COBIA

USS COBIA, SS-245

WISCONSIN MARITIME MUSEUM
MANITOWOC, WI

13 Ships Sank
***
Tons
***
6 War Patrols
***
4 Battle Stars
***
7 Pilots Rescued

   Presently, the COBIA finds herself berthed at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. There she is looked after by a dedicated crew of curatorial staff, docents, USNR Sailors and volunteers.
   During WW II she sank 13 Japanese vessels, in cluding 9 merchantmen and 4 men-o-war. She also rescued 7 downed pilots.
   Most significantly, she prevented 28 tanks and 600 troops of the 26th Imperial Japanese Army Tank Battalion from landing at Iwo Jima. By doing so she prevented the Japanese from more than doubling their armored strength on that island! Can you imagine what a different battle that would have been if the Japanese had 50 tanks instread of 22? And, an additional compliment of over 600 fresh infantry?

Three submarines of the Great Lakes Wolfpack are GATO class WW II Fleet boats. Together they represent about one percent of the United States Navy's submarine fleet from World War Two.
They are three prime examples of the most successful warships ever built. Comprising barely 1.6 percent of the navy's vessels afloat in WW II, US submarines sank around 55 percent of all the Japanese shipping destroyed in WW II! More than all the battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, destroyers, torpedo boats, and all the aircraft of all the services combined!
When properly utilized, submarines have traditionally compiled scores disproportionate to their size and numbers. But what makes the GATOS and their sisters the BALAO class boats special is that they formed the first submarine fleet to succeed in depriving an enemy use of the high seas!
Each one of the GATO class boats of the Great Lakes had a distinguished combat career, sinking an above average number of vessels, engaging in underwater and surface actions, and rescuing downed aviators. Any of the three, the COBIA, the SILVERSIDES, or the COD, could be the subject of a blockbuster film.

Not only is the COBIA a nationally registered historic place, she is a dedicated submariners memorial.She serves as the International Submariner's

Memorial, honoring the sacrifice of all those who served bravely in the most dangerous of all sea services.
The USS COBIA can be toured seven days a week. Her home, The Wisconsin Maritime Museum, is the largest and best museum of its type in the midwest. If you can only see one of the Great Lakes Wolfpack subs, the COBIA is the one to see!