_sail_on_display.jpg) Ceará's sail preserved in Fortaleza. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Builder | Boston Navy Yard[1] |
| Laid down | 8 February 1944[1] |
| Launched | 15 December 1944[1] |
| Commissioned | 4 March 1946[1] |
| Decommissioned | 17 October 1973[1] |
| Stricken | 17 October 1973[2] |
| Fate | Transferred toBrazil, 17 October 1973[1] |
| History | |
 Brazil | |
| Name | Ceará (S-14) |
| Acquired | 17 October 1973 |
| Decommissioned | 21 September 1987 |
| Fate | Scrapped; sail preserved inFortaleza,Ceará. |
| General characteristics (As completed) | |
| Class & type | Tench-classdiesel-electricsubmarine[2] |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 311 ft 8 in (95.00 m)[2] |
| Beam | 27 ft 3 in (8.31 m)[2] |
| Draft | 17 ft 0 in (5.18 m) maximum[2] |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | |
| Range | 11,000 nautical miles (20,000 km) surfaced at 10 knots (19 km/h)[6] |
| Endurance |
|
| Test depth | 400 ft (120 m)[6] |
| Complement | 10 officers, 71 enlisted[6] |
| Armament |
|
| General characteristics (Guppy II) | |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 307 ft (93.6 m)[8] |
| Beam | 27 ft 4 in (7.4 m)[8] |
| Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m)[8] |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed |
|
| Range | 15,000 nm (28,000 km) surfaced at 11 knots (20 km/h)[8] |
| Endurance | 48 hours at 4 knots (7 km/h) submerged[8] |
| Complement |
|
| Sensors & processing systems |
|
| Armament |
|
USSAmberjack (SS-522), a WWII-eraTench-classsubmarine, was the second submarine of theUnited States Navy named for theamberjack, a vigorous sport fish found in the western Atlantic fromNew England toBrazil.
Her keel was laid down by theBoston Naval Shipyard ofBoston, Massachusetts, on 8 February 1944. She waslaunched on 15 December 1944 sponsored by Mrs. Walter E. Lang Jr., andcommissioned on 4 March 1946.
Following shakedown training in theWest Indies and in theGulf of Mexico,Amberjack reported on 17 June for duty with SubRon8. Operating out of the Submarine Base,New London, Connecticut, she conducted training missions in the North Atlantic, and, in November 1946, made a cruise above theArctic Circle. In January 1947, the submarine entered thePortsmouth Naval Shipyard for extensive modifications and thereafter spent about a year undergoing aGreater Underwater Propulsion Power Program (GUPPY) conversion during which her hull and sail were streamlined and additional batteries and asnorkel were installed to increase her submerged speed endurance, and maneuverability. In January 1948, she reported for duty with SubRon4 based atKey West, Florida. She operated along the east coast and in the West Indies for a little more than 11 years. Her schedule included the development of tactics and independent ship exercises, type training, periodic overhauls, and fleet exercises. During this period, she also visited numerousCaribbean Sea ports. In July 1952,Amberjack was transferred to the newly established SubRon12, though she remained based at Key West and her employment continued as before.
Early in August 1959, after more than 11 years of operations out of Key West, the submarine's home port was changed toCharleston, South Carolina. She arrived there on 8 August and reported for duty with her former squadron, SubRon4. While working out of her new home port,Amberjack's operations remained much as they had been before with one significant difference: she began making deployments toEuropean waters. In August, September and October 1960, the submarine participated in aNATO exercise before making a week-long port visit toPortsmouth, England. She returned to Charleston late in October and resumed her normal duties. Between May and September 1961, the warship deployed to theMediterranean Sea for duty in the Sixth Fleet. After a three-year interlude operating along the east coast and in theWest Indies,Amberjack made another Mediterranean cruise between 7 July and 1 November 1964. She spent the ensuing 29 months working out of Charleston. In 1967, the submarine made a three-month deployment to the Mediterranean between 23 April and 24 July. On 2 September 1969, following another 25 months of operations along the US east coast and in the West Indies, she embarked upon her last deployment from Charleston in European waters during which she participated in another NATO exercise with units of theBritish,Canadian, andDutch navies. At the conclusion of the exercise,Amberjack visited a number of ports in northern Europe before returning to Charleston on 12 December 1969.
There is speculation amongst survivors of the1967 Israeli attack on the USSLiberty and their supporters that a U.S. Navy submarine observed and filmed the attack through their periscope.[9] The working theory is that the submarine was either theAmberjack or theUSSAndrew Jackson. Seeing how theAmberjack was on a 3-month deployment to the eastern Mediterranean Sea to reconnoiter Egypt,[10][11] this would mean she could, in theory, have been in the vicinity of the attack when it occurred. There is no confirmation of this theory and it remains speculative.
In 1988, theLBJ Presidential Library declassified and released a document from theLiberty archive with the “Top Secret—Eyes Only” security caveat (Document #12C sanitized and released 21DEC88 under review case 86–199).[9] This “Memorandum for the Record” dated April 10, 1967 reported a briefing of the “303 Committee” by General Ralph D. Steakley. According to the memo, General Steakley “briefed the committee on a sensitiveDOD project known as FRONTLET 615,” which is identified in a handwritten note on the original memorandum as “submarine withinU.A.R. waters.” FurtherFreedom of Information Act requests returned no information on any project called “FRONTLET 615.” This has lent credence to the theory that a U.S. Navy submarine was present during the attack.
In February 1997, a senior member of the crew of theAmberjack toldLiberty survivor James Ennes that he had watched the attack through the periscope and took pictures.[9] When contacted, 4 crewmen stated that they were so close to theLiberty when it came under attack that some of the crew believed that theAmberjack herself was under attack by depth charges.[9] Captain August Hubal, the commanding officer of theAmberjack at the time of the attack, insisted that the vessel was 100 miles (160 kilometers) from theLiberty. When told the crew believed they were closer, he replied “They must be mistaken.” On July 2, 2003, theNational Security Agency stated that there had been “no radio intercepts made by the U.S. submarineAmberjack.”[9] James Ennes believes that if the submarine photography does exist, it should show that theLiberty's flag was clearly visible to the attacking aircraft and torpedo boats, which would directly contradict the Israeli narrative of the attack.
On 9 July 1970,Amberjack arrived in her new home port,Key West, Florida, her base for the remainder of her service in theUnited States Navy. She made her last deployment to the Mediterranean between 27 November 1972, and 30 March 1973. On 17 October 1973,Amberjack was decommissioned at Key West, her name was struck from theNaval Vessel Register, was transferred to theBrazilian Navy, and was commissioned asCeará (S-14).
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere. United States Navy |
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3°42′47″S38°28′25″W / 3.713058°S 38.473484°W /-3.713058; -38.473484
