24. Submarines destroyed more than half of all Japanese shipping during the Second World War
The American submarine campaign of World War II crippled the Empire of Japan. During the war, submarines launched attacks against 4,112 merchant ships and tankers. Over 1,000 of those ships sank. In addition, the submarines sank over 200 warships of the Imperial Navy. From the beginning, the secrecy surrounding submarine operations kept much of their contribution from the American public. By war’s end, confirmation using Japanese and American records revealed 4,779,902 tons of Japanese shipping fell prey to American submarines. With the ships went their cargoes. Food, oil, vehicles, raw materials, troops, aircraft, ammunition, and all of the requirements of war were derived of the Japanese by American submarines.
The shortages of materials forced the Japanese to change their war effort, much to their detriment. Fuel shortages forced them to shorten the training for pilots, and American aviators encountered inexperienced opponents in the air later in the war. The lack of fuel, more than anything else, led the Japanese to resort to the desperate kamikaze attacks near the end of the war. Strangulation of the Japanese Empire came at a high price for the American submarine force. During the war, 374 officers and 3,131 enlisted died serving in submarines. The United States Navy honors them as being, “On Eternal Patrol”.
Where do we find this stuff? Here are our sources:
“America’s Undersea War on Shipping”. James M. Scott, US Naval Institute. December, 2014
“War in the Pacific: The First Year”. National Park Service. Online
“Building US Submarines in World War 2”. Captain H. F. D. Davis, Proceedings. July 1946. Online
“Silent Victory”. The US Submarine War Against Japan”. Clay Blair Jr. 2001
“Submarines Lost in World War II”. National Submarine Memorial. Online
“How They Won the War in the Pacific: Nimitz and His Admirals”. Edwin Palmer Hoyt. 2011
“Sink ‘Em All”. Charles A. Lockwood, Vice Admiral, USN (retired). 1951