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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND



Submarine Battle Flags of World War II



Battle flags in World War II kept an unofficial record
of the number of ships a submarine sank. Warships were represented
by the rising sun version of the Japanese flag, while the merchant
vessels were represented by the "meatball" flags. The
submarine's logo was also featured on the flag. The difficulties
in assessing actual damage from attacks on the enemy led many
submarines to overestimate their successes. After the war, an
Allied naval review board discovered inaccuracies as great as
thirty percent during an examination of Japanese losses credited
to American submarines.








Battle flag of USS Flying Fish



During World War II, USS Flying Fish patrolled the
waters off of Midway, Taiwan, Iwo Jima and the Marianas Islands.
While under the command of Commander Robert D. Risser, and Lieutenant
Commander Julian T. Burke, Flying Fish received 12 battle
stars and was credited with damaging a Japanese battleship. She
was also one of the first boats to be outfitted with mine detection
gear for use in the Sea of Japan. The flag shows that Flying
Fish had sunk six warships and 13 merchant vessels in its
12 war patrols by late May 1945.








Battle Flag of USS Balao



From 25 July 1943 to 27 August 1945, USS Balao served
in the Pacific Ocean. Her flag shows that Balao destroyed
one warship and nine merchant vessels during her ten patrol. Postwar
assessments, however, reduced the claim to seven Japanese ships
totaling 36,500 tons plus an additional 1,100 tons of enemy small
craft. For her services in World War II, Balao received
nine battle stars. Balao's flag was designed by a Disney
artist at the request of Motor Machinist's Mate 3rd class William
G. Hartley in 1945.








Battle Flag of USS Spot



Commissioned on 19 May 1944, USS Spot registered
the destruction of 16 merchant vessels on her three war patrols
in the Pacific. Much more elaborate than the other flags, Spot's
flag not only records the number of kills, but also lists the
ships' names. As seen on the flag, Spot successfully shelled
the radio station at Kokuzan and disabled the passenger freighter
Foochow. She received four battle stars for her services
in World War II.








Battle Flag of USS Gurnard



Launched 1 June 1942, Gurnard first patrolled the
Bay of Biscay for German blockade runners. By 12 June 1943, she
was transferred to the Pacific Ocean. There, Gurnard received
six battle stars and the Navy Unit Commendation, while her captain,
Lieutenant Commander C.H. Andrews, earned the Navy Cross. Gurnard
had one of the highest single patrol tonnage scores during World
War II -- 29,700 tons. Her battle flag shows that she destroyed
12 combatant and merchant vessels. The flag also records the total
tonnage of the ships sunk. However, postwar study proved that
Gurnard succeeded in sinking only 10 ships -- 57,866 tons.
26
July 2000