Subchaser

by Edward P. Stafford

In a wartime navy of giant carriers and battleships, tiny wooden subchasers manned mostly by inexperienced reservists did not command much attention. Yet these 110-foot warships performed vital chores for the fleet everywhere there was action in World War II. They led landing craft right up to the assault beaches, protected larger ships from fire, fought off air attacks, swept for mines, laid down smoke screens, and patrolled the sea for killer submarines. One such doughty little ship, subchaser 692, in the subject of this book.

Genres: History, World War II, War

260 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1988

Reviews

[Phrodrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lieutenant Edward Stafford’s Subchaser, SC 492 was one of over 400 ships in what its sailors would call the Splinter Fleet. Splinter, because they were made of wood. These ships were just under 111 feet long and less than 100 tons. They were likely to be slower than a surfaced German Submarine, less heavily armed and were so small that the Navy did not give them names. Staying with generalities, the officers were few, two to three per ship very junior, Lieutenants and below and rarely experienced. The enlisted crew, about 24 could include, and in Staffords case did include at least 2 or 3 experienced, chiefs or senior petty officers such that some one on board could be expected to have more than classroom experience in the operations and maintenance of it equipment. By this time equipment could include new fangled gizmos, like Radar. Finicky at best and in regular need of such expertise as these few men could provide.

All this background is necessary to understand the pride Edward Stafford justifiably has in the wartime record of its wooded hull, and iron men crew. Subchaser is his wartime memoir of their actions from his arrival onboard in Florida to his turn over of command as he perused what became a long and honorable record as a Navy Officer, a Navy Aviator, and after retirement an author.


He arrival was a last-minute appointment based upon the apparent failure of the previous command to make of them a unified crew. At this point his total Navy experience just over a year and he had not yet completed the Subchaser training program. Having drawn his crew together, there is no “whipping’ men into shape in this kind of close quarter unit, his ship was assigned to various convoy patrol duties in the Caribbean and later ordered into the first of several involvements in allied landings from North Africa to Italy.

Speaking as a onetime destroyer man, it is difficult to imagine attempting to cross the Atlantic in this small of a boat. In my time, underway replenishment (Unrep) was a near science. It was not that in the 1940’s. Given the much shorter legs (cruising range ) of a his command, unrep would become a regular event, always demanding the nicest in ship driving skills and the reality that this routine activity was very hazardous to the crew. The general sea keeping profile of a 111 foot, low displacement craft will be repletely tested. The ships company routinely experienced weeks at a time absent dry cloths or the exhausted reality that a shift in your bunk may be a series of unannounced roll-outs to the deck as occasioned by the extreme movements caused by the weather.

SC 492 war service reads like a living example of that most accurate of descriptions of front-line life. Too many hours of boredom and followed by too many minutes of terror. Being a ship’s commander, it is part of the job to never allow routine to become so routine as to allow the ship to be mis handled or out of repair. Likewise, it is part of the job to down play the hazards and make little of income enemy rounds. SC 492 was present for a number of bombing raids, although rarely the definite target of an attacker. He craft was frequently tasked to assignments that exposed his command to enemy attack and just as often assigned to what might be considered as milk runs.
The result is that this is not a book about war as a heroic or glorious exercise. This command was mostly about the routine business of completing assignments, seeing to his crew and on rare occasions time away for haze grey and underway. Stafford’s subchaser may not have served with any particular distinction, but it was a reliable craft, command by an officer entrusted with duties that suggested his superiors knew he could be trusted for duties beyond that of ship’s commander.

Subchaser is recommend as a chance to read about the routine of sea duty in a small boy. Away from Admirals and strategic decisions, it is a study in applied leadership. The old quote was from John Paul Jones seeking a fast ship. Stafford never had a fast ship, but he had a good crew and between them and its wooden hull they survived being sent into harm’s way.

[Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very enjoyable book to read, giving a very personal and small school view of the war through the eyes of a junior officer commanding a tiny subchaser in WW2. There is no gut wrenching combat or hair raising stories of heroic actions here, yet the story told was never really boring or mundane in spite of the routine nature of the SC 692's missions.

The insights gained by seeing everyday life in this way are extremely helpful to me as it gives a sense of the struggles faced by the young inexperienced officers in performing their duties. These glorified cabin cruisers were hardly a weapon I'd have wanted to go to war in, and yet they performed so many critical escorting tasks vital to a Navy's success.

The book itself is not flashy either, being sparsely illustrated and provided a handful of photos. They may be few, but their impact on telling the story was large, especially illustrating the convoy duties. The epilogue was also a nice touch to inform the readers on how the crew made out and a little on the history of the SC 692 in French hands. I liked the writing style, and it made for a pleasurable read.

This a good book for those of you wanting to see what real Navy life is like, and have some desire to see how our Greatest Generation handled serving in WW2. Great story. 5 Stars.

[Rob Curran]

Another Gem from Stafford

A fascinating start to Stafford's two-ocean war odyssey, this well-written account of his first command will be appreciated by all readers of naval history. "Little Ship, Big War" and "The Big E" round out his wide-ranging experiences as a USNR officer in the Second World War, and are classics by any standard. Highly recommended.

[Paul J. Petersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Terrific exposure to life aboard a little ship

Real life experiences aboard a small ship during WWII. Not an epic tale, but exposure to the missions and life in close quarters. This is a good read if you want realism.

[Tanner J]

This is a great book! I laughed out loud and was nervous several times which isn’t easy to do with me so this book definitely deserves a good review.

[Iain · Rating 2 out of 5]

A solid historical account of an often overlooked branch of the Navy in WWII. Not a bad book per se, just not a terribly interesting story to be told. I stopped reading after 70 pages or so.

[Matt Paulus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book for World War II history buffs. It was an easy read it was a little slow in the middle.