4. Rickover helped salvage the battleship USS California after it was sunk at Pearl Harbor
Among the ships severely damaged at Pearl Harbor was USS California. The ship’s hull was penetrated by at least two torpedoes, and several bomb hits further damaged the stricken vessel. Loss of all electrical power prevented the damage control teams from keeping the ship afloat. The battleship sank slowly and sat on the mud of Pearl Harbor for several months while repair crews built cofferdams to refloat the vessel. When California finally rose to the surface again in March 1942, its electric propulsion system and electrical distribution systems were severely damaged. Rickover, having been promoted to Commander, was sent to Pearl Harbor to oversee the restoration of the ship’s electrical systems. His goal was to ensure the ship was sufficiently repaired to allow it to steam to Puget Sound to be rebuilt. He arrived as the ship was moved to drydock in Pearl Harbor.
After initial repairs to the hull in drydock, California remained afloat in port at Pearl Harbor while Rickover supervised repairs to its electric drive motors and distribution systems. In June, as repairs to California were underway, he received his promotion to Captain, albeit a temporary one. Rickover and the salvage experts managed to get California’s electric drive in sufficient shape the formerly sunken battleship was able to depart on its own power in October. Rickover returned to Washington after California left Pearl Harbor, his mission complete. California arrived in Puget Sound on October 20, 1942, and eventually returned to service in January 1944. Rickover remained in Washington at the Bureau of Ships, though he chafed for an active command.