Stickleback

USS Sabalo to the Rescue, Western Pacific 29 May 1958 -
Personal accounts of the collision and sinking of USS Stickleback SS-415

USS Stickleback (SS-415) was operating with the USS Silverstein (DE-534). After an exercise the Stickleback was coming
to the surface when the Silverstein rammed the Stickleback amidships near the diving stand in Control, while ascending from
periscope depth. Needless to say the damage was severe, especially to the hydraulic manifold. The CO ordered all hands to
abandon ship. She was on the surface with the bow of the Silverstein wedged into the port side. All hatches were opened and
the crew departed. As I understand, there was no space between one man's butt and the next man's head as the crew went
through those hatches.

USS Sabalo (SS 302) received a distress signal while operating in the area. She surfaced, and on (4) main engines and flank
speed, headed in the direction of the incident. The crew was not informed of the mission at this time but, needless to say was
curious. "Where in the hell are we going in such a big hurry." said maneuvering. Moments later maneuvering heard that they
were in a rescue mission to render assistance and take on survivors of the USS Stickleback who was sinking after a collision
with a destroyer. Now nobody knows for sure where maneuvering found the extra horsepower, but we were breaking our top
surface speed and as I recall we were making 23+knots.

Members of the Stickleback said, that they could see our smoke over the horizon long before an eye was laid on Sabalo. We
came along side Stickleback and took some of the crew. Others had been transferred to the Silverstein. There was no loss of
life, only a lot of personal belongings. We cast off our lines and the USS Silverstein backed out of the hull of Stickleback and
we watched from a short distance as she listed and went down for the last dive.

I'm sorry to say that I no longer have the many last pictures of Stickleback taken that day. But I'm sure that someone on the
crew of Sabalo may be able to produce some for this scrap book. Many of the Stickleback crew were reassigned to other
boats at Pearl Harbor, including the USS Sabalo. They were all great additions to our crew.

Robert “Dutch” Schultz (was EN2(SS) on Sabalo at the time) submits photos and his memory of the futile attempts to save Stickleback from sinking...

“The story as I remember it: We were on daily operations out of Pearl when the word came over the Stickleback was rammed by a destroyer.... As far as I can remember it seems the Stickleback surfaced directly in front of the destroyer and was hit in the Forward Battery area."

"I'm testing memory here and perhaps someone out there can clean up the facts. A chief on watch in the control room of the Stickleback said they had a problem in maneuvering and lost control. They were slipping backwards [and nearing] test depth and made an emergency surface. Unfortunately they came up directly in front of the destroyer, and [neither] could avoid the collision. Again this is as I remember and I'm sure others can add to the story.”

“These pictures were taken by one of our crew members. I understand AP paid him good bucks for these:”

[click the letter of each line to view]
A. “Our approach to the Stickleback tied to the destroyer.”

E. “We are making our move. That's Erix Santana, EN3(SS), on the bow. He's preparing to send hose over for pumping.
Note Stickleback sailors around After Battery hatch and on the bridge.”

F. “Unfortunately this is a little high. On the left are Sabalo sailors; In the middle Stickleback sailors and the destroyer
and crew as a backdrop. Sorry but I can't identify anyone. We are trying to pump water out and what ever action to save the
Stickleback.”

G. “We were not too successful and finally backed away. Shortly after the Stickleback broke the rigging and nosed down. The
stern stuck straight up for a time and then slipped on down to Davy Jones Locker. Fortunately none of the Stickleback crew
were seriously hurt.”

The pictures above seem somewhat confusing, but what is missing is the exact sequence of events after Silverstein backed out of the hole she made in Stickleback's port side. Somewhere along the line of these photos being passed around, it could have happened that they were reversed printed. The written accounts and recollections of those responding indicate that the Stickleback was struck on the PORT side in the area of the bulkhead between the forward battery and control room compartments. Flooding was immediately noticed through a hole above the hydraulic manifold. The above photos all show the destroyer on the starboard side of the sub. Did she back off, and then come around to the position shown, or are the photos reverse printed??

Update from discussion with David "Red" Padgett (was TMSN onboard Sabalo at the time) during the Sabalo reunion in Reno Sep '03:
Red relates that actions taken by vessels on the scene fell under the control of the CO of the Silverstein shortly after the collision. At some point, before Sabalo was close aboard, Silverstein backed away from Stickleback and came around to her starboard side to receive the boat's crew. [ This decision may have been made as a result from the increasing list of the Stickleback to port which would have made her superstructure come closer to any vessel on the port side.] The Greenlet was then directed to take up position on the starboard side of the Silverstein which put her away from direct access to the sub. The unofficial understanding of the situation reveals that while this may have been contributory to the fact that no men were lost or seriously injured or endangered, it was possibly a fatal decision as far as saving the boat from flooding and ultimately sinking.
This conclusion is reached based on the fact that once all hands on Stickleback were topside, and all the hatches shut, the only possibility of slowing flooding would be by pressurizing the compartments which hadn't suffered hull damage. This would only be possible at that point via the sub's "salvage air connection" which was a valve connection which could be made on the starboard side of Stickleback's sail. The Silverstein was reported to have two problems in providing any assistance in this manner. First, it was understood that she had no ready means to connect an air line to the salvage connection, and secondly personnel of that ship did not have training to do so. Some sub personnel transferred over, and tried to organize the process, but without success. The rescue vessel, Greenlet, commenced to try to rig a hose across the Silverstein, but the hoses available were not long enough. Additional questions were also raised as to whether the air pressure and volume available from the Siverstein would have been sufficient even if connection had been made. The feeling in reflection is that this lack of salvage air, Stickleback's last hope, doomed her to the bottom.
Red recollects the arrival of the Current ARS-22 [see below] on the scene to be about four hours after the collision, and by that time flooding had reached a point that any efforts were too late to reverse the situation.

[Obviously, official hearings must have been conducted to review the whole matter. Perhaps, at some point these findings will fill in the recollections with the facts and accounts that were recorded at the time.]

Another account from the Sabalo Operations Officer that day, LT Joe Denver McCune:
[It was the same] day the photo was taken of Sabalo entering Pearl Harbor with the Chilean Bark Esmarelda putting out to sea - Sabalo was taking a group of VIPs back into port after a morning demonstration ride. They were politicians and others from the State of California. Included was the then-Lieutenant Governor Vic Myers. Sabalo dropped them off about noon, and we turned around and sailed for an afternoon of routine exercises in an operating area off Diamond Head. We were getting ready to dive and had sent the standard "permission to dive" message to Pearl. They denied permission, and told us to remain on the surface until further advised. We then heard traffic telling us that the destroyer Silverstein had rammed the submarine Stickleback in an operating area off Barber's Point (about 20 miles to the West of us). Captain Masek immediately rang up "flank on four" and we charged over to try to help in any way we could. As we learned more and got closer, it looked as if they could use some air in their forward ballast tanks. Under the skipper's clever instructions, we were able to hook up our fire hoses in the foward torpedo room to the trim system and cross connect air supply from our high pressure air system. Our air compressors were keeping our air tanks topped off during this event. We hoped to be able to put our fire hoses overboard out of our torpedo room and into the always open flood ports near Stickleback's keel. As we drew alongside it became apparent in the State 3 seas that we might do more damage to each of our ships as we bobbed up and down against each other and this effort had to be cancelled. We then backed off about a half mile as we saw the ASR coming out of Pearl with a bone in her teeth at flank speed. The ASR tried, but was unable to keep the gradually sinking Stickleback afloat. Every man in Stickleback was transferred to the ASR with no injuries, with the XO, and finally the CO leaving last. I was in Sabalo's conning tower monitoring radio traffic and UQC transmissions when a QM shouted, "there she goes" as Stickleback sank in thousands of feet of water. I turned up the UQC and in a few minutes heard sounds of Stickleback crushing at deep depths. Both the CO and XO of Stickleback went on to get command of other submarines. The XO (Bob Dickieson) eventually drove an SSN and later an SSBN with great success. [recd Jan 2006]

Some accounts fail to mention that additionally there was another vessel on the scene, USS CURRENT ARS-22. She came on scene at about the time the last of the Stickleback crewmen had been removed to the Greenlet, and immediately commenced actions to try and save the 415.

Additional images of the situation on Current's web site (scrioll down):
http://usscurrent.web.officelive.com/houston/index.htm

Email rec'd 9 May 2004 from RON BROEDLING BT3 crew member of the Current Madap12@aol.com

HI JEFF,

THANKS FOR THE REPLY. I BELIEVE I HAVE MOST OF THE PICS AND INFO YOU SENT. WHAT I AM TRYING TO FIND ARE SOME PICTURES OF THE CURRENT ON SCENE. MOST OF WHAT I HAVE READ CONCERNING THE CURRENT IS NOT TOO ACCURATE. AS FAR AS I REMEMBER WE DID NOT SEND A MESSENGER LINE OVER. AS WE WERE BACKING DOWN TWD THE 415 THE LINES EITHER BROKE OR WERE CAST OFF. SHE THEN LISTED OVER AND WENT DOWN. I BELIEVE THERE WAS A CHIEF STILL ON THE SAIL AREA AND 2 MEN IN A SMALL RAFT WAITING FOR HIM. HE WENT IN AND THEY PULLED HIM OUT.

OF COURSE IT HAS BEEN A FEW YEARS. I HAD MANY, MANY PICS BUT LOST MY SEABAG SHORTLY AFTER BEING DISCHARGED.

IF YOU DO FIND ANY PICS OR HAVE ANY SUGGESTION ON WHO I MIGHT CONTACT I WOULD APPRECIATE IT.

MANY THANKS.CURRENTLY IN ROCKLIN, CA AND MT VERNON, MO