USS Growler (SSG-577)

USS Growler (SSG-577) was a Grayback-class submarine of the United States Navy and the second vessel named for the growler fish. Commissioned in 1958, she was one of the first purpose-built guided-missile submarines, designed to carry and launch the Regulus missile as a strategic deterrent during the Cold War. Her primary mission was to conduct covert patrols within striking range of the Soviet Union, providing a mobile, seaborne nuclear capability alongside her sister ship USS Grayback (SSG-574) and the earlier USS Tunny (SSG-282). After a brief operational career, she was decommissioned in 1964 and is now preserved as a museum ship in New York City.

Design and development

The design of *Growler* originated from the need for a dedicated platform to carry the large Regulus I and subsequent Regulus II cruise missiles, a key component of the national deterrent strategy before the advent of the Polaris missile. Based on a modified Tang-class submarine hull, the Grayback-class submarine featured a significantly enlarged sail structure to house two missile hangars and a forward-facing launch ramp. Her construction was overseen by the Bureau of Ships at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. The propulsion plant combined three Fairbanks-Morse diesel engines with General Electric electric motors, providing the necessary surface speed for missile launch positioning. Her armament suite was formidable, comprising four Regulus missiles and eight torpedo tubes, making her one of the most heavily armed conventional submarines of her era.

Operational history

Following her commissioning ceremony, which was attended by senior officials from the Department of the Navy, *Growler* joined the Pacific Fleet. Her service was centered on a series of strategic deterrent patrols, operating from forward bases like Apra Harbor in Guam and Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. These patrols, conducted under the operational control of Submarine Force Pacific, were integral to the Cold War doctrine of containment, posing a constant nuclear threat to potential adversaries in the Western Pacific. The submarine and her crew, led by a succession of Naval Academy-trained commanding officers, participated in numerous exercises with elements of the Seventh Fleet to refine tactics for ASW evasion and missile launch procedures. However, the rapid deployment of the far more capable and survivable Polaris-armed George Washington-class submarine rendered the Regulus system obsolete, curtailing *Growler*'s frontline usefulness.

Fate and legacy

With the Regulus program officially terminated, *Growler* was decommissioned at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, California, and later struck from the Naval Vessel Register. For over two decades, she languished in the Reserve Fleet in Bremerton, Washington. Her fate was secured in 1988 when the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, located on the Hudson River in Manhattan, acquired her for preservation. After an extensive restoration, she was opened to the public alongside the famed aircraft carrier USS *Intrepid* and the supersonic airliner Concorde. As one of only two preserved Regulus missile submarines—the other being USS Cusk (SSG-348)—*Growler* serves as a unique historical artifact, illustrating a pivotal transitional phase in nuclear strategy and submarine technology between the diesel and ballistic missile submarine eras.

See also

* List of submarines of the United States Navy * History of the United States Navy * Nuclear weapons of the United States * Strategic Air Command * Silent Service

Category:Grayback-class submarines Category:Cold War submarines of the United States Category:Museum ships in New York City Category:Ships built at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Category:1958 ships