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Hawkbill

CountryUnited States
Ship ClassBalao-class Submarine
Hull NumberSS-366
BuilderManitowoc Shipbuilding Company, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States
Laid Down7 Aug 1943
Launched9 Jan 1944
Commissioned17 Aug 1944
Decommissioned20 Sep 1946
Displacement1,550 tons standard; 2,463 tons submerged
Length312 feet
Beam27 feet
Draft17 feet
MachineryFour Fairbanks-Morse Model 38D8-? 10-cylinder diesel engines (5,400shp), four high-speed Elliott electric motors (2,740shp), two 126-cell Sargo batteries, two propellers
Bunkerage116,000 gallons of oil
Speed20 knots
Range11,000nm at 10 knots surfaced, 48 hours at 2 knots submerged
Crew81
Armament6x533mm forward torpedo tubes, 4x533mm aft torpedo tubes, 24 torpedoes, 1x127mm 25cal deck gun, 1x40mm gun, 1x20mm gun, 2x12.7mm machine guns
Submerged Speed8.75 knots

Contributor:

ww2dbaseUSS Hawkbill, named after the hawksbill sea turtle but with a misspelling, was commissioned into service in May 1944. She conducted her training in the Greak Lakes, transferred down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, and reached the US Territory of Hawaii in Jul 1944 to prepare to join in the Pacific War. She departed on her first war patrol on 23 Aug 1944, and the war ended while she was on her fifth war patrol. All 5 war patrols were designated successful, and she received a Navy Unit Commendation for her WW2 service.

ww2dbaseIn 1952, USS Hawkbill was brought out of the reserve fleet for GUPPY IB modernization. Upon completion, she was transferred to the Netherlands, where she would operate under the name of HNLMS Zeeleeuw (Sealion) until 1970.

ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia

Last Major Revision: Mar 2012

Submarine Hawkbill (SS-366) Interactive Map

Photographs

Launching of submarine Hawkbill, Manitowoc River, Manitowoc, Winconsin, United States, 9 Jan 194452 submarines and 4 submarine tenders of the US Navy Reserve Fleet, Mare Island Navy Yard, California, United States, circa Jan 1946

Hawkbill Operational Timeline

7 Aug 1943 The keel of submarine Hawkbill was laid down.
9 Jan 1944 Submarine Hawkbill was launched, sponsored by the wife of the submarine's future commanding officer F. Worth Scanland, Jr.
17 May 1944 USS Hawkbill was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander F. Worth Scanland, Jr. in command.
1 Jun 1944 USS Hawkbill departed Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States.
10 Jun 1944 USS Hawkbill arrived at New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.
16 Jun 1944 USS Hawkbill departed New Orleans, Louisiana, United States for the Panama Canal Zone.
28 Jul 1944 USS Hawkbill arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii.
23 Aug 1944 USS Hawkbill departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol.
7 Oct 1944 USS Hawkbill detected a Japanese carrier in the South China Sea, but was driven off by destroyers.
9 Oct 1944 USS Hawkbill attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China sea with USS Becuna, damaging several ships with her torpedoes.
14 Oct 1944 USS Hawkbill transited the Lombok Strait, Dutch East Indies.
17 Oct 1944 USS Hawkbill arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her first war patrol.
15 Nov 1944 USS Hawkbill departed Fremantle, Australia for her second war patrol.
15 Dec 1944 USS Hawkbill sank Japanese destroyer Momo.
5 Jan 1945 USS Hawkbill arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her second war patrol.
5 Feb 1945 USS Hawkbill departed Fremantle, Australia for her third war patrol.
14 Feb 1945 USS Hawkbill sank two Japanese submarine chasers.
20 Feb 1945 USS Hawkbill attacked a Japanese convoy, sinking cargo ship Daizen Maru.
6 Apr 1945 USS Hawkbill arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her third war patrol.
1 May 1945 USS Hawkbill damaged Japanese minelayer Hatsutaka, which was grounded to prevent sinking.
2 May 1945 USS Hawkbill fired three torpedoes into Japanese minelayer Hatsutaka, which she had damaged on the previous day, sinking her.
5 May 1945 USS Hawkbill departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol.
16 May 1945 USS Hawkbill arrived off British Malaya to serve on lifeguard station.
18 Jun 1945 USS Hawkbill arrived at Subic Bay, Zambales, Philippine Islands, ending her fourth war patrol.
12 Jul 1945 USS Hawkbill departed Subic Bay, Zambales, Philippine Islands for her fifth war patrol.
18 Jul 1945 USS Hawkbill attacked a Japanese convoy just off the coast of Kuala Dungun, British Malaya; she only narrowly escaped the subsequent depth charge attack by the convoy escorts. 9 torpedoes were expended.
9 Aug 1945 USS Hawkbill arrived at Borneo, Dutch East Indies and destroyed the Japanese radio station at Tambelan.
22 Sep 1945 USS Hawkbill departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for San Francisco, California, United States.
20 Sep 1946 USS Hawkbill was decommissioned from US service at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States.
10 Dec 1952 USS Hawkbill was recommissioned into service.
21 Apr 1953 USS Hawkbill was decommissioned from US service and was transferred to the Dutch Navy, where she would be commissioned as HNLMS Zeeleeuw.
11 Jun 1953 HNLMS Zeeleeuw arrived at Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
20 Feb 1970 USS Hawkbill, which had been operating in the Dutch Navy as HNLMS Zeeleeuw since 1953, was struck from the US Naval Register and was sold to the Netherlands.
24 Nov 1970 Submarine Zeeleeuw was sold to A. J. Van Den Kooy N.V., Rijnacker, Netherlands for scrap.




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Submarine Hawkbill (SS-366) Photo Gallery
Launching of submarine Hawkbill, Manitowoc River, Manitowoc, Winconsin, United States, 9 Jan 194452 submarines and 4 submarine tenders of the US Navy Reserve Fleet, Mare Island Navy Yard, California, United States, circa Jan 1946


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Lt. Gen. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, at Guadalcanal


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