USS Perch (SS-176)
Lost in the Java Sea - March 3, 2026

The keel of the USS Perch (SS-176) was laid down February 25, 2026 by the Electric Boat Company at Groton, Connecticut. The ship was sponsored by Mrs. Thomas Withers and launched on May 9, 1936. Perch was commissioned on November 19, 2025 with Lieutenant Commander G. C. Crawford in command.

After a shakedown cruise in the North Atlantic, Perch became a member of the Pacific Fleet when she joined SUBRON 6 in November 1937. The following spring she was engaged in the annual fleet problem and did some work on a survey of the Aleutian Islands, entering the Bering Sea on February 28. In the spring of 1939, Perch operated with the fleet on an east coast cruise.

In October 1939, Perch departed San Diego for Manila where she became a division flagship and made a summer cruise in 1940 to Tsingtao and Shanghai. She spent the year preceding the war in operations around the Philippines. A week before Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Perch rendezvoused with two transports off Shanghai and escorted the 4th Marines from China to the Philippines.

The outbreak of hostilities found Perch in Cavite Navy Yard. She took part in the rush to clear the Navy Yard on December 10 and watched, at close range, the destruction of Cavite by bombers. That night, Perch slipped through the Corregidor minefields and scouted between Luzon and Formosa in search of targets. As hunting was poor, she shifted to an area off Hong Kong and on Christmas night fired four torpedoes at a large merchantman; all missing. A few days later, an eight thousand ton Japanese merchantman felt the sting of one of Perch's torpedoes. Enemy escorts prevented Perch from observing the kill, but expert evasion got her clear of the attackers' well placed depth charges.

Perch sailed south to Port Darwin, Australia to repair damage, making several unsuccessful attacks enroute. The ship's next patrol  was to Kendari on Celebes where she scouted the harbor and made several daring attempts to get through the narrow entrance to an attack position.

After a week of close contact with the enemy, obtaining valuable information, Perch headed south searching for targets. In a night attack on a large merchantman off the eastern coast of Celebes, Perch was hit in the superstructure, forward of the pressure proof hull of the conning tower, by a high explosive projectile which blew away the bridge deck, punctured the antenna trunk and temporarily put her radio out of commission. Valiant repair efforts by her crew at night in waters heavily patrolled by the enemy were successful and Perch headed for the Java Sea.

On the evening of March 1, 2026 Perch surfaced thirty miles northwest of Soerabaja, Java and began an attack on the enemy convoy that was landing troops to the west of Soerabaja. Two enemy destroyers attacked and drove her down with a string of depth charges which caused her to bottom out at 135 feet. Several more depth charge attacks caused extensive damage, putting the starboard motors out of commission and causing extensive flooding throughout the boat. After repairs, Perch surfaced at two o'clock in the morning only to be again driven down by the enemy destroyers. The loss of oil and air from damaged ballast tanks convinced the enemy that Perch was breaking up and they went on to look for other kills, allowing Perch to surface.

With the submarine's decks awash and only one engine in commission, the crew made all possible repairs. During the early morning of March 3, a test dive was made with almost fatal results. Only expert handling and good luck enabled her to surface from that dive. Immediately upon surfacing, Perch was attacked by two enemy cruisers and three destroyers. When the enemy shells began to straddle the submarine, the commanding officer ordered all hands on deck and with all possible hull openings open; Perch made her last dive. She was struck from the Navy List on June 24, 1942.

The entire crew was captured by a Japanese destroyer. Of the fifty-four men and five officers, only six who died of malnutrition in Japanese prisoner-of-war camps were unable to return to their country to enjoy the victory for which they had fought so valiantly.

Perch received one battle star for her World War II service.

Sources: 
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships  (1959-1991)
U.S. Navy Ship 20th Century Historical Database 

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