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U.S.S. SEA LEOPARD
(SS-483)Click to view crew list
USS SEA LEOPARD (SS-483) - a Tench-class submarine
In Commission 1945 to 1973SS-483 Deployments - Major Events
Add a SS-483 Shellback Initiation | Add a SS-483 Deployment - Major Event | ||||
Month | Year | to | Month | Year | Deployment / Event |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
NOV | 1944 | - | Keel Date: 7 NOV 1944 at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Kittery ME | ||
MAR | 1945 | - | Launch Date: 2 MAR 1945 | ||
JUN | 1945 | - | Commissioned: 11 JUN 1945 | ||
AUG | 1961 | - | NOV | 1961 | Mediterranean |
JUL | 1968 | - | OCT | 1968 | Mediterranean |
JUL | 1969 | - | AUG | 1969 | North Atlantic |
MAR | 1973 | - | Decommissioned: 27 MAR 1973 |
SS-483 General Specifications
Class: Tench-class submarine
Complement: 10 Officers and 71 Enlisted
Displacement: 1570 tons
Length: 311 feet 8 inches
Beam: 27 feet 4 inches
Draft: 17 feet
Range: 11 000 Nautical Miles
Final Disposition: Transferred to Brazil 27 March 1973
USS SEA LEOPARD (SS-483)
Sea Leopard (SS-483) was laid down by the
Ports-mount (N.H.) Navy Yard on 7 November 1944; launched
on 2 March 1945; sponsored by Hon. Margaret Chase Smith, United State
Congresswoman from Maine; and commissioned on 11 June 1945, Comdr. R. E. M. Ward
in command.
Following shakedown off the New England coast, Sea Leopard
was ordered to the Pacific War Zone. However, hostilities with
Japan ceased before the submarine's departure date; and she remained in the Atlantic.
The submarine then proceeded to Key West, Fla., and she remained in Florida waters through
1946, providing services to the
Antisubmarine Development Force.
In January 1947, she returned to Portsmouth, N.H., for her
first shipyard overhaul. Next came training exercises in the Key West area
until late 1948, when she entered the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for a Guppy II
modernization. Upon completion, she was assigned to Submarine Squadron
(SubRon) 6 and home-ported at Norfolk, Va. In November 1949, she joined
other units in cold water exercises in the Atlantic. During February and March
1950, the submarine participated in
maneuvers in the Caribbean.
From August through November, she joined the 6th Fleet in
the Mediterranean, visiting ports of Italy, France, and Sicily, before
returning home. From December 1950 to April 1951, Sea Leopard was
undergoing overhaul at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard.
For the next two years, she operated in the Atlantic and
Caribbean, participating in fleet training exercises. In September and
October 1952, Sea Leopard participated in NATO operation "Emigrant,"
and then cruised in Bermuda waters, until
entering the Charleston Naval
Shipyard in December for overhaul. Returning to duty in April 1953, the submarine operated in the vicinity of Newfoundland and Iceland in
operation Mariner, before returning
to warmer waters in the Caribbean.
Sea Leopard's second deployment to the Mediterranean
took place in May and June of 1954 and was followed by her participation
in NATO exercise New Broom II, in which she made successful simulated attacks
on NATO convoys. The submarine entered the Portsmouth (N.H.) Naval
Shipyard in October for a six-month overhaul. The yard work was followed by
her participation in LantPhibEx, as a member of forces opposing
a simulated amphibious assault on the coast of North Carolina.
In February and March 1956, Sea Leopard, along with other units of SubRon
6, set sail for the Caribbean and operation
"Springboard." She then returned to Norfolk for local
operations until March of 1957, when she
again joined the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean. In June, she participated in festivities celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Netherlands Submarine Force
at Rotterdam, before sailing to Charleston for an overhaul. Upon its completion in January 1958, Sea
Leopard joined operation
Springboard in the Caribbean and then
returned to Norfolk for local operations. Joining Task Group Alfa, she participated in
operations to develop antisubmarine
warfare tactics and readiness, until
undergoing restricted availability at Charleston Naval Shipyard (August to
October 1959) to install a new high capacity battery.
During 1960, Sea Leopard operated in the Atlantic in training exercises and
fleet operations until 23 October, when she
entered Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for overhaul. Following
completion in April 1961, she returned to Norfolk and operated
locally until 19 August, when she joined Task Force 69 in the Mediterranean
to participate in NATO operation Checkmate and visit Rota, Spain; Malta;
and Naples, Italy. On 3 October, Sea Leopard sailed from the
Mediterranean for northern Europe and NATO operation Devil Spread.
Arriving back at Norfolk on 10 November, she again joined
Task Group Alfa for antisubmarine warfare (ASW) training until
February 1963. She then participated in operation "Springboard" in
the Caribbean. In July, Sea Leopard rejoined Task Group Alfa, until
entering Norfolk Naval Shipyard on 16 December for an overhaul. In
October 1964, after refresher training out of New London, Conn., the
submarine returned to Norfolk to resume normal duties as a unit of SubRon
6, providing ASW services to units of the 2d Feet.
In March 1965, she joined Task Group Alfa, deploying to
the Mediterranean and then returning to the Atlantic to participate in
ASW exercises with that group until 24 November 1966. On 27 December, Sea
Leopard entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard for overhaul. In July 1967,
she conducted type training with Sablefish (SS-303) and Cubera
(SS-347). The remainder of 1967 was spent in the Norfolk area.
In 1968, Sea Leopard participated in exercises
Aged Daddy V and Rugby Match, and joined the search for the
ill-fated submarine Scorpion (SSN-589). From July
through October, she operated with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean, and
upon her return, she remained at Norfolk for the rest of the year.
On 2 June 1969, Sea Leopard deployed on a special operation
to the North Atlantic, returning to Norfolk on 15 August to operate in that
area until entering Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on 17 January 1970 for a
six-month overhaul. In October, she participated in operation
Eyebolt; and then remained at Norfolk, until getting underway early in
January 1971 to participate in operation Springboard in January and
February. From 18 May to 2 September, Sea Leopard was
deployed to the Mediterranean; and, following her return to
Norfolk, she operated in that area for the remainder of her naval service.
Sea Leopard was decommissioned and struck
from the Navy list on 27 March 1973 and transferred to Brazil,
where she was commissioned in that country's navy as S. Bahia.
[Note: The above USS SEA LEOPARD (SS-483) history may, or may not, contain text provided by crew members of the USS SEA LEOPARD (SS-483), or by other non-crew members, and text from the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships]