, a Balao-class submarine

Balao class submarine

The Balao class was a successful design of United States Navy submarine used during World War II, and with 122 units built, the largest class of submarines in the United States Navy. An improvement on the earlier Gato class, the boats had slight internal differences...

, was the first ship of the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 to bear the generic name for any fish, such as gar

Gar

In American English the name gar is strictly applied to members of the Lepisosteidae, a family including seven living species of fish in two genera that inhabit fresh, brackish, and occasionally marine, waters of eastern North America, Central America, and the Caribbean islands.-Etymology:In...

 or spearfish

Spearfish

Spearfish may refer to:In geography:*Spearfish, South Dakota, United States*North Spearfish, South Dakota, United StatesIn biology:* Marlin, or Spearfish, a fish with an elongated body, a spear-like snout or billIn military:...

, with bill-shaped jaws. Her keel was laid down at Portsmouth Navy Yard on 23 July 1942. She was launched

Ship naming and launching

The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...

 on 12 November 1942 sponsored by (Mrs. Lewis Parks, wife of Lieutenant Commander Parks), and commissioned

Ship commissioning

Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...

 on 20 April 1943 with Lieutenant Commander Frederic Colby Lucas, Jr., in command.

Between 12 August 1943 and 27 August 1945 Billfish made eight war patrols out of Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...

. During these patrols she sank three freighters totaling 4,074 tons and five smaller craft. Part of her seventh and eighth patrols were spent on plane guard duty off Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

On 11 November 1943, in the Makassar Strait

Makassar Strait

Makassar Strait is a strait between the islands of Borneo and Sulawesi in Indonesia. To the north it joins the Celebes Sea, while to the south it meets the Java Sea.The Mahakam River of Borneo empties into the strait....

, a Japanese destroyer

Destroyer

In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

 severely damaged Billfish with a depth charge

Depth charge

A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...

 attack, driving her to a depth of 650 feet (198.1 m), some 250 feet (76.2 m) below her test depth while continuing the attack. Many of the crew were badly injured; Lieutenant Charlie Rush found himself the senior man still able to carry out his duties. He assumed command and began attempting to escape the attack. Realizing that his boat's damaged fuel tanks were leaking profusely and the enemy was undoubtedly tracking him by the oil slick he was leaving, he reversed course so precisely that he was able to proceed back down his previous track, using the floating oil slick as cover instead of a trail.

Meanwhile, Chief Electrician's Mate John D. Rendernick took action from his battle station and led emergency repairs, which included using a hydraulic jack to reposition the port main motor, which had been knocked off its foundation, and filling a leaking stern torpedo tube with grease.

After 12 hours, the attack ceased. Four hours after that, under the cover of night, Rush surfaced the boat, recharged batteries using the single operating generator, completed repairs, and started back to Fremantle Submarine Base, Australia.

For his actions, Rush earned the Navy Cross

Navy Cross

The Navy Cross is the highest decoration that may be bestowed by the Department of the Navy and the second highest decoration given for valor. It is normally only awarded to members of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard, but can be awarded to all...

. Rendernick was awarded the Navy Silver Star

Silver Star

The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....

, posthumously, and on 17 August 2004 the Naval Submarine Training Center (NAVSUBTRACEN) John D. Rendernick Damage Control Wet Trainer at Pearl Harbor was named in his honor.

Billfish arrived at Pearl Harbor from her last war patrol on 27 August 1945, and was ordered to the Atlantic. She arrived at New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...

, on 19 September and spent the next nine months in maneuvers and training. Following inactivation at Portsmouth Navy Yard (June - October 1946) she was towed to New London, Connecticut

New London, Connecticut

New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....

, by ATR-64 and went out of commission in reserve there 1 November 1946.

Billfish received seven battle stars for her World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

service.

The Billfish, like several other World War II boats, did not end her service at the end of the war. From 1 January 1960 until 1 April 1968 she served as a training vessel for the Naval Reserve, First Naval District, at the South Boston Annex of the Boston Naval Shipyard. She was stricken from the list of Navy ships on 1 April 1968 and subsequently sold for scrapping in 1971.

External links

• Interview with Capt. Charlie Rush (link appears dead July, 2010)
• Kill record: USS Billfish