The FEBRUARY meeting of the USSVI Board of Directors is called to order. All submarine veterans have a keen sense of understanding that, but for an accident of time and place, any of us could be listed with the over 4,000 submariners who have perished in times of war and peace. 371 American submariners were lost in five submarines in this month of February. USS Barbel (SS-316) was lost on Feb 4,1945 with the loss of 81 officers and men on her 3rd war patrol. Based on Japanese records, she was bombed near the southern entrance to the Palawan Passage. The day before, she reported she survived 3 depth charge attacks. USS Shark I (SS-174) was lost on Feb 11,1942 with the loss of 59 officers and men on her 1st war patrol. Shark was the 1st US submarine sunk by enemy surface craft in the Pacific. She was most likely sunk by depth charges. USS Amberjack (SS-219) was lost on Feb 16,1943 with the loss of 72 officers and men on her 3rd war patrol. Off Rabaul, she was attacked by a Japanese patrol plane, attacked by a torpedo boat and then depth charged by a subchaser. USS Grayback (SS-208) was lost on Feb 27,1944 with the loss of 80 officers and men on her 10th war patrol. She appears to have been caught on the surface in the East China Sea by a Japanese carrier plane whose bombs made a direct hit. During this patrol she sank 4 ships totaling 21,594 tons and was tied for 11th in the number of ships sunk. USS Trout (SS-202) was lost on Feb 29,1944 with the loss of 79 officers and men on her 11th war patrol. She was sunk by escorts in the middle of the Philippines Basin after sinking a passenger-cargoman and damaging another in a convoy. She carried out several notable special missions, including carrying over two tons of gold bullion out of Corregidor in February 1942. It is the primary mission of USSVI that we perpetuate their memory through memorials and "tolling the boats" memorial services. Let it never be said of any of us that we have forgotten them, and let us pray that we never need to add another boat and crew to this mournful roll. | 
February 2010 BOD Meeting is now in session
