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NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive

Patches contributed by Mike Smolinski.

Bowfin (SS-287) (AGSS-287) (IXSS-287)

Radio Call Sign: November - Whiskey - Sierra - Lima

Balao Class Submarine: Laid down, 23 July 1942, at Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, ME.; Launched, 7 December 1942; Commissioned USS Bowfin (SS-287), 1 May 1943; Decommissioned, 12 February 1947, at the Naval Submarine Base, New London, CT.; Laid up in the Reserve Fleet at New London; Recommissioned, 27 July 1951, at New London, CT.; Decommissioned, 22 April 1954, at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, CA.; Laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet; Redesignated Auxiliary Research Submarine (AGSS-287) in 1962; Redesignated Miscellaneous Submarine (IXSS-287) in 1971; Struck from the Naval Register, 1 December 1971; Final Disposition, on permanent display as a memorial at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Bowfin received the Presidential Unit Citation for her second war patrol, the Navy Unit Commendation for her sixth war patrol, and eight battle stars during World War II.

Specifications: Displacement, Surfaced: 1,526 t., Submerged: 2,414 t.; Length 311' 9"; Beam 27' 3"; Draft 15' 3"; Speed, Surfaced 20.25 kts, Submerged 8.75 kts; Cruising Range, 11,000 miles surfaced at 10kts; Submerged Endurance, 48 hours at 2kts; Operating Depth Limit, 400 ft; Complement 6 Officers 60 Enlisted; Armament, ten 21" torpedo tubes, six forward, four aft, 24 torpedoes, one 4"/50 deck gun, one 40mm gun, two .50 cal. machine guns; Patrol Endurance 75 days; Propulsion, diesel-electric reduction gear with four General Motors main generator diesel engines, 5,400hp, Fuel Capacity 94,400 gal., four General Electric main motors with 2,740 hp, two 126-cell main storage batteries, two propellers.

Size	Image Description	Source
68k	Bowfin (SS-287) slides down the launching ramp at Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, ME., 7 December 1942.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
119k	At the commissioning ceremony of the Bowfin (SS-287) on 1 May 1943, Commander Joseph H. Willingham, Jr. reads his orders and sets the first watch.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
56k	Bowfin (SS-287) leaving Portsmouth, NH., on 13 May 1943 for her first diving operation & trials.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
66k	Bowfin (SS-287) standing out from Bisbane en route to Darwin and the beginning of her first War Patrol. She returned to Fremantle at the end of the patrol which was to be her base of operations for five war Patrols.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
57k	Bowfin (SS-287) at Mare Island following upgrading, 28 Nov., 1944. Circles represent additions.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
62k	Bow view of the Bowfin (SS-287) at Mare Island following upgrading, 28 Nov., 1944. Circles represent additions.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
112k	Bowfin (SS-287) returns from a patrol, possibly to Fremantle, Austraila.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org.
57k	Action on Bowfin's (SS-287) deck, note Battle Flag and Presidential Unit Citation Pennant.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
68k	Bowfin (SS-287) bringing back Japanese prisoners which were picked up and taken ashore by a Marine guard.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
98k	Bowfin's (SS-287) crew receiving the Presidential Unit Citation from Admiral Christie upon return from the second War Patrol. *Bowfin* is moored alongside Orion (AS-18) in Freemantle, Austraila.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
41k	The Presidential Unit Citation pennant is presented to Bowfin's (SS-287) captain, Commander John Corbus, by Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz in July 1944. Although earned during the second War Patrol, the pennant was not presented to the boat until her return to Pearl Harbor after her fifth War Patrol.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
58k	Flying Fish (SS-229), Spadefish (SS-411), Tinosa (SS-283), Bowfin (SS-287), and Skate (SS-305) as they appeared from a photo taken at the top of training tower at Sail 9 in 1945.	US Navy photo courtesy of Grant Riddle and his website submarinebaseph.com from centerfold of Bowfin museum brochure.
74k	Flying Fish (SS-229), Spadefish (SS-411), Tinosa (SS-283), Bowfin (SS-287), and Skate (SS-305) as they appeared from a photo taken at the top of training tower at Sail 9 in 1945 after her 9th War Patrol.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
297k	WW II battleflag of the Bowfin (SS-287).	Courtesy of Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
59k	Shown after her reactivation in late 1951, Bowfin (SS-287) was assigned to SUBRON 3 and 5 during the Korean conflict.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
45k	Bowfin (IXSS-287) served as a Naval Reserve Training Ship at Seattle, Washington for ten years. Moored to the training center pier, her tubes and vents sealed, *Bowfin* finished her Navy career.	Courtesy of Leeward Publications Ships Data #4, USS Bowfin, submitted by Aryeh (Lee) Wetherhorn.
118k	Stern view of the Bowfin (SS-287) at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971. She has been stripped of all her deck guns	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org.
111k	Portside view of the Bowfin (SS-287), at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971. She has been stripped of all her deck guns.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text from DANFS.
151k	Closeup view of the fairweather and stern of the Bowfin (SS-287), at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971. She has been stripped of all her deck guns.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text from DANFS.
219k	Looking down the bow of the Bowfin (SS-287), at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971. She has been stripped of all her deck guns.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text from DANFS.
233k	Engineering Control Stand of the Bowfin (SS-287), at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text from DANFS.
211k	Forward torpedo room of the Bowfin (SS-287), at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text from DANFS.
73k	Door going into the forward battery....pole is sound head, and you can see the sink for the forward torpedo room of the Bowfin (SS-287), at Pearl Harbor, probably after she was decommissioned 1 December 1971.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text courtesy of John Hummel.
55k	Starboard view of the Bowfin (IXSS-287), at Pearl Harbor, circa post 1971.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org.
59k	Bowfin (IXSS-287) at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. 1996.	Courtesy of Grant Riddle and his website submarinebaseph.com
62k	Bowfin (IXSS-287), at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii., 9 January 2001.	Photo by Julie Oltman.
55k	Starboard view of the Bowfin (IXSS-287), at Pearl Harbor, circa 2001.	USN photo courtesy of subvetsofwwii.org. Text from DANFS.
125k	Bowfin (IXSS-287), at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii., 11 March 2001.	Photo by Daniel W. Gless.
141k	Bowfin (IXSS-287), at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii., 11 March 2001.	Photo by Daniel W. Gless.
121k	Bowfin (IXSS-287), at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii., 11 March 2001. Note, this photo was taken from the National Park Services Arizona Memorial Visitor Center next to the Bowfin Museum.	Photo by Daniel W. Gless.
131k	Interior photo of Bowfin (IXSS-287), at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii., 11 March 2001.	Photo by Daniel W. Gless.
116k	Photo of one of Bowfin (IXSS-287)'s, torpedo rooms, at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii., 11 March 2001.	Photo by Daniel W. Gless.
75k	Bow of the Bowfin (SS-287).	Courtesy of Larry Lee.
295k	Bowfin (SS-287) March 25, 2004 at Pearl Harbor, East Loch.	Courtesy of Dorothy Switzer.
355k	Sailors assigned to the Naval Station Pearl Harbor Firing Detail stand at parade rest near the submarine Bowfin (SS-287) May 1, 2003. The firing detail was part of the ceremonies at the *Bowfin* Submarine Museum and Park commemorating the 60th anniversary of *Bowfin's* commissioning. Former *Bowfincrew, including a former Bowfin* Commanding Officer were in attendance at the ceremony.	U.S. Navy photo N-0106C-003 by Journalist 1st Class Daniel J. Calder�n, courtesy of news.navy.mil.