S-31
Country | United States |
Ship Class | S-class Submarine |
Hull Number | SS-136 |
Builder | Union Iron Works, San Francisco, California, United States |
Laid Down | 13 Apr 1918 |
Launched | 28 Dec 1918 |
Commissioned | 11 May 1922 |
Decommissioned | 19 Oct 1945 |
Displacement | 868 tons standard; 1,079 tons submerged |
Length | 219 feet |
Beam | 21 feet |
Draft | 16 feet |
Speed | 14 knots |
Crew | 42 |
Armament | 4x533mm torpedo tubes, 1x102mm deck gun |
Submerged Speed | 11 knots |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseSubmarine S-31 was commissioned into United States Navy service in 1922. In Apr 1923, upon completion of engine alterations done by the Electric Boat Company of New London, Connecticut, United States, she conducted in exercises in the Caribbean Sea, then returned to California, United States, joining Submarine Division 16. She conducted exercises in the Aleutian Islands in Jun and Jul 1923, then participated in the Caribbean Sea fleet exercises in the winter of 1924. In Apr 1925, Submarine Division 16 was assigned to the Asiatic Fleet, and she arrived at Cavite, Luzon, Philippine Islands on 12 Jul 1925; she would remain there for the following seven years, patrolling waters as far as the Chinese coast and conducting exercises. Her tour in the Philippine Islands completed on 2 May 1932, and she sailed for Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, United States. In Feb 1933, she played the role of the fictional submarine USS AL-14 in the film "Hell Below", sinking a fictional German destroyer. She was decommissioned from service in late 1937 and was berthed at League Island at the site of the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard as a member of the reserve fleet.
ww2dbaseIn preparation for war, USS S-31 was recommissioned into service on 18 Sep 1940. As a member of Submarine Division 52, she was based in New London, Connecticut. Between Dec 1940 and spring 1941, she patrolled the Panama Canal Zone. Returning to New London, she conducted in training exercises. In Nov 1941, she underwent overhaul at Philadelphia, where she was located when the United States entered the Pacific War. In Jan 1942, she rejoined Submarine Division 52 at New London. In Feb, she was once again assigned to the Panama Canal Zone, completing two war patrols. In late May, she was sent to San Diego, California, United States. In late Jun, she sailed for the Aleutian Islands in the northern Pacific Ocean. Operating out of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, United States, she conducted patrols and supported operations in the Aleutian Islands. On her fifth war patrol, she sailed to the Kurile Islands region and sank the Japanese cargo ship Keizan Maru. In late 1942, she provided training services for the West Coast Sound School at San Diego, California. After a refit that lasted until Feb 1943, she moved to Hawaii, where she had her 102-millimeter gun replaced by a smaller 76-millimeter gun, before embarking on her sixth war patrol. Her brief seventh war patrol, lasting from 5 to 26 Jul, saw her delivering a reconnaissance team to Aneityum, New Caledonia and hunting for a Japanese submarine in nearby waters. Her eighth and final war patrol saw her operating in the St. George Channel area to intercept Japanese shipping between Rabaul and New Guinea. She remained in the New Caledonia-New Hebrides area for training duties until Jul 1944, and then was ordered to California, United States. Arriving in San Diego, California in early Aug, she underwent an overhaul until Nov. She then provided submarine and sound training services.
ww2dbaseIn Sep 1945, S-31 sailed to San Francisco, California for inactivation. She was sold to Salco Iron and Metal Company of San Francisco in May 1946. She was delivered to Salco in Dec 1946 and was scrapped in Jul 1947.
ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia
Last Major Revision: Feb 2011
Submarine S-31 (SS-136) Interactive Map
Photographs
S-31 Operational Timeline
13 Apr 1918 | Submarine S-31 was laid down in San Francisco, California, United States. |
28 Dec 1918 | Submarine S-31 was launched, sponsored by Mrs. George A. Walker. |
11 May 1922 | USS S-31 was commissioned into service with Lieutenant William A. Heard in command. |
4 Oct 1922 | USS S-31 was decommissioned from service while receiving engine alterations at the Electric Boat Company yards in New London, Connecticut, United States. |
8 Mar 1923 | USS S-31 was recommissioned into service upon completion of engine alternations. |
12 Jul 1925 | USS S-31 arrived at Cavite, Luzon, Philippine Islands. |
2 May 1932 | USS S-31 departed Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands for Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. |
14 Jun 1937 | USS S-31 departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. |
27 Aug 1937 | USS S-31 arrived at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. |
7 Dec 1937 | USS S-31 was decommissioned from service and placed in reserve at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. |
18 Sep 1940 | USS S-31 was recommissioned into service. |
10 Mar 1942 | USS S-31 began her first defensive patrol off the Panama Canal Zone. |
31 Mar 1942 | USS S-31 completed her first war patrol off the Panama Canal Zone. |
14 Apr 1942 | USS S-31 began her second war patrol off the Panama Canal Zone. |
13 May 1942 | USS S-31 completed her second defensive patrol off the Panama Canal Zone. |
7 Jul 1942 | USS S-31 departed Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska for her third war patrol. |
19 Jul 1942 | USS S-31 was ordered to move toward the Japanese-occupied Aleutian island of Kiska. |
7 Aug 1942 | USS S-31 bombarded Kiska, US Territory of Alaska. |
8 Aug 1942 | USS S-31 arrived at Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska, ending her third war patrol. |
10 Aug 1942 | A Mark X emergency identification flare exploded aboard USS S-1, seriously injuring her commanding officer. |
26 Aug 1942 | USS S-31 departed Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska for her fourth war patrol. |
30 Aug 1942 | USS S-31's batteries began to produce poisonous chlorine gas, but it was detected and quickly eliminated before causing casualties. |
28 Sep 1942 | USS S-31 arrived at Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska, ending her fourth war patrol. |
13 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 departed Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska for her fifth war patrol. |
20 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 arrived in the Kurile Islands region. |
22 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 patrolled the waters off Paramushiro Island, Kurile Islands. |
24 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 departed from waters off Paramushiro Island, Kurile Islands. |
25 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 patrolled the Onekotan Strait between Paramushiro and Onekotan in the Kurile Islands. |
26 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 stalked Japanese cargo ship Keizan Maru starting at 0825 hours in Otomae Wan, Paramushiro, Kurile Islands. At 0922 hours, she fired two torpedoes, both scoring and sinking the cargo ship. While withdrawing after the attack, S-31 ran aground on reef multiple times, finally reaching deep waters at 1000 hours. |
27 Oct 1942 | USS S-31 patrolled the waters off Paramushiro Island, Kurile Islands. |
2 Nov 1942 | USS S-31 departed the Kurile Islands waters and sailed for the Aleutian Islands. |
8 Nov 1942 | USS S-31 arrived at Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska, ending her fifth war patrol. |
11 Nov 1942 | USS S-31 departed Dutch Harbor, US Territory of Alaska. |
27 Nov 1942 | USS S-31 arrived at San Diego, California, United States to provide submarine training services at the West Coast Sound School. |
11 Mar 1943 | USS S-31 departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her sixth war patrol. |
23 Mar 1943 | USS S-31 began patrolling in the Kwajalein area in the Marshall Islands. |
29 Mar 1943 | USS S-31 completed her patrol in the Kwajalein area in the Marshall Islands. |
2 Apr 1943 | USS S-31 crossed the equator in the Pacific Ocean. |
9 Apr 1943 | USS S-31 arrived at Nouméa, New Caledonia where she would be refitted and would serve as a target for training exercises. |
5 Jul 1943 | USS S-31 departed Nouméa, New Caledonia for her seventh war patrol. |
26 Jul 1943 | USS S-31 arrived at Nouméa, New Caledonia, ending her seventh war patrol. |
20 Aug 1943 | USS S-31 completed training services at Nouméa, New Caledonia. |
22 Aug 1943 | USS S-31 departed Nouméa, New Caledonia for her eighth war patrol. |
31 Aug 1943 | USS S-31 made a daylight attack on a Japanese submarine; three torpedoes were fired, but none hit the target. |
3 Nov 1943 | USS S-31 completed training services at San Diego, California, United States. |
19 Oct 1945 | USS S-31 was decommissioned from service. |
1 Nov 1945 | Submarine S-31 was struck from the US Naval Vessels Register. |
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
Visitor Submitted Comments
30 Aug 2022 02:24:14 PM
Entry for Aug 30 1942 "30 Aug 1942 USS S-1's batteries began to produce poisonous chlorine gas, but it was detected and quickly eliminated before causing casualties." should be USS S-31 batteries... Not S-1
31 Aug 2022 03:38:20 PM
Gregory Hoek (above):You are correct and the typo has been corrected. Thank you for pointing this out.
All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB.
» S-31 Submarine Operations Research Group Attack Data
- » 1,150 biographies
- » 337 events
- » 43,889 timeline entries
- » 1,241 ships
- » 349 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 372 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 259 facilities
- » 470 book reviews
- » 28,512 photos
- » 432 maps
Winston Churchill, on the RAF
30 May 2017 09:16:42 AM
My father served on this submarine in the Pacific. I would like any additional information or pictures of S-31 SS-136 or her crew.