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  • The USS Flier: Death and Survival on a World War II Submarine
  • Gregory F. Michno
The USS Flier: Death and Survival on a World War II Submarine. By Michael Sturma. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8131-2481-0. Map. Photographs. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Pp. ix, 209. $29.95.

There have been a substantial number of stories of U.S. submarines published during the past two decades. Michael Sturma’s tale of the USS Flier is a quality addition to that list. The author makes good use of primary and secondary sources, as well as unpublished materials and interviews. The oral history is welcome, since it lends a personal touch to what could be just a dry recitation of patrol reports.

The Flier’s story is not lengthy; being destroyed in the Philippines on its second patrol leaves a short, dramatic tale. There is a building sense of foreboding as the skipper, John D. Crowley, has bad luck with his old submarine, S-28, patrolling in the ice and fog in the Aleutians. Ill fortune follows as Crowley grounds the Flier on a reef at Midway Island and sailors die on Crowley’s boat and the USS Macaw, a vessel sent to rescue it. The Flier is towed back to Pearl Harbor; Crowley survives an investigation, and is allowed to take the repaired submarine out again, setting the stage for the disaster.

The Flier exploded and sank in Balabac Strait, south of Palawan in the Philippines, most likely the victim of a mine. Crowley faced another inquiry. As at Midway, there was the question of whether Crowley had strayed out of the main channel or had the bad luck to run into a stray, floating mine. Once more, Crowley was exonerated. At war’s end he was given command of a third submarine, the USS Irex, although some crewmembers were not too pleased, believing that Crowley’s former “luck” did not bode well for their potential survival.

Only eight men lived through Flier’s destruction, an ocean ordeal, thirst, starvation, and evasion of Japanese soldiers, until helped by guerrillas, and finally rescued by another submarine, the USS Redfin. Flier’s survivors were the first sailors in the Pacific War to live through a submarine sinking and return safely to the United States before the end of the war. [End Page 1317]

The story has another dimension. Beyond the dramatic events, the author illustrates the in-fighting and behind-the-scenes struggles among the Navy brass, and how the need to find a scapegoat for disasters played a part in promotions and demotions. This internal warfare is rarely exposed, and is perhaps another reason for the moniker, “Silent Service.”

The Flier’s story has most of the elements of a classic adventure: impending fate, sudden disaster, escape, deprivation, rescue, recrimination, and remaining mystery. Although a slim volume for the price tag, it is a good read, and should be enjoyed by both scholars and World War Two buffs.

Gregory F. Michno
Longmont, Colorado
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