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Originally Posted by LukeFF
Dave,
In the "Through the Looking Glass" section of the website, there is a picture of what is said to be the S-42 fitted with what is obviously the slotted antenna of SJ-1 radar. Flanking it are what appears to be to S-18 subs, also with the SJ-1 radar antenna. Do you or your cohorts know when that pic was taken? I've pored through the patrol reports for the S boats and can't find any mention of SJ-1.
The pic in question is this one:
http://www.pigboats.com/subs/s42conn.jpg |
You have stumbled across a rare photo! I missed this one myself! The advanced age and limited capabilities of the S-boats relegated them mostly to training and secondary patrol duties after 1943. Because of this, they received a much lower priority for receiving advanced gear like the SJ-1. Most of the S-boats didn't receive any radar at all until 1943! This is what leads me to believe that this photo was taken later in the war, probably late '44 or early '45. By that time, enough of the SJ-1 sets would have been available to warrant their installation in the S-boats. S-42 received her last major overhaul in Brisbane in October, 1944 and this is when this radar set may have been installed, but it is possible that she got it as early as March '44 in Pearl Harbor.