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After shakedown training off the New England coast, USS SNOOK
(SS-279) departed New London on 3 March 1943 and set sail for the Pacific.
Following a 12-day stopover at Pearl Harbor, the submarine put to sea on
11 April and headed for the Yellow and East China seas for her first war
patrol. Upon completion of mine planting in the Shanghai area, SNOOK
continued on up the coast of China to the Yellow Sea. On the afternoon
of 5 May, she sighted two freighters standing out of Dairen and took up
the chase. She trailed both until after nightfall, then let go with a spread
of three torpedoes that quickly sank one of the freighters. The lead freighter
continued on, oblivious to the fate that had befallen her companion, until
someone on the sinking ship sounded a whistle. At that point, the freighter
began a series of frantic maneuvers to dodge two of SNOOK's torpedoes,
then opened fire with her guns, forcing the submarine to race out of range.
SNOOK quickly returned to the action, however, firing three torpedoes,
with one hit amidships that sent it to the bottom. With two "kills" to
her credit, SNOOK resumed patrol.
Early on the morning of 7 May, SNOOK began quickly closing a convoy. Upon overtaking the enemy cargo ships, she launched four torpedoes, followed by three others five minutes later. Amid a din of explosions, a 4,363-ton cargo ship was mortally wounded and several other ships were possibly damaged. After destroying two armed trawlers in actions on 13 and 16 May, SNOOK terminated her first patrol at Midway on the 23rd.
SNOOK set sail from Midway for her second war patrol on 9 June and headed for the waters off the Ryukyu Islands. In the morning twilight of 24 June, the submarine closed a six-ship convoy escorted by two destroyers, fired two torpedoes at a large tanker, and heard two hits as she went deep and rigged for silent running to avoid the patrolling escorts. Coming back up to periscope depth, she found a destroyer guarding the crippled ship and was prevented from a second try by overhead aircraft.
Shortly before midnight on 3 July, SNOOK made radar contact with another enemy convoy. Early the following morning, she sent a spread of six torpedoes on their way and was rewarded with hits that sank two cargo ships and severely damaged another. SNOOK returned to Pearl Harbor from her second patrol on 18 July.
SNOOK got underway from Pearl Harbor for her third war patrol on 18 August and arrived off Marcus Island on 30 August to take reconnaissance photographs and stand lifeguard duty for the carrier airstrikes of 1 September. Following the airstrikes, the submarine resumed patrol and headed for the East China Sea where, in the early morning darkness of 13 September, she torpedoed and sank a 9,650-ton transport. On 22 September, SNOOK intercepted a Japanese ship departing Dairen and quickly sent the 715-ton cargo ship to the bottom. The submarine terminated her third patrol at Pearl Harbor on 8 October.
SNOOK spent her fourth war patrol in a coordinated attack group
with sister ships USS PARGO (SS-264) and USS HARDER (SS-257)
in the waters off the Mariana Islands. On 29 November, the submarine spent
a productive day sinking a passenger-cargo ship, the victim of four torpedo
hits, and a cargo ship, as well as damaging an escort ship. SNOOK
returned to Midway on 7 December and was routed on to Pearl Harbor.
On 6 January 1944, SNOOK cleared Pearl Harbor and headed for the western coast of Kyushu and her fifth war patrol. While off the Bonin Islands on 23 January, the submarine torpedoed and sank a 3,120-ton converted gunboat. On 8 February, she attacked a 13-ship convoy, firing a spread of four torpedoes for three hits before diving to evade the onrushing escort ships. In this action, she sank a freighter, and heavily damaged another. On the 14th, she quickly sank a freighter with one torpedo hit amidships and, on the following day, gave the same treatment to a cargo ship. On 23 February, while returning to Midway, she spotted an enemy convoy eight miles away and, not one to let such an opportunity pass, made a daring approach through a screen of 11 enemy escort ships. After firing five torpedoes, she observed two good hits which sank a passenger-cargo ship. The submarine terminated her fifth patrol at Pearl Harbor on 6 March and continued to Hunters Point Navy Yard for a major overhaul.
After five productive war patrols, SNOOK came upon hard luck
on her sixth. Although she fired at and missed two freighters on 12 July,
the remainder of the patrol was devoid of worthwhile targets, and she returned
to Midway on 14 August.
SNOOK's seventh war patrol was conducted in Luzon Strait and the South China Sea. After stopping at Saipan for repairs from 25 September to 4 October the submarine continued her patrol and contacted an enemy convoy on 23 October. Within the next 24 hours, SNOOK sent three enemy vessels to watery graves. The first to fall victim to her torpedoes was a passenger-cargo ship. After evading two escorts, the submarine resumed the chase. A tanker was the next to be sent to the bottom after a torpedo hit disintegrated the entire aft end of the ship. After again escaping the escorts, SNOOK quickly returned to the convoy and let go with five bow torpedoes and had the satisfaction of observing a cargo ship sink beneath the waves. After rescuing a downed airman on 3 November, the submarine returned to Pearl Harbor on 18 November.
SNOOK's eighth war patrol was conducted off the Kuril Islands from 25 December 1944 to 17 February 1945. Her only sightings during this patrol were two Russian vessels and a momentary contact with a small patrol craft which was quickly lost.
SNOOK departed Guam on 25 March 1945 on her ninth war patrol in company with USS BURRFISH (SS-312) and USS BANG (SS-385) to carry out a coordinated patrol with Cdr Walling commanding the group. They were to patrol Luzon Strait, the south coast of China, and the east coast of Hainan, and to perform lifeguard duties if so directed by dispatch. SNOOK return to Guam for emergency repairs on 27 March, and departed on 28 March to rejoin her group. The patrol was SNOOK's ninth during WWII.
In accordance with her orders, weather reports were received daily from SNOOK as she proceeded westward until 1 April, when she was told to discontinue making them. On the same date, SNOOK was directed to proceed westward to join a coordinated attack group with USS TIGRONE (SS-419). BANG and BURRFISH already had been assigned lifeguard stations, and were not available for the attack group as originally planned.
Although the last message received from SNOOK by shore bases was 1 April, TIGRONE was in contact with her until 8 April, at which time SNOOK's position was 18!-40'N;111!-39'E. On 9 April TIGRONE was unable to raise her by radio, nor was she ever able to afterwards. TIGRONE being unable to raise her may be explained by the fact that on 10 April SNOOK was directed to move eastward toward Luzon Strait, and on 12 April she was ordered to lifeguard duty for British carrier based air strikes. Her position for this duty was in the vicinity of Sakeshima Gunto, about 200 miles east of northern Formosa. No acknowledgment for these orders was required. On 20 April the Commander of a British carrier task force reported he had a plane down in SNOOK's vicinity, but could not contact her by radio. SNOOK was ordered to search the area and to acknowledge these orders. When she failed to make a transmission, BANG was sent to make the search and to rendezvous with SNOOK. Although BANG arrrived on the scene and rescued three aviators, she saw nothing of SNOOK. When SNOOK had not appeared or been heard from by 16 May, she was reported as presumed lost.
Japanese anti-submarine attack reports available at the end of the war gave no indication of an attack which might have been on SNOOK. There were mines in the vicinity of Sakeshima Gunto, but SNOOK had information on these which had been gained from captured enemy documents. It is improbable that she would have gone into the minefields unless intentionally to rescue a downed aviator. She was not asked to penetrate any minefield in effecting any rescue.
A number of enemy submarine contacts were reported in the vicinity of SNOOK's lifeguard station during the period in which her loss occurred. During April and May 1945, five Japanese submarines were sunk in the Nansei Shoto chain. The circumstances surrounding SNOOK's loss suggest the possibility that one of these lost submarines may have torpedoed her while she was surfaced during her lifeguard duties and it was not reported. It is known that such tactics were suggested to Japanese submarine commanders by their superiors.
No attacks had been reported by SNOOK prior to her loss on this patrol. She was, however, responsible for sinking 22 enemy ships, totaling 123,600 tons and damaging 10 ships, for 63,200 tons, on her eight patrols prior to her loss.
SNOOK earned seven battle stars for World War II service.
