In May 1944, Lt. Comdr. Eugene Fluckey, seeking his own submarine command, promised the Pacific Fleet sub commander at Midway Island that he would sink five Japanese ships on his first patrol. It was a bold gamble; the ship Fluckey had been eyeing, the USS
Barb, had sunk only a single ship in six patrols under its previous commander. But with Fluckey placed in temporary command, the
Barb got five freighters and two trawlers with the
Barb’s guns its next time out—and Fluckey got the
Barb.
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