A submarine commander’s sons succeeded in locating the watery grave of their father and his crew.
Lt. Cmdr. Mannert L. Abele of USS Grunion with his wife, Catherine, and, from left, sons Brad, 9, John, 5, and Bruce, 12. Courtesy Bruce Abele
Nearly three years after USS Grunion (SS 216) was found off the Aleutian Islands, Bruce Abele continues to puzzle over what sank his father’s submarine in the early days of World War II.
In 2006, Abele and his two younger brothers, John and Brad, made headlines when an ocean-surveying firm they hired to scan the floor of the Bering Sea sent them an image of an oblong object with features resembling a conning tower and periscope mast.The next summer, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) confirmed the object as the wreckage of a U.S. submarine. At last, the Abele boys had solved the decades-old mystery of what happened to their father, Lt. Cmdr. Mannert Abele and his 69-man crew.
On Eternal Patrol
Since 2005, five U.S. submarines lost during World War II have been found, starting with USS Lagarto.
American Legion Videos
No comments:
Post a Comment