Here is the Trivia Diver Question asked at the August Michigan Underwater (MUD) club meeting.

Question: Other than the German Mine-layer, the UC-97, what other submarine has visited Benton Harbor/ Saint Joseph MI as part of a War Bond drive?

If you were at last month’s club meeting  or read the newsletter you know.

Answer:

It was the Japanese mini sub HA-19 used in the Dec 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. It was paraded thru Benton Harbor to help sell War Bond’s on July 23,1943.

The Japanese Navy’s midget submarines were ~78-feet long, weighted 46-ton submerged, had a crew of two and was armed with two 450-millimeter Type 97 torpedoes with 800 pound warheads. They could sprint up to 26 miles per hour submerged, but could not dive deeper than 300 feet. More importantly, the Type As had no engine and ran purely on batteries. This gave the diminutive vessels a maximum endurance of 12 hours at speeds of 6 miles per hour. The subs often ran out of power much faster in real combat. A larger submarine mothership had to bring the Type As close to the target area. With the battery limitations it was unlikely the midget sub could make it back to safety. Each one had a 300-pound scuttling charge.

The submarines boat captain was the first Japanese prisoner of war.