'You know about that, Admiral,' Harris said, trying to keep a calm voice. 'The shipyard lost the tip of a glove into the...'
'The refueling is not on goddamn schedule!'
'I'm not sure you are getting accurate information, Admiral, and...'
'Enough, Harris, I don't want to see your goddamn boat! You are relieved of command, and your next fitness report will reflect the reason for this action.'
As a result of the admiral's concluding sentence and events that followed, the distinguished career of Comdr. Thomas Harris was brought to an end by Adm. Hyman G. Rickover. There was no appeal, and no man in the Submarine Service would risk his own career by challenging the final decision of such an authority.
1 NOVEMBER 1969.
Dear Mr. Dunham:
I recall the mission of the USS [Viperfish], and I have checked into your record of service in the Navy.
Knowing what I do of the extremely demanding test you met on the [Viperfish], I have no hesitation in commending you to any school to which you apply, as meeting the highest tests of character and responsibility.
You are free to use this letter in your applications for medical school.
I hope and expect that you will go forward in your career in civil life with the same distinction you exhibited in the years you served your country.
Sincerely,
President Lyndon B. Johnson
Austin, Texas
5 MAY 1972. Warrant Officer Robbie Teague, Special Project photographer on board the USS Viperfish, was killed in an automobile accident on a Maryland State Highway. He was buried with honors at the Arlington National Cemetery, Fort Meyer Army Base, Arlington, Virginia.
30 APRIL 1975. After the United States Congress rejected President Gerald Ford's request for further supplemental aid to continue the Vietnam War, South Vietnam President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned and fled the country. As the remaining Americans were evacuated from the roof of the U.S. embassy in Saigon, acting President Duong Van Minh surrendered unconditionally to the North Vietnamese, ending the Vietnam War.
30 JUNE 1976. At Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California, the USS Viperfish was decommissioned following a brief ceremony at the pier alongside the submarine. Several men from her former patrols attended the emotional event and spoke eloquently of her past. Her Special Projects equipment and nuclear reactor core were removed; the large hole at the base of the vessel's hangar compartment was permanently sealed shut. She was finally delivered to the mothball fleet in Bremerton, Washington, after efforts to scuttle the submarine were abandoned.
On 1 September 1994, the hull of the empty submarine was cut up and the pieces melted down into steel ingots for distribution to recycling plants throughout the United States.
At regular five-year intervals, the men of the spy submarine Viperfish gather together to remember the days gone past and to pay tribute to their shipmates who have 'rested their oars' and sailed on to their eternal patrol.
Most of the information gathered for this story originated from sources that cannot be revealed. The highly classified nature of the Viperfish mission and the sensitivity of events relating to such U.S. submarine operations prevent discussion of additional specifics. All official requests for information through the Freedom of Information Act were denied, as were all appeals of such denials.
The following unclassified sources provided historical and technical information for this story.
Birtles, Philip, and Paul Beaver. Missile Systems. Runnymede, England: Ian Allan Ltd., 1985.
Blackman, Raymond V. B. Jane's Book of Fighting Ships. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966, 1967, 1968.
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Calvert, lames F. 'Up Through the Ice of the North Pole.' National Geographic 126 (July 1959): 1.
Clancy, Tom. Submarine. New York: Berkeley Publishing Group, 1993.
Cousteau, Jacques-Yves. The Ocean World of Jacques Cousteau. Volume 1: Oasis in Space. N.p.: Danbury Press, 1973.
Decommissioning Ceremony. Mare Island, Calif: Mare Island Naval Shipyard, 1976. Booklet.
Department of Defense. Soviet Military Power 1984. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1984.
Dornik, William, Roy Armstrong, Dan Simmons, and Phillip Thomas. 'Crew Reunion.' Private publication for 1991 reunion of [Viperfish] crew.
Friedman, Norman. U.S. Submarines since 1945: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 1994.
Gunston, Bill. Submarines in Color. New York: Arco Publishing Company, 1977.
National Geographic Society. World Ocean Floors, Pacific Ocean. Map. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, June 1992.
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Prokhorov, A. M. Great Soviet Encyclopedia. 3d ed. Vol. 5. New York: Macmillan, 1970.
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