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USS Plunger SS 179

USS Plunger SS 179 (P-8) under the Brooklin Bridge
USS Plunger SS 179 (P-8) under the Brooklin Bridge. Circa 1936-37

USS Plunger SS 179 (P-8)
USS Plunger SS 179 (P-8) under the Brooklin Bridge detail.

USS Plunger SS 179
USS Plunger SS 179

USS Plunger along side the USS Fulton AS 11
USS Plunger along side the USS Fulton AS 11, July 24, 1942.
Official US Navy Photo

USS Plunger along side the USS Fulton AS 11
USS Plunger along side the USS Fulton AS 11, July 21, 1942.
Official US Navy Photo

Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Men appear to have paint brushes in their hands
Official US Navy Photo

Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Work crew on foredeck of USS PLunger July 21, 1942
Man with helmet seems to be the topside watch since he is wearing a sidearm.
Official US Navy Photo

Crew working on deck equipment of USS PLunger July 22, 1942
Crew working on deck equipment of USS PLunger July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Crews working on equipment, USS PLunger July 22, 1942
Crews working on equipment, USS PLunger July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Gangway from USS Fulton AS 11 to the Plunger foredeck.
Gangway from USS Fulton AS 11 to the Plunger foredeck. July 22, 1942.
Official US Navy Photo

USS Plunger SS 179 along side USS Fulton AS 11 July 22, 1942
USS Plunger SS 179 along side USS Fulton AS 11 July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Close up of diesel exhaust # 2 engine
Close up of diesel exhaust # 2 engine, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

USS Plunger Gun Crew doing cleaning and maintinance
USS Plunger Gun Crew doing cleaning and maintinance
on the 3 inch 50 caliber deck gun. July 22, 1942.
Official US Navy Photo

Close-up of deck gun crew member
Close-up of deck gun crew member, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Close-up of crew members doing gun maintinance
Close-up of crew members doing gun maintinance, July 22, 1942.
Official US Navy Photo

Plunger crewman deck detail
It almost appears that this man has a newspaper in his hand as he
heads for the After Battery hatch. The hatch drops down into the crewsmess.
Official US Navy Photo

Work going on the USS Plungers' conning tower fairing area
Work going on the USS Plungers' conning tower fairing area, July 22, !942
Official US Navy Photo

Close up detail
Close-up detail of men on ater conning tower gun deck, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Detail of chief exiting from the conning tower deck access
Detail of chief exiting from the conning tower deck access July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Work being done on Plungers' periscopes and shears
Work being done on Plungers' periscopes and shears, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Photo from the USS Fulton AS 11 looking down on USS PLunger
Photo from the USS Fulton AS 11 looking down on USS PLunger, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Detail of men on after gun deck of conning tower
Detail of men on after gun deck of conning tower, July 22,1942
Official US Navy Photo

Offier stepping out of conning tower deck access and avoiding open hatch
Officer stepping out of conning tower deck access and avoiding open hatch, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Men and gear on deck at aft of conning tower fairwater
Men and gear on deck at aft of conning tower fairwater, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Crew on foredeck
Crew on foredeck, July 22, 1942
Official US Navy Photo

Adm Lockwood pinning the Silver Star on Cdr Bass
Adm Lockwood pinning the Silver Star on Lcdr Bass (CO Plunger)
on the deck of Plunger's during WW II.

Plungers Officers pose for the camera
Plungers Officers pose for the camera, WW II, on the aft cigarette deck of Plunger
20 MM gun shown raised to vertical to allow photo to be taken.
Front Row, L to R:
Lt. Art Palm
Lcdr R. H. "Benny" Bass, C O
Lt. William Brown
Back Row:
Lt(jg). Bill Smith
Lt(jg). Ed Hannon
Lt. Quin Pierce
Lt(jg). Tom Oberbeck

Plunger CO Raymond H. Bass
Plunger CO Raymond H. Bass on the bridge during
the entry into Pearl harbor after war patrol number 5.



Plunger Battle flag at end of run 5
Officers and crew crowd the conning tower fairwater to
display the Plunger battle flag at the end of patrol # 5.
During this patrol Plunger sank the TAIHOSAN MARU on 12 March 1943,
and destroyed TATSUTAKE MARU on 10 May and KINAI MARU the next day.
She also damaged several other vessels during this patrol.



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On 17 February 1942, Plunger (SS-179) was to be hauled out of the water for maintenance at the marine railways in the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard. By 1527 she had motored in to the railways and was on the keel blocks and by 1530 she secured her engines. At 1545, while being pulled from the water, the starboard keel blocks gave way, allowing the submarine to roll until she came to rest at an angle of 60 degrees against the steel framework of the railways side. One sailor broke his left arm and two others were bruised. Plunger herself received only minor damage. All photos dated 17 February 1942; the day of the accident, roughly 90 minutes to two hours after Plunger rolled.

( Correct Information via the Navsource Plunger Page )

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This is a good photo showing the arrangement of the Kingston valves on the bottom of the submarine.


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After her overhaul after her 5th War Patrol Plunger departed Pearl Harbor on 15 February 1945 for New London, to serve in a training capacity until 25 October 1945, when she reported to New Haven for the Navy Day celebrations. On 30 October, she reported to the Boston Navy Yard, where she decommissioned 15 November 1945.


San Diego, 1940
Moored alongside USS Holland (AS-3), from which the photograph was taken, the submarines are (from left to right):
Salmon (SS-182)
Seal (SS-183)
Pickerel (SS-177)
Plunger (SS-179)
Snapper (SS-185)
Permit (SS-178).
Aircraft Carrier in background is the USS Enterprise.


Crew in forward torpedo room with battle flag
Crew in torpedo room with battle flag. 16 ships are shown sunk.

USS Plunger & USS Hoe, 1957
USS Plunger & USS Hoe, 1957 photo. Plunger was sold for scrap
on April 22, 1957. From the looks of her the process has begun.
This photo was in a January 20, 1957 edition of a newspaper.

Plunger fairwater
Shown are the port side mufflers and exhausts. Much of the deck has
already been removed. She still has her WW II armament. A 40mm
antiaircraft gun is pointing straight up aft of the conning tower and the
barrel of the deck gun can be seen forward of the conning tower.
Close inspection of the Hoe next to her show no signs of any deck
armament left. It was removed after the war.

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