World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseGrunion was commissioned in Apr 1942, five months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, with Lieutenant Commander Mannert L. Abele in command. After shakedown off New London, Connecticut, United States, she departed for the Pacific Ocean on 24 May. En route, she rescued 16 survivors of US Army transport Jack, which had been torpedoed by a German submarine. She arrived at Pearl Harbor on 20 Jun.

ww2dbaseAfter 10 days of intensive training, Grunion departed on 30 Jun for her first war patrol. She made her first report north of Kiska Island in the Aleutian Islands, stating that she had been attacked by a Japanese destroyer, but suffered no damage. She continued to patrol near Kiska through Jul 1942, sinking two Japanese patrol boats. On 30 Jul, she reported heavy anti-submarine activity by the Japanese, and it was determined that she should make port call at Dutch Harbor, Unalaska, Alaska, United States. That was the last time Grunion had reported in. Air searches were launched to locate her, but none succeeded in finding her. She was presumed lost on 5 Oct, and was struck from the US Navy register on 2 Nov. After the war, captured Japanese records show no anti-submarine activities in the Kiska area during the time since Grunion had last reported in. It is possible that, on or about 31 Jul, when Grunion attacked the Japanese troop transport Kano Maru while en route to Dutch Harbor, Kano Maru returned fire after Grunion surfaced to finish the job, and succeeded in sinking the American submarine. The cause of sinking still remains a mystery until the date of this writing.

ww2dbaseOn 22 Aug 2007, Grunion's wreck was found in the Bering Sea under 1,000 feet of water by means of a remote-controlled vehicle.

Photographs

Grunion Operational Timeline

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