Korean War Patrol in Soviet Waters

USS BLENNY (SS-324) By Capt. Paul Trejo

Since 03-23-04

Capt. Paul Trejo, 1984

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Early California descendent Captain Trejo shares the memory of his cruise on the USS Blenny, achieving in November 1952 his qualification for being designated: "Qualified in Submarines", and earning the right to war the twin gold dolphins breast pin of a submarine officer.

USS Blenny Korean War Patrol in Soviet Waters

Blenny completed her conversion from a Fleet boat to a Guppy IA at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard in August 1951 and reported to Submarine Squadron 3 alongside the USS Sperry (AS-12) in San Diego. The remainder of 1951 and the Winter of 1952 was spent furnishing ASW services to destroyers and aircraft of the Pacific Fleet. Perhaps more important, this timeframe served as a shakedown period to increase the proficiency of the officers and crew in handling a submarine that could achieve 21 knots on the half hour rate, and especially learning how to snorkel, which can have its exciting moments, especially if there is any sea running.  

 On Wednesday, April 30, 1952, we left San Diego, stopping at Pearl Harbor, and arrived in Yokosuka, Japan on May 15th. After a turn over briefing from our sister submarine the USS Blackfin (SS-322), which had just returned from a patrol in the area assigned to us, we departed on patrol May 29th, 1952. Blenny's Commanding Officer was Commander James S. Bryant, USN, her Executive Officer was Lt. Leo Chaffin, USNR. Her other officers were Lt. Robinson, USN, Lt. George Phillips, USN, Ltjg. Robert Rawlins, USN, Ltjg. Paul Trejo, USN, and Ltjg. David Sanger, USNR.  

After four days of running on the surface at night and snorkeling during the day, Blenny arrived in her patrol area on June 2nd. Our area was in the waters of the La Perouse Straights, a body of water situated between the Northern tip of the Japanese Island of Hokkaido and the Russian Island of Sakhalin. This was the Japanese Island ceded to the Soviet Union after WW-2 as war reparations. This area was a heavily traveled route for cargo ships proceeding to Vladivostok, their decks loaded with everything from trucks to tanks.  

Reconnaissance or spy patrol were normally conducted in this area in the period from early Spring until the late Fall, usually mid-March until late October, as this was the only time of the year when Vladivostok was completely ice free. During these months the Russians would ship enough cargoes through the Straights to supply their Northern Pacific submarine fleet and their other naval bases. Evidentially it was easier, and perhaps more economical, to supply these requirements by ship, then by transshipment over the long Siberian railroad.

Needless to say, the traffic was very heavy as they had only these few "ice free" months to "stock up" for the year. During this patrol we monitored several hundred ships, identifying each ship, photographing their deck cargoes and obtaining other visual information, such as "clipper bow, mast, funnel, mast, kingposts, and transom stern. There was a bright search light on Nishi Notoro on the southern tip of Sakhalin, that could be seen for miles at sea when it was operating. When that light was active it always seem to presage that an increasing amount of shipping would be transiting the straight.  

A second task was to monitor any Russian warships passing through the area. This was most difficult to achieve and still remain undetected. These ships were more often than not operating as a division of three or four Russian destroyers, and they were tough customers.   We not only photographed these ships through the periscope, but we monitored all their electronic emissions as well.

This involved brief exposures of the ECM (Electronic Counter Measures) mast.   There was no question in my mind that the Soviets were aware of our presence in the area, Russian patrol boats were frequently in the area, operating out of the port of Otomari on the southern tip of Sakhalin, the Japanese Island ceded to Russia at the end of WW2 as war reparations. At one point we were detected and pinned down by three Russia Destroyers.

They made repeated runs over us, and we were at battle stations torpedo for about four hours, with warshots in the tubes. Finally, we found a temperature layer at test depth, that we were able to hide under, and sneak away. This is a layer of colder, denser water, which bends a searching sonar beam upward. One often wonders in a game of "chicken" who will be stupid enough to fire the first shot, and trigger a major international incident, if not a war. In the "Cold War" with Russia in the years ahead, a great many serious "playing chicken" incidents did occur, but between US and soviet submarines.

On several occasions collisions did occur, causing varying degrees of damage.   As a bonus, we had on board a Chief Radioman by the name of Donald Byham. In civilian life Donald was a talented commercial artist who had been recalled to active duty for the Korean War. He was blessed with and instant photographic memory, in that he could look at and object like a ship, close his eyes, and immediately produce an accurate sketch from memory.

When we were photographing a ship, after we had taken a photo with the camera through the periscope, Byham would make a series of short visual observations through the periscope. He would then close his eyes for a second, and from memory produce a complete sketch of the ship. As it turned out, Byham was able to see things thay were in the shadows that the camera could not detect. On returning to Yokosuka, these sketches were submitted to naval intelligence with our patrol report. After examining these sketches, Byham was later awarded a letter of commendation.  

We had one bit of excitement that occurred during this patrol. One morning while at periscope depth (62 feet), flooding developed from around a bad leak around the shaft of the sound dome in the forward torpedo room. Since we were in a critical area we could not surface to make the repair, which meant the water was coming in under considerable sea pressure. The torpedo room was immediately isolated and sealed off by closing the watertight door between the forward battery compartment and the forward torpedo room. A pressure of 30psi was built up in the compartment by bleeding in air from the low pressure air system to prevent further flooding.

Our Executive Officer, Lt. Leo Chaffin, was in charge of damage control. The problem was ultimately solved by using two main engine semicircle bearing shells from the main engines, fitted together around the shaft packing to stop the leak.   Our first class auxiliary man named James Skelly was placed in the well, head down, with someone hanging on to his feet, to make the repair. Skelly volunteered, and he was a small man that could work in the confined space. Later, Skelly received a letter of commendation for his efforts.

It took several hours to bleed down the pressure in the forward torpedo room and get the people out. This was done by cracking the watertight door (on it's dogs) between the forward torpedo room and the forward battery, and letting the pressure bleed off into the boat.   Blenny's patrol was interrupted by a medical emergency. An Auxiliary man developed what appeared to be a brain tumor. We put into the port of Otaru on the Southwest coast of the island of Hokkaido. From there he was transported to the Army hospital at Sapporo. Blenny then resumed her patrol.

Blenny returned to Yokosuka on July 11, 1952, completing a patrol of 44 days. Except for the interruption noted above, Blenny was submerged the entire time, snorkeling at night to charge batteries and air banks.   For the next several months Blenny was engaged in providing a target for Anti Submarine Warfare (ASW) training exercises in the waters of Japan. Operation were conducted with the aircraft carriers Bairoko CVE-115, Badoeng Strait CVE-116, Sicily CVE-118, and other fleet units.

During these exercises, opportunities occurred while "showing the flag" for good will visits to Atomi in Sagami Wan, the cities of Kamakura, Kobe, Hakadate, on the island of Hokkaido, and other Japanese ports.   The highlight of this cruise for me, was that I completed my qualification for being designated: "Qualified in Submarines", and earning the right to wear the twin gold dolphins breast pin of a submarine officer. I took my "at sea phase" of my final qualification on board the USS Scabbardfish (SS-397). Also qualifying with me that day was my shipmate LTjg. David M. Sanger.

Blenny departed Yokosuka on October 18th, and after a brief stop at Pearl Harbor arrived in San Diego on November 8th, 1952. Our deployment lasted six months, and eight days. During this period, Blenny completed 177 dives, had a total of 991 hours, 15 seconds, submerged, and traveled 21,000 miles.

Her crew consumed 36.5 tons of food and 2912 gallons of coffee. Of her crew of 8 officers and 77 men, two officers and 26 men qualified in submarines.   Paul Trejo, Capt. USNR, (Ret.) February, 2004

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