USS Manta SS 299
The USS Manta SS 299 was a Balao-class submarine that was launched on November 7th, 1943 from the Cramp Shipbuilding Company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was sponsored by a Mrs. Michael J. Bradley. The newly constructed submarine was officially commissioned on December 18th, 1944 under the command of Lieutenant Commander Edward P. Madley. Following her initial shakedown trials and operational training off the eastern seaboard of the United States near New London, Connecticut she was finally ready for action. She set sail on March 27th, 1945 heading south in order to transit the Panama Canal and move onward to Pearl Harbor to begin her dutiful service with the brave Pacific Fleet.
She departed Pearl Harbor on May 28th, 1945 embarking on her first war patrol where she sailed for the Kurile Islands to conduct reconnaissance and provide life guard duty in support of aircraft carrier strikes against Japanese occupied islands in the region. She returned to Hawaii on July 16th for refitting and refueling and quickly set out again to begin her second war patrol on August 8th which was then terminated when the news came of the cessation of hostilities and the war had ended on August 15th.
The Manta returned to Pearl Harbor on September 10th where she engaged in additional training throughout the following months until December. She then set sail for San Francisco Bay, California on January 2nd, 1946 where she was to be placed in inactivation and was to receive a complete mechanical overhaul. She was then decommissioned on June 10th, 1946 and placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet. The Manta was again re-commissioned on August 9th, 1949 and then ordered to Key West, Florida where she was stationed for the next four years.
She had been assigned and operated as a target ship for the experimental antisubmarine warfare exercises and projects involved with the Operational Development Force of the Atlantic Fleet. On July 5th, 1955 she departed Key West and headed to Portsmouth, New Hampshire to prepare for inactivation. She was then towed to New London, Connecticut where she was finally decommissioned for the last time on December 6th, 1955 and was struck for the Naval Vessel Registry on June 30th, 1967 and then sunk as an aircraft target off Norfolk, Virginia on July 16th, 1969.
While crewmen aboard the USS Manta SS 299 were confident in their submarine, they may have been endangered by a hazard onboard their own vessel that few could recognize at the time. Asbestos was used in nearly all areas of submarine construction. The USS Manta SS 299 was no different. Asbestos was everywhere, particularly in insulation components and pipes or ducts within the submarine. Those who worked in or around these areas, either in a submarine crew or submarine repair areas should be extremely careful of a possible exposure to asbestos material, which has been linked to a deadly cancer known as mesothelioma. Anyone exposed to asbestos should seriously consider speaking with their physician to begin mesothelioma treatment.
Last modified: December 28, 2010.
