Wreck Site Identified as World War II Submarine USS Albacore

Sea Power Magazine ^ | 2/16/23 | SeaPower Staff

[MAGA2017]

WASHINGTON - Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) confirmed the identity of a wreck site off the coast of Hokkaido, Japan, as USS Albacore (SS 218) Feb. 16.

NHHC’s Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB) used information and imagery provided by Dr. Tamaki Ura, from the University of Tokyo, to confirm the identity of Albacore, which was lost at sea Nov. 7, 1944.

“As the final resting place for Sailors who gave their life in defense of our nation, we sincerely thank and congratulate Dr. Ura and his team for their efforts in locating the wreck of Albacore,” said NHHC Director Samuel J. Cox, U.S. Navy rear admiral (retired). “It is through their hard work and continued collaboration that we could confirm Albacore’s identity after being lost at sea for over 70 years.”

Japanese records originating from the Japan Center for Asian Historical Records (JACAR) covering the loss of an American submarine on Nov. 7, 1944, guided Dr. Ura’s missions. The location mentioned in the records matched a separate ongoing effort by UAB volunteers to establish the location of the shipwreck.

Dr. Ura’s team collected data using a Remotely Operated Vehicle to confirm the historical data. Strong currents, marine growth, and poor visibility on site made it challenging to fully document the wreck or obtain comprehensive images. However, several key features of a late 1944 Gato-class submarine were identified in the video.

Indications of documented modifications made to Albacore prior to her final patrol such as the presence of an SJ Radar dish and mast, a row of vent holes along the top of the superstructure, and the absence of steel plates along the upper edge of the fairwater allowed UAB to confirm the wreck site finding as Albacore.

[Jacquerie]

Still on patrol.

[skeeter]

I believe USS Albacore sank the IJN Shokaku.

[skeeter]

Correction - She sank the IJN Taiho.

[TChad]

Nov. 7, 1944

Election day. FDR defeated Dewey.

[GaltAdonis]

WASHINGTON (Feb. 16, 2023) A file photo dated May 19, 1942 of the Gato-class
submarine USS Albacore (SS 218) as it departs Groton, Conn.
Albacore served in the Pacific theater during WWII and was presumed lost and
stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on March, 30 1945.
The wreck site of Albacore was confirmed Feb. 16, off the coast of Hokkaido, Japan. (U.S. Navy photo)

NHHC’s Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB) used information and imagery
provided by Dr. Tamaki Ura, from the University of Tokyo, to confirm the
identity of Albacore, which was lost at sea Nov. 7, 1944.

[llevrok]

Great to have her final resting place found.

She had quite an illustrious war record.
https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/a/albacore-ss-218-ii.html

[Sarcazmo]

No, I think Dewey won that one. I read it in the paper.

[stickandrudder]

Now find the Triton SS-201. A distant cousin is on it. Lost about March 15, 1943

[chopperk]

What an eerie resting place, many men paid a heavy price. Hitler sent 48,000 submariners to war and less than 10,000 returned.

[TChad]

No, I think Dewey won that one. I read it in the paper.

Ha! That was in 1948. Dewey was a glutton for punishment.

[SunkenCiv]