constructed submarine was officially commissioned on November 1st, 1944 under the command of Lieutenant Commander Edward D. Spruance, who was the son of the World War II Admiral Raymond Spruance. Following her initial shakedown trials and operational training along the eastern seaboard of the United States she was declared as being finally ready and prepped for active service and was ordered south to the Caribbean Sea to transit the Panama Canal and head west. She moved out into the Pacific setting sail towards her destination and new home base at Pearl Harbor where she was to join the Allied war effort in their perilous fight against the Japanese Imperial Fleet.
She began her first war patrol on April 1st, 1945 when she traveled to the Sea of Japan where on May 1st she spotted and sunk a Japanese schooner with her surface deck guns. She then received reports of survivors from a crashed B-29 on Saipan and rendezvoused with fellow submarine the USS Ray to rescue their comrades in arms. They transported the pilots and their crew to Midway and received supplies and she was refitted and prepped for her second war patrol which began on June 2nd. On July 10th she sighted and engaged a Japanese enemy submarine firing multiple torpedoes at her opponent and while hearing explosions that could be identified as direct hits, there were no confirmed kills from that encounter.
When the Japanese formally surrendered on August 15th, 1945 and the hostilities were finally put to an end the USS Lionfish was ordered back to the U. S. mainland. She set sail for San Francisco where she was to begin inactivation procedures. She was reinstituted into the Atlantic Fleet on January 31st, 1951 where she served with NATO throughout the Mediterranean Sea and was decommissioned once more on December 15th, 1953 at the Boston Naval Shipyard. On August 30th, 1972 she was honorably assigned and dedicated as a Museum Ship at Battleship Cove in Fall River, Massachusetts. She rests there today.
The USS Lionship SS 298 and her crew fought bravely for their country. However, they were unwittingly exposed to the hazards of asbestos during their time at sea. Constructed during an era when the threats involved with asbestos were not well understood, the material was commonly used as an insulator throughout the vessel. Now we’re aware that veterans are at risk of developing serious respiratory conditions as a result of their time aboard ships such as the Lionfish. Diseases including a type of deadly cancer called mesothelioma are a dangerous risk for retired veterans, and any crewmembers who are concerned that they may have been exposed to asbestos while aboard the USS Lionfish SS 298 or any other submarine should consult with a doctor.
Last modified: December 28, 2010.
