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USS Cubera (SS-347)
Encyclopedia
USS Cubera (SS-347), a Balao-class
submarine
, was a ship of the United States Navy
named for the cubera, a large fish of the snapper
family found in the West Indies.
Cubera (SS-347) was launched 17 June 1945 by Electric Boat
Co., Groton, Conn.; sponsored by Mrs. J. Taber; commissioned 19 December 1945, Lieutenant Commander R. W. Paine, Jr., in command; and reported to the Atlantic Fleet
.
After shakedown training off New London
, Cubera arrived at Key West
, Fla.
, 19 March 1946. She tested sonar
equipment, provided services to experimental antisubmarine warfare development projects in the Florida Straits, and joined in fleet exercises until 4 July 1947 when she sailed to Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
for an extensive GUPPY II modernization.
Returning to Key West 9 March 1948 Cubera continued to operate locally out of this port, as well as taking part in fleet exercises in the Caribbean
and Atlantic
until 3 July 1952 when she arrived at Norfolk
, her new home port.
Cubera appeared in Ray Harryhausen
's It Came from Beneath the Sea
(1955), playing an "atomic sub" used to dispatch the film's giant octopus
.
Through 1957 Cubera conducted local operations, and participated in fleet exercises in the Caribbean, as well as cruising to Sydney, Nova Scotia
, in June 1955. During 1959 and 1960, she was assigned to Task Force Alfa, a force conducting constant experiments to improve antisubmarine warfare techniques. With this group she cruised the western Atlantic from Nova Scotia
to Bermuda
.
5 January 1972. The Venezuelan Navy renamed her ARV Tiburon (S-12) ("Tiburon" means shark
in Spanish
). She was subsequently scrapped by Venezuela in 1989.
Balao class submarine
The Balao class was a successful design of United States Navy submarine used during World War II, and with 122 units built, the largest class of submarines in the United States Navy. An improvement on the earlier Gato class, the boats had slight internal differences...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
, was a ship of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
named for the cubera, a large fish of the snapper
Lutjanidae
Snappers are a family of perciform fish, mainly marine but with some members inhabiting estuaries, feeding in freshwater. Some are important food fish. One of the best known is the red snapper....
family found in the West Indies.
Cubera (SS-347) was launched 17 June 1945 by Electric Boat
Electric boat
While a significant majority of water vessels are powered by diesel engines, with sail power and gasoline engines also remaining popular, boats powered by electricity have been used for over 120 years. Electric boats were very popular from the 1880s until the 1920s, when the internal combustion...
Co., Groton, Conn.; sponsored by Mrs. J. Taber; commissioned 19 December 1945, Lieutenant Commander R. W. Paine, Jr., in command; and reported to the Atlantic Fleet
U.S. Atlantic Fleet
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
.
After shakedown training off New London
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
, Cubera arrived at Key West
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
, Fla.
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, 19 March 1946. She tested sonar
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
equipment, provided services to experimental antisubmarine warfare development projects in the Florida Straits, and joined in fleet exercises until 4 July 1947 when she sailed to Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
The Philadelphia Naval Business Center, formerly known as the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and Philadelphia Navy Yard, was the first naval shipyard of the United States. The U.S. Navy reduced its activities there in the 1990s, and ended most of them on September 30, 1995...
for an extensive GUPPY II modernization.
Returning to Key West 9 March 1948 Cubera continued to operate locally out of this port, as well as taking part in fleet exercises in the Caribbean
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
and Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
until 3 July 1952 when she arrived at Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia, is a base of the United States Navy, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean...
, her new home port.
Cubera appeared in Ray Harryhausen
Ray Harryhausen
Ray Harryhausen is an American film producer and special effects creator...
's It Came from Beneath the Sea
It Came from Beneath the Sea
It Came from Beneath the Sea is an American science fiction film produced by Sam Katzman and Charles Schneer for Columbia Pictures, from a script by George Worthing Yates designed to showcase the special model-animated effects of Ray Harryhausen. It was directed by Robert Gordon and stars Kenneth...
(1955), playing an "atomic sub" used to dispatch the film's giant octopus
Octopus
The octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms...
.
Through 1957 Cubera conducted local operations, and participated in fleet exercises in the Caribbean, as well as cruising to Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
, in June 1955. During 1959 and 1960, she was assigned to Task Force Alfa, a force conducting constant experiments to improve antisubmarine warfare techniques. With this group she cruised the western Atlantic from Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
to Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
.
ARV Tiburon (S-12)
Cubera was decommissioned and sold under the Security Assistance Program to VenezuelaVenezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
5 January 1972. The Venezuelan Navy renamed her ARV Tiburon (S-12) ("Tiburon" means shark
Shark
Sharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
). She was subsequently scrapped by Venezuela in 1989.
See also
- List of ship launches in 1945
- List of ship commissionings in 1945, List of ship commissionings in 1972
- List of ship decommissionings in 1972, List of ship decommissionings in 1989