Tench class submarine
Encyclopedia
Tench-class submarines were a type of submarine built for 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...

 (USN) between 1944 and 1951. They were an evolutionary improvement over the Gato
Gato class submarine
The United States Navy Gato class submarine formed the core of the submarine service that was largely responsible for the destruction of the Japanese merchant marine and a large portion of the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II...

 and Balao
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...

 classes, only about 35 to 40 tons larger, but more strongly built and with a slightly improved internal layout. Further improvements were made beginning with SS-435, which are sometimes referred to as Corsair class.

Initial plans called for 146 to be built, but 115 were cancelled in 1944 and 1945 when it became apparent that they would not be needed to defeat Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. The remaining 31 were commissioned between October 1944 (Tench) and February 1951 (Grenadier).

One Tench (ex-Cutlass
USS Cutlass (SS-478)
USS Cutlass , a Tench-class submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for the cutlassfish, a long, thin fish found widely along the coasts of the United States and in the West Indies. Her keel was laid down by the Portsmouth Navy Yard on 10 July 1944. She was launched on...

 was transferred from the USN to the Republic of China Navy
Republic of China Navy
The Republic of China Navy is the maritime branch of the Armed forces of the Republic of China . The ROC Navy's primary mission is to defend ROC territories and the sea lanes that surround Taiwan against a blockade, attack, or possible invasion by forces of the People's Republic of China...

 as Hai Shih. Two went to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 as the Gianfranco Gazzana-Priaroggia class. USS Argonaut
USS Argonaut (SS-475)
USS Argonaut was a operated by the United States Navy . Constructed at Portsmouth Navy Yard during the second half of 1944, Argonaut was commissioned into the USN in 1945 and operated during the final year of World War II, although her only contact with the Japanese was when she sank a junk in...

 (SS-475) was sold to the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...

 in 1968, renamed HMCS Rainbow, and decommissioned in 1974.

Some of the class were updated through the GUPPY (The Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program
Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program
The Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program was initiated by the United States Navy after World War II to improve the submerged speed, maneuverability, and endurance of its submarines....

). The difference is noticeable by the level foredeck and the rounded bow.

Museums

Three Tench Class submarines are on display for the general public. at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, PA., moored at Pier Three, Baltimore's Inner Harbor, (alongside the National Aquarium in Baltimore) in Maryland., on display at Rahmi M. Koç Museum, Golden Horn
Golden Horn
The Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of...

 in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

.
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