- 2 days ago
The USS Harder, led by Commander Sam Dealey, sank multiple Japanese destroyers, rescued Allied operatives from capture in Borneo, and outmatched many rival ships and aircraft to return home. And that was during just one patrol. Take a deep dive aboard this submarine as we relive this incredible war patrol in the spring of 1944, and witness the events that accelerated the campaign against the Japanese and earned Dealey the Medal of Honor.
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00:00April 1944. In the South Pacific, an American submarine considers a deadly showdown with an enemy warship.
00:11A Japanese destroyer closes in on USS Harder. Skipper Sam Dealey must choose to dive or fight.
00:34Normally submarines avoid destroyers and other escorts because they're designed to kill submarines.
00:38By taking on destroyer 101, you are in fact taking on the toughest game.
00:43With the Japanese still occupying great swaths of the Pacific, the Allies use submarines to subvert their control.
00:52Dealey proves relentless in bold attacks during daring patrols, leading USS Harder and its crew into glory and peril.
01:02In World War II, a subsea weapon allows warriors to fight from beneath the waves.
01:12With cunning, force and tenacity, their enemies strike back.
01:19Revolutionary, but still sometimes primitive. It's a desperate bid to change the course of war. Their stories are legend.
01:35On April 13th, 1944, Commander Sam Dealey and his crew face a Japanese destroyer in the South Pacific.
01:52In three war patrols, they have already sunk ten Japanese merchant ships, but they have never beaten a destroyer.
02:01A type of warship that carries depth charges.
02:05Depth charges are cendrilical canisters about two and a half feet.
02:08They're triggered by an orifice that allows seawater to come in, so that when a certain amount of seawater actually gets in, it triggers the depth charge to explode.
02:15Packed with up to 325 pounds of explosives, they're rigged to sink submarines.
02:24Just before 7pm, Dealey decides to attack instead of evade the destroyer.
02:30Ready, tube two. Two ready. Fire two. On the way.
02:37At some point, he realized that when he was being pursued by destroyers, instead of waiting for them to depth charge him, he could shoot back.
02:45Stand by three. Fire three. Three on the way.
02:51A bubble trail from Dealey's steam-powered torpedoes will give away Harder's location.
02:58Fire four. Four on the way. If the offensive fails, the destroyer will know exactly where to find them.
03:04Harder's skipper sinks the escort before it can drop a single bomb.
03:18More than two years into the Pacific War, only 14 Japanese destroyers have been sunk by American submarines.
03:27Dealey joins an elite group of submarine officers daring enough to accomplish this exclusive feat.
03:33The success emboldens him.
03:39Commander Sam Dealey is a calm, professional and reserve naval officer.
03:44However, in the heat of a battle, he turns out to be very, very aggressive in a way that many had not foreseen.
03:50The 37-year-old Dealey has commanded USS Harder since it was commissioned in 1942.
04:00The soft-spoken skipper comes from an upper-crust Texas family.
04:04Usually officers from those kind of families didn't go to submarines.
04:08Submarines were associated with a career path in the Navy that really didn't go very far.
04:12Like aviation in the near war years, it was seen as a negative.
04:16So for him to take that path says a lot about him as an individual.
04:20You have to understand, there are people that you would meet that would seem to be the quietest, cautious types.
04:29Then you find out they were completely crazy and they would do things that would be absolutely terrifying.
04:35For Dealey, the easy solution isn't necessarily the best solution.
04:39Could he back out of an attack? Yes.
04:42However, it would also go against his nature.
04:45Dealey and the crew of USS Harder end their patrol in Fremantle, Australia.
04:53Fremantle became an allied sub-base after another Japanese assault only two months after Pearl Harbor.
04:58In February 1942, the island of Java fell in a fiery campaign and sent the American station there into a panic retreat.
05:11They scuttled military assets like the warship USS Stewart, dry docked for repairs when the Japanese struck.
05:18The destroyer fell into enemy hands.
05:21The Japanese Empire reaches a zenith.
05:25Stretched out over about 20 million square miles in seven time zones.
05:29So it's huge.
05:30It's held together over millions of miles of sea lanes and open ocean.
05:34They're an island nation.
05:36We depended on this maritime highway to move all their goods around.
05:39They had to import almost everything they needed, including rice.
05:42And that was especially acute when it came down to war materials, particularly oil,
05:47which is the precious fuel source for battleships, bombers, fighters, everything.
05:52The massive, but far-flung Empire is also a weakness.
06:00In early 1944, American submarines in Australia are commanded by Rear Admiral Ralph Waldo Christie.
06:09Christie's silent hunters target Japanese ships hauling goods to sustain the Pacific War.
06:15Allied operatives planted throughout the Japanese Empire spy on shipping and collect intelligence that helps Christie assign his submarines.
06:30The advantages of having agents ashore were enormous.
06:34The Australians had coast watchers.
06:36The Japanese would steam down the coast and they would report it.
06:42By May 1944, one of these operations takes an alarming turn.
06:48Australian commandos spying in occupied Borneo are betrayed to Japan's infamous military police, the Kempei Tai.
07:00Three have already been captured.
07:03Six more hide in the northern jungles, hunted by hundreds of troops.
07:08Australian Special Forces request assistance to recover the commandos, now running low on supplies.
07:18The plan requires a submarine to sneak into enemy waters and rescue the operatives before the Japanese find them.
07:24Harder's fifth patrol will include an attempt to rescue the Australian commandos.
07:43The jungles of Borneo lie thousands of miles north of Fremantle.
08:00Harder's Gato class build is engineered to make the long distance run.
08:04It's got the ability to go huge distances, be on patrol for a couple of months and then come back.
08:12It could carry a fairly hefty load of torpedoes and also the food and logistics that you need to keep a crew going for that length of time.
08:24Before Harder leaves Fremantle, Dealey welcomes a special passenger.
08:31Australian operative, Major Bill Jenkins.
08:34Already an escaped prisoner of war, he's committed to defeating the Japanese.
08:40His first step is to coordinate the rescue of his besieged comrades.
08:45The assignment will not be Jenkins' first mission aboard a submarine.
08:49It takes a little bit of a different time to go into the submarine service.
08:51You know, it's a very austere environment.
08:54You're living on top of men in bunks.
08:57You can go weeks, even months, without seeing daylight.
08:59A submarine can be extremely bizarre for most people, creepy for others.
09:07The hull, of course, as it's diving, is going to creak in stress under pressure.
09:14But you also have the sound of water rushing into the ballast tanks on both sides, air rushing out.
09:19You have the bow going down and the stern going up.
09:21It's a bizarre feeling.
09:26With the confined space and eeriness of the submerged environment,
09:31Jenkins signs on for all of the risks of a submarine on active patrol.
09:38In addition to the rescue attempt, the sub will continue with its regular operations.
09:4322% of America's silent service are killed at sea.
09:49The highest casualty rate of any arm of the U.S. military.
09:58Even if the rescue is a success,
10:02it may only take the commandos out of the jungle and put them squarely in the line of fire.
10:13On May 26th, 1944,
10:21USS Harder leaves Fremantle, Australia.
10:27Among the personnel now aboard is Australian operative Bill Jenkins.
10:32He quickly volunteers to stand watch on the deck
10:36and becomes an accepted member of the crew.
10:44They enjoy their share of creature comforts.
10:47American submarines boast air conditioning,
10:50a critical perk in the heat and humidity of the South Pacific.
10:54You're in a submarine and you're there for 75 days.
10:59How well you feel determines how well you'll fight.
11:03A lot of things that feel like luxuries really are things that make it better for you to fight in the end.
11:13Dili's earlier defeat of a Japanese destroyer proved he can be aggressive.
11:22But this mission will also require stealth.
11:29The waters that surround northern Borneo are guarded by one of Japan's largest naval bases, Taui Taui.
11:36Harder patrols alone, with only 24 torpedoes.
11:40In 1944, it takes American skippers an average of 10 torpedoes to sink one ship.
11:52Against a single destroyer, Dili stood a chance.
11:56Against a fleet of warships, aggression would be suicide.
11:59Just after 6.30pm, the crew spots the first threat to their mission.
12:10Three tankers head to a port on the east coast of Borneo to pick up fuel.
12:16They're escorted by two Japanese destroyers.
12:19Quick and highly maneuverable, Japan relies on these escorts and their underwater bombs to protect against enemy submarines.
12:28Submarines are uniquely vulnerable to attacks.
12:31Not only are they at risk of damage, for instance, from a depth charge, but of all that pressure from the seawater pushing in on them can lead to collapses.
12:39The problem with the Japanese was that they didn't know the depths of where the American submarines were.
12:45So they generally assume it is shallow.
12:47And so they would set their depth charges to hit rather high in the water.
12:52Triggering their underwater bombs to explode at around 150 feet.
12:56The American submarine captains knew this, and so they would dive under and be safe.
13:06That advantage was shattered 19 months into the war, when American Congressman Andrew Jackson May held a press conference.
13:15Unfortunately, a US politician who came back from the Far East boasted that our submarines were safe because the Japanese depth charges were set too shallow.
13:24This was not really helpful.
13:27And the Navy was furious.
13:29The Japanese picked this information up and quickly retooled their depth charges so that it would go down farther.
13:37And as a result, a number of American submarines were sunk.
13:43So by June of 1944, Dealey risks deep-set depth charges every time he evades his Gato-class submarine.
13:50The Gato-class by 1944 isn't obsolete. However, it is not as up-to-date as the Balao-class.
13:58For the Gato-class with a maximum dive depth of about 300 to 350 feet, they don't have that extra 100 feet of depth to be able to maneuver in.
14:06It also means they're more likely to be detected and caught.
14:09At 9.25 PM, one of two destroyers escorting the three-tanker convoy spots USS Harder on the surface.
14:26The warship is the Minotsuki, a Mitsuki-class destroyer. Designed to travel at up to 37 knots, the escort can speed nearly twice as fast as Dealey's submarine, even on the surface.
14:41Dealey tries out running it, but Harder's phosphorescent wake illuminates a path to their position.
14:49Dealey drops to periscope depth to hide from the escort.
14:55But sharp-eyed lookouts track the periscope's wake. The destroyer turns to intercept USS Harder. It's 1,100 yards away and closing.
15:08In the submarine, your only protection is your invisibility. The cloak of invisibility, if you like. As long as that works, you're okay. If they can see you, you're dead.
15:18Dealey's only chance to thwart the escort's depth charges is to attack first.
15:22Speed 34 knots. Speed 34 knots. Driven by his earlier success, he prepares to attack an enemy destroyer again.
15:30Dealey orders full rudder port, or left, towards the destroyer's profile.
15:35The destroyer's profile is to attack the enemy destroyer.
15:37And if you're a submarine, you're only protection is your invisibility.
15:40If you're a submarine, your only protection is your invisibility. The cloak of invisibility, if you like. As long as that works, you're okay.
15:44If they can see you, you're dead.
15:46Dealey's only chance to thwart the escort's depth charges is to attack first.
15:50Left, towards the destroyer's profile.
16:02Fire!
16:09Fires three torpedoes to target the widest area of the ship possible.
16:14If they miss, Dealey will have to dive to avoid the rain of depth charges.
16:21Dealey's torpedoes close in.
16:30One strikes its bow. A second breaks the ship's spine.
16:35Depth charges on the deck explode in the flames.
16:39Less than a minute after the torpedoes strike, the destroyer starts to list.
16:44Deep
16:54Dealey brings this sub to the surface, about a thousand yards away to confirm the kill.
16:55to confirm the kill.
17:02He invites Jenkins and other crew to the bridge to watch.
17:11The Minotsuki and its depth charges slip beneath the waves.
17:18Dealey has sunk the second destroyer of his career.
17:22Dealey's contribution is to go after destroyers and show it can work.
17:27He sinks a lot of destroyers that way.
17:29Not only does he sink a lot of them,
17:31but he probably inspires his fellow officers to think this is not a bad idea.
17:35That's what Sam Dealey does, and very successfully.
17:40Despite the commandos awaiting rescue, Dealey is not finished with the convoy.
17:45The sub detects another ship only 1,400 yards away.
17:51USS Harder is forced to dive again.
17:55USS Harder is forced to dive again.
17:59USS Harder is forced to dive again.
18:02USS Harder is forced to dive again.
18:17June 6, 1944.
18:20France.
18:21The Allies land on the beaches of Normandy, hoping to turn the tide of the European war.
18:30In the Pacific, an American submarine has just sunk a Japanese destroyer near northern Borneo,
18:38and now pursues the convoy it guarded.
18:41a second destroyer prowls near Japan's naval base Taui Taui, seeking revenge on the American sub.
18:57Using active sonar, the destroyer sends pings of high-frequency sound into the ocean.
19:03If the Japanese crew hear the echo bounce off the submarine,
19:08they can estimate its location and relative distance.
19:13When the enemy ship is close enough, the sound even penetrates the hull of the sub.
19:21USS Harder's hunter is almost certainly an Akazuki-class destroyer.
19:26The apex of Japan's World War II escort design.
19:29The Akazukis carry up to 72 depth charges to kill submarines.
19:36Dealey works the attack periscope in a bid to take the offensive.
19:40But intermittent clouds block the moonlight and help cloak his target.
19:46As the destroyer approaches head-on, Harder does not have the advantage of attacking the broadside.
19:52Dealey must target the bow, which is only a tenth as wide.
19:56It's a down-the-throat shot. He's heading right for a scope.
20:08Stand by two. Fire two. Two on the way.
20:15He fires six torpedoes. Gambling one will strike the escort head-on.
20:19This is before homing torpedoes. He's just firing a bullet, basically, at this narrow thing coming at him.
20:28But this time, Dealey's aggressive gamble fails.
20:33All six of his torpedoes miss.
20:36Take her deep. Rig for depth charge.
20:39Harder's skipper has run out of offensive choices.
20:41He moves quickly to the defense.
20:44As the submarine plunges, the crew can only wait for the enemy's depth charges to begin detonating.
21:04You have to imagine the worst possible experience. The sound of the depth charge reverberating through the water.
21:10The shock impact on the hull. The shaking of the hull. And what that does inside the hull is absolutely terrifying.
21:16You're inundated with noise. You're inundated with the feeling of motion, random motion.
21:24But also with anything in the compartment flying around and potentially hitting you.
21:28Darkness, because of the darkness, you're inundated with noise.
21:32You're inundated with noise. You're inundated with the feeling of motion, random motion.
21:36But also with anything in the compartment flying around and potentially hitting you.
21:44Darkness, because light bulbs tend to burst. It's pretty horrendous.
21:49Harder races to its maximum depth to outrun the destroyer's barrage.
21:55Harder races to its maximum depth to outrun the destroyer's barrage.
21:58As the dive nears 300 feet, the crew expects the submarine to level off.
22:16The goal is to equalize hardest buoyancy with water.
22:20Then level it with its stern planes, a pair of rudders that control the angle of the submarine.
22:25But in the control room, a very green planesman, he is in the stern plane position.
22:33So he's controlling the planes at the back of the boat.
22:36He pushed the plane in the wrong direction.
22:38He raises the stern of the submarine, in essence, driving the boat deeper.
22:42A mistake. Very human mistake.
22:45Under the stress of combat, the sound of depth charges, all of that.
22:48Human mistake. Extremely dangerous.
22:51People on subs being trained.
22:53One of the things that they have to learn is what is and is not dangerous.
22:58People who are completely new don't get it.
23:01They don't get it until they've experienced it.
23:04You're now pushing the submarine closer to crush depth.
23:08If you don't recover fast enough, you could lose the submarine.
23:11The diving officer rushes to correct the mistake.
23:24Non-essential crew charged to the rear of the submarine to manually redistribute the weight.
23:30In a desperate bid to bring the bow out of its dive.
23:33They manage to level the sub.
23:55the sub but the uncontrolled descent has caused another problem one of the torpedoes in the tubes
24:06has started a hot run its propeller spins as if it's been launched the other torpedo is sitting
24:13in the tube the torpedo gets shaken enough that it starts up that's very dangerous if it keeps
24:19spinning dilly's submarine could be sunk by its own warhead the torpedo is designed to go a certain
24:26distance before it's armed the way it decides it's gone that distance is how many turns of the
24:31propeller the torpedo's propeller must stop before it causes the explosives to detonate
24:38june 1944 in the south pacific a world war ii submarine is under siege
24:54a japanese destroyer launches underwater bombs at uss harder
25:01a hot run torpedo complicates the crew's plight
25:05a torpedo hot run is when a torpedo shifts in the tube
25:09and causes the propulsion sequence to start whereby the engine of the torpedo is actually run up and
25:13the propellers are actually turning in the tube the sound makes it even more unnerving
25:18a hot run
25:24deely and his american crew are in the depths of chaos
25:32they're lucky this time the rogue torpedo winds down before the warhead overheats or explodes
25:48at that depth everyone would have perished and their fates remain an unsolved mystery
25:54about an hour into the onslaught the ocean finally falls silent
26:02harder has endured a depth charge attack by japan's greatest destroyer class
26:11but the clock is ticking for commander deely and major jenkins to rescue six allied operatives
26:17a key objective of their patrol
26:19the commandos in borneo in 1944 running low on food and supplies they're being hunted by the japanese
26:25in extremely harsh conditions they really need to be pulled out and every attempt at that point had
26:32failed so for the harder to go in for them it was extremely important those guys needed help
26:37deely and the crew set course for borneo and finalized plans for the rescue
26:45in the case of deely he's taking a submarine right up to the shoreline so he's making himself very
26:50vulnerable from shore fire but he's also putting himself in a position if a destroyer comes along or
26:56another craft can identify him of not being able to escape because there's no water under the keel to
27:00dive no ability to maneuver after dark on june 8 1944 harder surfaces and heads towards shore
27:14some 6 000 yards out they scrape bottom it's as close as they can get to the rendezvous point on the
27:20north coast
27:27japanese outposts threaten the submarine on both sides special operations tend to be dangerous
27:33because you have to go inshore if someone spots you you may be attacked before you can get away
27:42the crew assists jenkins and his partner to get their collapsible boats and gear to the deck
27:47they have three days worth of rations should they need to remain ashore to locate the commandos
27:53this would be a worst case scenario when deely brings his submarine to the surface to make
27:59the rescue in borneo he's bathed in moonlight he's very visible it's far more light than he'd
28:04like to have and he's very close to the shoreline to do the rescue so he's also now open to anybody on
28:10shore who's got small arms munitions so he could be shot by artillery machine guns even rifles
28:17not a good position to be in
28:36the rescue team stays in contact with the uss harder through a series of light signals
28:41to assist them with their bearings as they near shore they use another light flash to alert the
28:48commandos communication with those people to be rescued is essential and the only way to do that
28:54is going to be blinker light however anyone on shore can see it and the blinker light in return from shore
29:00is just as visible so anybody behind the submarine could potentially see that too
29:05they can only hope no one else is watching
29:08just after 1am the operatives signal as they approach the darkened sub
29:23they pull alongside uss harder
29:33the commandos and their rescuers are hauled aboard
29:35mentally and physically exhausted
29:48good job
29:52good job
29:55deely's crew springs to action
29:57good job
30:03gently backing away from shore and out of shallow water
30:08uss harder leaves the enemy
30:10behind
30:15below deck
30:16the rescued operatives receive clean clothes
30:19and their first real food in months
30:22the cook whips up a celebratory meal of steak and eggs
30:25for those living on short rations steak and eggs for breakfast is a massive morale boost
30:33they've been under stress and strain for so long and then they're greeted with
30:36really a hearty breakfast the first real good food they've had in a long time
30:40you can imagine the feeling in that crew as they were being rescued
30:44food on the u.s boats was considered among the best
30:48and other navies would sometimes say things like well the americans are just soft
30:53well no we did very well quality of life is what it's called now we understood that before world war ii
31:05as the commandos turn in commander deely must turn his attention to a new directive
31:16allied intel has revealed that japanese are mobilizing warships at taui taui
31:20the enemy naval base the crew of uss harder barely survived just days ago
31:27military brass believe it may be the sign of an epic enemy offensive japan's new battle plan
31:34operation eiko orders a consolidated attack to halt advancing american carriers and protect japanese gains
31:41question was are they doing it one of the better sources of information would be
31:46if you actually saw what was happening in their ports that's why you send in a sub you have to see
31:53this is the world before satellites and very long range reconnaissance planes
31:57and all the things that enable you to see what's inside a harbor now on google on your computer
32:03submarine is a very good way of finding out that's why it goes in there
32:07the u.s navy needs this information before deely takes the rescued operatives home
32:25just four hours from the shores of borneo deely and his crew spot evidence of the military buildup
32:37a japanese warplane patrolling north of the subutu pass also sees them
32:46planes armed with depth charges are submarines deadliest threat
32:51when there are airplanes you'd rather dive because first the airplane can bomb you but
32:56second you can call in people to go after you your job is to disappear
33:07as harder reaches 75 feet
33:25an aerial depth charge detonates off the port side
33:29the explosion throws the submarine starboard
33:32the rescued commandos get a rude awakening you can have these moments of total boredom when
33:39you're laying on your bunk and you're just hanging out and then you can have at the same point absolute
33:43terror when you may still be laying on that same bunk and you've got lights exploding around you gauges
33:49being destroyed and so from a psychological standpoint where you feel safe in your bond can
33:53also be where you feel terrified
33:57harder withstands the aerial depth charges but the warplane will probably report the coordinates
34:03to japan's nearby fleet new heading come about zero two zero degrees deely needs to keep his head down
34:15the submarine will need to stay submerged
34:17this puts additional strain on operations for the crew of the harder plus the commandos from borneo
34:26once they're on board the ship the conditions get even more difficult the submarine is always
34:31going to be claustrophobic it's always hot the air quality deteriorates the longer you're underwater
34:37the addition of bodies to that increases the use of oxygen so under a forced immersion especially
34:43under an extended period of time the oxygen condition deteriorates the humidity and heat especially if
34:49the blowers are shut off for silent running really skyrockets very fast
34:56if carbon dioxide levels get too high it could be lethal
35:04uss harder must risk detection on the surface to change the air
35:08the air
35:11deely uses the cover of darkness just before 5 00 a.m for surfacing
35:15to replenish the air and quickly charge the batteries
35:22they can now safely carry on with their mission
35:24on june 10th harder nears the base of taui taui
35:41it will be a perilous prowl
35:45he must remain submerged to conceal his presence
35:48but shallow enough to use his periscope only about 55 feet below the surface
35:54of the air
35:58at 5 pm the crew picks up the sound of approaching ships
36:05deely raises the periscope for visual corroboration
36:12two battleships and at least four cruisers steam the waters near taui taui
36:17eight destroyers and airplanes provide additional coverage
36:21the fleet of warships confirms that japan's navy is mobilizing
36:29but before deely can report the high profile sighting
36:34a patrol plane detects harder through the glassy waters
36:38the aerial scout divulges the aerial scout divulges deely's presence to the warships
36:45two of the fleet's destroyers turn on the submarine
36:53battle stations
37:04deely targets the first escort fifteen hundred yards from hard as bow
37:14fire two two
37:18the fires a spread of three torpedoes
37:20As the other destroyer advances from the starboard side, Delia is out of time.
37:28Take her deep. Rig for depth charge.
37:36He dives to avoid the second incoming ship.
37:50The sub is rocked. Explosions detonate.
37:57The impact tosses the crew and breaks water lines.
38:06As the sea goes silent, the real hunt begins.
38:10June 1944. An American submarine attempted to perform reconnaissance of a Japanese naval base in the southern Philippines.
38:26Now two destroyers stalked USS Harder.
38:31The Japanese crews used two types of sonar.
38:35The passive sonar team listens for any man-made sound beneath the waves.
38:39One way to detect a sub is to listen for it.
38:42If you believe that they're chasing you,
38:45you'll try to cut off every bit of sound you can so that they won't notice you.
38:50Dealey takes Harder deep in a bid to escape the destroyers.
38:55He might also rig for silent running.
38:57Silent running is the procedure whereby you reduce all noise in the submarine
39:01by switching off anything that makes a noise unless it's essential for the operation of the submarine.
39:06Sailors who are at their battle stations will man their battle stations,
39:09but all other sailors who are non-essential at that point will get in their bunks.
39:13To go along with that, they'll shut down the air conditioning systems.
39:16They'll shut down the motors for the refrigerator and the freezer.
39:19Anything that could be picked up by enemy sonar is a threat to that submarine.
39:24But no matter how quiet they are,
39:33USS Harder remains vulnerable to the destroyer's active sonar pings.
39:39If an echo returns to the listening crews,
39:49they will hone in on the location.
39:57Rigged to roll depth charges off the stern and launch them from the sides,
40:01the two destroyers strategize where harder may be and lay down a carpet of underwater bombs.
40:07To make depth charges work,
40:09you have to visualize how to maneuver the stern of your ship
40:14over where you think the submarine will be.
40:16You can watch him on your sonar while you con someone else
40:20to drop depth charges over him.
40:22That's called a creeping attack.
40:23A strike within 50 feet could breach the hull.
40:27So the idea is that you create a barrage of these things.
40:31If you do a maneuver just right,
40:33you may be able to launch enough depth charges
40:36to make a pattern that will enclose the sub.
40:38If it's exploded a certain distance from your sub,
40:41it'll open it up and that's it.
40:43Dealey's submarine is trapped in the heart of enemy waters.
40:47Submerged and relying on batteries,
40:51Harder lacks the power to run away.
40:53Submarine underwater using its batteries
41:12goes at its maximum speed of about eight knots.
41:14It will actually run out of all of its battery power
41:17in just one hour.
41:18And so you've got destroyers up above
41:20and they've got you cornered,
41:22you know, you can't just put it in full gear and go
41:24or you won't have the power needed
41:25to get back to the surface.
41:27You're not fast enough to get away
41:29and all you'll do is exhaust your batteries
41:31so that if they give up, you're dead anyway.
41:35Spongebob
41:47Come about new heading of 0-2-0, all ahead two-thirds, for five minutes.
42:10Dealey has a plan the Japanese probably haven't considered.
42:14Using a device called a bathy thermograph, he searches for a location where water temperature
42:22changes called a thermocline.
42:26The difference in density between warm and cold layers distorts sound waves enough to
42:30deflect active sonar.
42:44Two hours after Harder is attacked, Dealey finds what he's searching for.
42:58Rising gradually from the depths, he locates warm currents about 200 feet below the surface.
43:05It acts as a barrier to sound waves.
43:07So the sonar bounces off of the thermocline, not the submarine, and it looks like the submarine
43:13vanishes.
43:15Now invisible to sonar, USS Harder escapes the waters of Taui Taui.
43:27Later that night, the sub surfaces in clear seas, to transmit details about the warships they
43:35sighted.
43:39Intelligence gathered by submarines helps the Allies to track Japanese troop movements, and
43:45towards Japan's objective to reinforce a key island in the fight for New Guinea.
43:50It also helps to tip the balance in favor of the U.S. Navy in the battle for the Philippine
44:02Sea.
44:05On June 21st, Harder and the rescued commandos reached Darwin, Australia.
44:12They outmatched 16 ships and 18 aircraft to bring the Allied operatives home.
44:20Admiral Christie awards Dealey a Navy cross for this epic patrol.
44:25Commander Sam Dealey's legacy to the United States Navy is one of an inspirational role
44:30model for the submarine force.
44:33But less than three months after the Borneo rescue, Dealey's 6th patrol would be his last.
44:41On August 24th, 1944, USS Harder is sunk by the underwater bombs it had escaped many times.
44:49The attack involved American built USS Stewart.
44:55Seized by the Japanese and Java at the beginning of the war.
44:58In a terrible twist, it seems likely that the ship to best USS Harder was an American one.
45:05Some say the toll of Dealey's high-stakes missions played a role in his end.
45:11Others believe submarines like Harder just ran out of chances.
45:15It doesn't sound as though the way they die is from burning out.
45:21It sounds like the way they die is their luck runs out.
45:25Dealey accelerated the campaign against the Japanese Empire by directly attacking its warships
45:31to erode its ability to conduct war.
45:35He'd never learn of his greatest tributes.
45:39For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity beyond the call of duty, Dealey would posthumously
45:45receive the Congressional Medal of Honor.
45:49After the war, the American Navy would name a new class of destroyers in his honor.
45:54An ironic tribute to a destroyer killer.
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