USS S-25

USS S-25 in 1923 or 1924, possibly off New London, Connecticut.
History
United States
Name	USS S-25
Builder	Fore River Shipyard, Quincy, Massachusetts
Laid down	26 October 1918
Launched	29 May 1922
Sponsored by	Mrs. Vera Hobart Schlabach
Commissioned	9 July 1923
Decommissioned	4 November 1941
Fate	Transferred to United Kingdom 4 November 1941
Royal NavyUnited Kingdom
Name	HMS P.551
Acquired	4 November 1941
Fate	Loaned to Polish government-in-exile 4 November 1941
Poland
Name	ORP Jastrząb
Namesake	Hawk
Acquired	4 November 1941
Commissioned	4 November 1941
Fate	Sunk 2 May 1942
General characteristics
Class and type	S-class submarine
Displacement	854 long tons (868 t) surfaced 1,062 long tons (1,079 t) submerged
Length	219 ft 3 in (66.83 m)
Beam	20 ft 8 in (6.30 m)
Draft	15 ft 11 in (4.85 m)
Speed	14.5 knots (16.7 mph; 26.9 km/h) surfaced 11 knots (13 mph; 20 km/h) submerged
Complement	42 officers and men
Armament	1 × 4 in (102 mm)/50 deck gun 4 × 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

USS S-25 (SS-130) was a first-group (S-1 or "Holland") S-class submarine of the United States Navy.

Construction and commissioning

S-25 was laid down on 26 October 1918 by the Fore River Shipbuilding Corporation in Quincy, Massachusetts. She was launched on 29 May 1922. sponsored by Mrs. Vera Hobart Schlabach, wife of Ross P. Schlabach, USN, and commissioned on 9 July 1923.

Service history

U.S. Navy

Operating New London, Connecticut, in 1923, S-25 participated in winter maneuvers in the Caribbean Sea and the Panama Canal Zone area from January to April 1924. Then transferred to the United States West Coast, she operated primarily in the waters off Southern California until 1931. Fleet Problems and division exercises during that period took her back to the Panama Canal area from March to May 1927, to Hawaii in 1927 and 1928, to the Panama Canal area again in February 1929, and to Hawaii again in 1930.

Transferred again, S-25 departed San Diego, California, on 15 April 1931 and arrived at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on 25 April 1931. She operated in Hawaiian waters until 1939.

S-25 cleared Pearl Harbor to return to the United States East Coast on 16 June 1939 and arrived at New London on 25 August 1939. Voyage repairs followed, and in February 1940 she was assigned to a test and evaluation division at New London. In December 1940 she was detached and ordered to Key West, Florida, where she provided training services until May 1941. She then returned to New London to prepare for transfer to the United Kingdom under the terms of the Lend-Lease agreement. She was decommissioned on 4 November 1941.

Royal Navy

On the day of her decommissioning, S-25 was transferred to the United Kingdom, which renamed her HMS P.551. Later the same day, however, the Royal Navy loaned her to the Polish Navy.

Polish Navy

Main article: ORP Jastrząb

Polish Navy Lieutenant Commander Bolesław Romanowski accepted P.551 on behalf of the Polish government-in-exile. The Polish Navy commissioned her immediately as ORP Jastrząb for World War II service.

While traveling in an Allied convoy near Norway, Jastrzab strayed some 100 nautical miles (190 km; 120 mi) off her proper course, and on 2 May 1942 was mistakenly sunk by friendly fire by the British destroyer HMS St Albans (ex-USS Thomas (DD-182)) and minesweeper HMS Seagull.

References

 This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.