USS Chopper
Service
- as USS Chopper25 May 1945 — 27 August 1969100 days of the war
- Name
- USS Chopper
- Builder
- Electric Boat Company, Groton, Connecticut
- Laid down
- 2 March 1944
- Launched
- 4 February 1945
- Commissioned
- 25 May 1945
- Decommissioned
- 27 August 1969
- Struck
- 1 October 1971
- Fate
- Sank off Cape Hatteras, 21 July 1976, while being rigged as a tethered underwater target (1976)
- Status
- Wreck
Specifications — World War II
- Displacement, surfaced
- 1,529 long tons (1,554 t)
- Displacement, submerged
- 2,424 long tons (2,463 t)
- Length
- 94.79 m (311 ft)
- Beam
- 8.23 m (27 ft)
- Draught
- 4.88 m (16 ft)
- Speed
- 20.3 knots (37.5 km/h, 23.3 mph)
- Range
- 11,000 nmi (20,372 km)
- Complement
- 10
- Main gun
- 127 mm (5 in)
USS Chopper was a Balao-class submarine diesel-electric submarine built for the United States Navy. Her keel was laid at Electric Boat Company, Groton, Connecticut on 2 March 1944. Launched on 4 February 1945, she entered service on 25 May 1945.
111 ships of the class were built. The class followed the Gato-class submarine and was succeeded by the Tench-class submarine.
The boat displaced 1,529 long tons surfaced and 2,424 long tons submerged. She measured 94.8 m (311 ft) long with a beam of 8.2 m (27 ft). Her designed speed was 20.2 knots, and she carried a complement of 10. Her main battery was of 127 mm (5 in) calibre.
She was in commission for 100 days of the Second World War. She was decommissioned on 27 August 1969. She was struck from the register on 1 October 1971.
She was sunk on 21 July 1976. The wreck survives.
Written from the harvested record. Every figure above is sourced; the wording is this site's own.
Armament and machinery
This vessel is recorded in 2 configurations. Wartime refits changed armament and complement substantially, so each is kept separately rather than averaged into one set of figures. The figures above are as built.
World War II
- Propulsion
- 4 × General Motors Model 16-278A V16 diesel engines driving electrical generators
- 2 × 126-cell Sargo batteries
- 4 × high-speed General Electric electric motors with reduction gears
- 2 × propellers
- 5,400 shp (4.0 MW) surfaced
- 2,740 shp (2.0 MW) submerged
- Armament
- 10 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes
- 6 forward, 4 aft
- 24 torpedoes
- 1 × 5-inch (127 mm) / 25 caliber deck gun
- Bofors 40 mm and Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
Guppy IA
- Displacement, surfaced
- 1,830 long tons (1,859 t)
- Displacement, submerged
- 2,440 long tons (2,479 t)
- Length
- 93.57 m (307 ft)
- Beam
- 8.23 m (27 ft)
- Draught
- 5.18 m (17 ft)
- Speed
- 17.3 knots (32 km/h, 19.9 mph)
- Range
- 17,000 nmi (31,484 km)
- Complement
- 10
- Propulsion
- Batteries upgraded to Sargo II
- Armament
- 10 × 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes (six forward, four aft)
- all guns removed
Sister ships
- ARA Santa Fe (S-21)
- USS Apogon
- USS Archerfish (SS-311)
- USS Aspro (SS-309)
- USS Atule
- USS Balao
- USS Bang
- USS Barbel (SS-316)
- USS Barbero
- USS Batfish (SS-310)
- USS Baya
- USS Becuna
- USS Bergall (SS-320)
- USS Besugo
- USS Billfish (SS-286)
- USS Blackfin
- USS Blanquillo (SS-323)
- USS Blenny
- USS Blower
- USS Blueback (SS-326)
- USS Boarfish
- USS Bowfin
- USS Brill
- USS Bugara
Sources
- Facts harvested from USS Chopper on Wikipedia. Figures only — no wording is taken from it.
- Photograph: Unknown author — Public domain — Wikimedia Commons