USS S-22
USS S-22 was an S-18-class submarine, also referred to as an S-1-class or "Holland"-type, of the United States Navy, in commission from 1924 to 1942. Prior to World War II, she operated in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Pacific Ocean, and after the United States entered the war, she operated off Panama. She was transferred to the Royal Navy as P.554 from 1942 to 1944.
Design
The S-18-class had a length of overall, a beam of, and a mean draft of. They displaced on the surface and submerged. All S-class submarines had a crew of 4 officers and 34 enlisted men, when first commissioned. They had a diving depth of.For surface running, the S-18-class were powered by two NELSECO diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a Ridgway Dynamo & Engine Company electric motor. They could reach on the surface and underwater.
The boats were armed with four [American 21-inch torpedo|] torpedo tubes in the bow. They carried eight reloads, for a total of twelve torpedoes. The S-18-class submarines were also armed with a single /50 caliber deck gun.
Construction
S-22s keel was laid down on 6 January 1919, by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation's Fore River Shipyard, in Quincy, Massachusetts. She was launched on 15 July 1920, sponsored by Mrs. Nannie Bowman, and commissioned on 23 June 1924.Service history
1924–1942
In addition to duty off the Northeastern Coast of the United States, from New London, Connecticut, from 1924 through 1930, S-22 visited the Territory of Hawaii from 27 April to 25 May 1925. She operated in the Panama Canal Zone area, from February through April 1926, and visited Kingston, Jamaica, from 20 to 28 March 1927. She served again in the Panama Canal area, in the late winter and early spring of 1928, 1929, and 1930.Departing New London, on 5 January 1931, S-22 cruised via the Panama Canal, and California, to Hawaii, arriving at Pearl Harbor, on 25 April 1931. From then into 1938, S-22 operated in Hawaiian waters. Departing from Pearl Harbor, on 15 October 1938, S-22 returned to New London, on 11 December 1938, where she joined a test and evaluation division. Occasionally, she was employed in training United States Naval Academy midshipmen, at Annapolis, Maryland, and assisting the diving school at Piney Point, Maryland.
After duty at Key West, Florida, from December 1940 to May 1941, and overhaul during the latter half of 1941, S-22 served in the Panama Canal area, from January to March 1942. She returned to New London, on 17 April 1942.