Navy Lt. Cmdr. Lawson “Red” Ramage was a bold submariner, initially known for attacking a light carrier in his first submarine command, but he would really become famous in 1943 when he led an assault on a Japanese fleet and sank or heavily damaged five ships during a submarine battle that lasted only 40 minutes.
The event, known as “Ramage’s Rampage,” resulted in him receiving the Medal of Honor.
“Red” Ramage and the USS Trout
Red, a nickname that referenced the officer’s bright red hair, began his career as a young officer on the staff of Commander, Submarines, Pacific at Pearl Harbor. After the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor, he went to war with the rest of the Navy, and he quickly secured an assignment to a submarine as a navigator.
In that first assignment of the war, then-Lt. Ramage earned the Silver Star for his efficiency, skill, and valor as the navigator of USS Grenadier. The boat destroyed 24,000 tons of shipping on the tour. Based on his performance aboard the Grenadier, Ramage received his first submarine command a few months later. On his four tours as the commander of the USS Trout, Ramage received a Navy Cross for his leadership under fire while destroying Japanese ships.
Ramage and his crew scored the first hit of a submarine against a Japanese carrier off the island of Truk in September 1942, though the carrier survived. Trout and its crew also served in combat at Midway, the Solomons, the South China Sea, and more, under Ramage’s command.
With his stellar performance as a leader under fire, it’s likely no surprise that the Navy expected him to succeed in his next command.
USS Parche
The Balao-class submarine was the most common American submarine of the war, with 120 commissioned. It had a hull made from stronger steel than its predecessors, allowing it to safely dive to 400 feet, a 100-foot improvement over the Gato-class. The boat had six forward-facing torpedo tubes and four aft, along with a crew of 10 officers and 70-71 enlisted men.
The USS Parche was a Balao-class submarine, and Ramage took first command of the boat. On the first tour, Parche worked with USS Bang and USS Tinosa in a three-ship pack and fought a successful tour, sinking seven ships. Ramage received the Navy Cross for his efforts.
On the second tour of the USS Parche, Ramage and his crew made history. In a three-ship wolf pack with USS Hammerhead and USS Steelhead, they initially found little success. From June 17, 1944, to July 29, they found almost no targets and only the Hammerhead fired any torpedoes. Ramage asked permission to extend the tour. It immediately paid off.
The epic submarine battle
On the night of July 30, Hammerhead spotted a Japanese convoy moving in the South China Sea. It radioed Parch and Steelhead for help, and the subs found a tempting but well-defended target. Six escort ships were guarding 17 troop transports, tankers, and merchant ships.
After the three subs maneuvered for attack positions on the convoy, Steelhead made the first attack run, firing 10 torpedoes.
Ramage turned toward the convoy to line up his first shots just as the convoy, coincidentally, turned toward him. Suddenly, Parche was in danger of an accidental ramming. The typical reaction would be to dive for safety, but Ramage gave the order to navigate into the convoy instead.
Steelhead (SS-280) photographed circa 1945, after she had been refitted with a 5″/25 deck gun. (U.S. Navy) Steelhead (SS-280) photographed circa 1945, after she had been refitted with a 5″/25 deck gun.
The Parche found itself directly between the two rows of merchant ships and had to take constant evasive maneuvers to avoid crashing into a larger ship, but it also began firing its torpedoes.
Its first weapons release was at 3:56 a.m. on July 31. An enemy avoided the first two torpedoes Ramage fired, but a third torpedo, a few minutes later, caused an explosion on an unknown vessel. Japanese crews fired flares and machine guns to try to kill the submarine crew.
Ramage fired four more bow torpedoes at an oil tanker, quickly dooming it with four hits. Three more torpedoes found two hits against another tanker, the Ogura Maru, damaging it. The torpedo crews frantically reloaded, and the next two torpedoes hit the Dakar Maru, a transport, at 4:16.
At 4:21, Ramage finished off the Ogura Maru with three more torpedoes.
Then, a gunboat nearly rammed the sub before Parche took evasive maneuvers, missing destruction by 50 yards. As Ramage emerged from these maneuvers, it found itself going head-to-head with a troop transport. He ordered his men to fire the three loaded torpedoes facing forward before he attempted to turn.
Two of those torpedoes hit and nearly stopped the oncoming ship in its tracks. As the sub swerved and sailed away, Parche fired two torpedoes from the stern. Those final shots, at 4:33, sank the transport with more than 2,400 enemy troops onboard.
In less than 40 minutes, Japan lost five ships and thousands of soldiers. The Steelhead shared credit for the success, and the Navy officially credited Steelhead with two kills, Parche with two, and the Hammerhead with the fifth ship. Ramage later received the Medal of Honor for his part in the battle, becoming the first living submariner to receive the award. His crew received a Presidential Unit Citation.
