List of lost United States submarines


These United States submarines were lost either to enemy action or to "storm or perils of the sea."

Before World War II

Ship nameHull numberDate of lossCauseApproximate location
TurtleNATender vessel sunk by BritishFort Lee, New Jersey
NABroke loose from tow and founderedCape Hatteras, North Carolina
SS-20Lost in collision with San Diego, California
SS-23Foundered due to battery acid leakHonolulu, Hawaii
SS-28GroundingMagdalena Bay, Mexico
SS-66Collision with SS AbangarezLimon Bay, Panama
SS-70Foundered on test diveIsles of Shoals, New Hampshire
SS-109Collision with Coast Guard destroyer ;
raised and recommissioned 16 October 1928
Provincetown, Massachusetts
SS-110Foundered on diveDelaware Capes, New Jersey
SS-162Collision with SS City of RomeBlock Island, Rhode Island
SS-192Foundered on test dive; raised and renamed SailfishIsles of Shoals, New Hampshire

Additionally:
During World War II, the U.S. Navy's submarine service suffered the highest casualty percentage of all the American armed forces, losing one in five submariners. Some 16,000 submariners served during the war, of whom 375 officers and 3,131 enlisted men were killed.
Fifty-two submarines of the United States Navy were lost during World War II. Two – and – were lost to friendly fire, at least three more – Tulibee, Tang, and Grunion – to defective torpedoes, and six to accident or grounding.
Another eight submarines went missing while on patrol and are presumed to have been sunk by Japanese mines, as there were no recorded Japanese anti-submarine attacks in their patrol areas. The other thirty-three lost submarines are known to have been sunk by the Japanese.
Ship nameHull numberDate of lossCauseApproximate location
SS-218Lost to enemy mineNortheast of Hokkaido
SS-219Lost to enemy action by torpedo boat Hiyodori and submarine chaser No. 18New Britain
SM-1Lost to enemy action by destroyers Isokaze and MaikazeNew Britain
SS-316Lost to enemy air attackBorneo
SS-223Lost to enemy action, depth-charged by kaibōkan Okinawa, CD-63, CD-75, CD-158, and CD-207Sea of Japan
SS-332Lost to enemy air attack; last US submarine loss of the warJava Sea
SS-289Cause unknown, possibly naval mine or attack by minelayer WakatakaCelebes Sea
SS-290Lost to air attack and gunboat Karatsu Mindanao
SS-226Torpedoed by Truk
SS-227Accidental grounding in pursuit of Japanese cruiser TakaoPalawan Passage
SS-248Sunk by friendly fire air attack or possibly mines laid by U-214Panama Canal Zone
SS-294Cause unknown, probably naval mineYellow Sea
SS-250Sunk by naval mineBalabac Strait, Philippines
SS-361Lost to enemy action by escorts Miya Maru and Bunzan MaruNorthern Japanese waters
SS-207Lost to enemy action by destroyers Minegumo and Murasame, or possibly to air attack by 958th Kōkūtai naval aircraftNew Britain
SS-208Lost to enemy air attackRyukyu Islands
SS-209Cause unknown; possibly rammed by transport Hokuan MaruLingayen Gulf, Philippines
SS-210Scuttled following enemy air attackStrait of Malacca
SS-215Cause unknown; possibly sunk by its own torpedo or lost to enemy action by destroyer Shigure and two other escortsPhilippines
SS-216Sunk due to accidents caused by circular run of own torpedo.Kiska Island, Alaska
SS-211Cause unknown; possibly air attackMaug Islands or possibly Iwo Jima
SS-257Lost to enemy action by kaibokan CD-22Dasol Bay, Philippines
SS-233Lost to enemy shore batteriesKuril Islands
SS-369Cause unknown; possibly enemy submarine or minesRyukyu Islands
SS-371Lost to enemy action by Japanese minelayer HatsutakaGulf of Thailand
SS-176Scuttled following enemy action by Japanese destroyer UshioJava
SS-177Cause unknown; possible enemy actions include one by minelayer Shirakami and auxiliary subchaser Bunzan Maru on 3 April 1943Northern Honshu
SS-181Cause unknown; possibly naval mine or enemy actionNorthern Honshu
SS-89Cause unknown; foundered on training exerciseoff Key West, Florida
SS-273Cause unknown; probably naval mineWest of Palawan Island
SS-275Cause unknown; possibly naval mineHokkaido
SS-131Probably mistaken for a U-boat and rammed by Gulf of Panama
SS-132Accidental groundingAmchitka Island, Alaska
SS-133Cause unknown; foundered during anti-submarine exerciseOahu, Hawaii
SS-141Accidental groundingMakassar Strait
SS-144Accidental groundingRossel Island
SS-155Enemy action by Japanese escort IshigakiKurile Islands
SS-277Enemy action by kaibokan CD-4 and aircraftTokyo Bay
SS-278Cause unknown; probably naval mineEast China Sea
SS-191Scuttled following enemy action by Japanese destroyer YamagumoGilbert Islands
SS-195Scuttled 25 December 1941 following irreparable damage in air attack 10 DecemberCavite Navy Yard, Philippines
SS-197Probably sunk by "friendly fire" from Morotai Island
SS-174Cause unknown; possibly sunk by Japanese destroyer Yamakaze or other enemy actionMolucca Sea
SS-314Lost to enemy action by Japanese destroyer HarukazeLuzon Strait
SS-279Cause unknownSouth China Sea
SS-193Cause unknown; possibly enemy action or naval mineRyukyu Islands
SS-306Sunk by circular run of own torpedoFormosa Strait
SS-237Lost to enemy action by kaibokan Mikura, CD-33, and CD-59; assisted by air attackRyukyu Islands
SS-201Cause unknown; probably enemy actionAdmiralty Islands
SS-202Cause unknown; probably enemy action by Japanese destroyer Asashimo or circular run of own torpedoOkinawa
SS-284Sunk by circular run of own torpedoPalau Islands
SS-238Lost to air and surface attack by submarine chasers CH-15, CH-43 and 3 E13A1 JakesLa Perouse Strait

Additional casualties

There are two additional casualties to submarines in World War II that are sometimes considered as effectively two additional losses.
was damaged by Japanese air and surface forces on 14 November 1944. She was able to reach Saipan and later Pearl Harbor on 1 December, departing San Francisco for Portsmouth Navy Yard on 16 February 1945. There it was determined that she was a constructive total loss and beyond economical repair, but might be useful as a school ship, similar to the postwar immobile pierside training submarines. However, her career in this capacity was brief, and Halibut was decommissioned at Portsmouth Navy Yard 18 July 1945 and sold for scrap in January 1947.
was commissioned on 12 February 1945 and sank at pier 8 at the Boston Navy Yard on 15 March 1945, apparently without loss of life and reportedly still incomplete. She was raised eight days later, decommissioned on 24 March 1945, and never completed or fully repaired. Postwar, she was listed as a Reserve Fleet submarine until stricken in 1958 and scrapped in 1959, having never gone to sea.

Additional incidents

The former was transferred to the Royal Navy 9 March 1942 and renamed as HMS P.514. On 21 June 1942 she was rammed by the Royal Canadian Navy minesweeper and sank with all hands.
The former was sold in 1931 to a private owner for use as a tourist attraction, with the hulk reacquired by the U.S. Navy for "experimental purposes" in 1941. She foundered and sank in the Patuxent River 16 December 1942.
The former was transferred to the Royal Navy 4 November 1941 and renamed as RMS P.551 then transferred to the Polish Navy in exile and renamed. On 2 May 1942 she was attacked in a friendly fire incident by a Royal Navy minesweeper and destroyer and sank with all hands.
, originally commissioned on 16 December 1918 and decommissioned after more than 12 years of service, was recommissioned and served for five additional years during World War II. R-1 was decommissioned at Key West on 20 September 1945 and was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 10 November. Still at Key West awaiting disposal on 21 February 1946, the submarine sank in of water. Raised three days later, she was sold for scrap on 13 March 1946.
was decommissioned on 6 February 1945, was stripped, and her hulk was supposed to be expended as a target for aerial bombing off San Diego, California, but she broke her tow cable and sank coming to rest some 50–60' deep, on 20 February 1945. Her name was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register three days later. Salvagers unsuccessfully tried to retrieve the wreck of S-37 for her scrap value, but lost her again off Imperial Beach, California in of water at 32° 36.2541' N, 117° 08.2334' W, where she remains to this day.

After World War II

Ship nameHull numberDate of lossCauseApproximate location
SS-345Lost to accidental fire and battery explosionNorwegian Sea
SSN-589Cause unknown; numerous theories have been advanced. Recent deep submergence photography indicates the possibility of an implosion event similar to the USS Thresher.North Atlantic Ocean, southwest of the Azores
SS-415Collision with Oahu, Hawaii
SSN-593Exact cause unknown; one theory is a seawater leak led to a reactor plant shutdown, compounded by a heavy trim and an inadequate ballast tank blow system. Another theory is that a reactor plant scram occurred for tests; a flaw caused an inability to operate key reactor valves and other valves, which prevented emergency surfacing or a problem in the procedures for a scram caused the inability to operate a very important steam plant valve causing a loss of propulsion. Any of these problems could have caused the boat to sink beyond crush depth. east of Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Additional incidents

Was decommissioned on 15 November 1945 and sold for scrap 8 June 1957. The Tarpon foundered in deep water, south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, on 26 August 1957, while under tow to the scrap yard.
flooded and sank pier-side prior to commissioning at Mare Island Naval Shipyard on 15 May 1969. Two shipyard teams, apparently unaware of each other's efforts, were conducting work involving filling tanks in both the forward and aft portions of the submarine. Eventually the lack of coordination led to flooding through the bow hatch. The submarine was raised, but completion was delayed 32 months. Guitarro was commissioned on 9 September 1972.
was decommissioned and struck from the Naval Register 1 October 1970. On 1 June 1971, while under tow near Cape Flattery, Washington state, Bugara swamped and sank accidentally.
was not repaired after a fire near Florida on 24 April 1988 that killed three crewmembers. She was decommissioned 28 September 1988 and hulked 17 August 1989. The hull was later purchased by Northrop Grumman for testing.
experienced a fire during overhaul at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on 23 May 2012 that caused significant damage, though with no loss of life. A civilian shipyard worker confessed to arson. Although repairs were considered, using components from the decommissioned, the estimated cost of $700 million was considered uneconomical in a time of reduced budgets. Miami was decommissioned on 28 March 2014, to be disposed of via the nuclear Ship-Submarine Recycling Program.