[LukeFF]

The whole thing about the S boat's submerged speed is that by the time the US entered the war, most of the boats could only make 9-9.5 knots submerged, which was about the same as a fleet boat. Time was not kind to the S class. Frankly, sailors hated serving on these things. Almost every patrol reported noted that the living conditions were poor. If it wasn't the moldy mattresses from all the condensation inside the boat, it was the freezing cold temperatures endured on Alaskan patrols. If it wasn't that, it was the unbearably hot conditions in the South Pacific. If all that didn't get to you, you still had to worry about the batteries exploding due to (again) all that condensation.

All told, an S boat sailor's best day was the day he was transferred off the boat.