Jack Miller was at sea near Leyte aboard the Greyfish when they were notified of the attack which signaled the beginning of hostilities. They were ordered to remain in the area with three other submarines to menace Japanese shipping. Hopefully they could slow the southward move of the Rising Sun. They remained in the area until just before Christmas, harassing troop convoys and sinking a merchant ship. On December 17 their sister sub Kingfish was badly damaged and her crew scuttled her just outside the harbor. As the situation worsened everywhere the remaining three subs were ordered to pick up some political and military leaders and take them to Pearl. American surface shipping could no longer operate safely in the area, aircraft did not have enough range. The subs were the last way out. The Greyfish refueled and provisioned at Manila, then embarked the eighty seven passengers and headed for Pearl. Two other submarines were making the same trip but for security they were to travel alone. The trip was far from uneventful. They had planned to be at sea for less than two weeks with nearly a hundred and fifty people in a boat built to accommodate far less than half that number in Spartan conditions. First they were plagued by Japanese planes that forced them to run submerged for nearly sixteen hours every day, surfacing only at night to charge batteries and clear the air in the boat. During the eight hours on the surface they could cover nearly two hundred miles while the sixteen hours spent under the sea would only give them just under a hundred miles more and leave them with depleted batteries and with the increased company, air that was nearly poisonous. At this rate Pearl was twelve days away.

Five days out of Manila, one of the Greyfish’s four diesel engines failed. There were no spare parts to make repairs. Their advance was reduced to two hundred miles each day. Another blow came ten days later. With Pearl three days away, the Greyfish was diverted to San Diego. A submarine spotted a Japanese fleet headed east. Pearl might be attacked and even occupied at any time. The people on board couldn’t be risked. One of the submarines that left Manila with the Greyfish had not been heard from, it was assumed lost. The trip to San Diego took eight days on the two remaining diesels, a second one failed just after the diversion. With all of his problems, the captain was puzzled when six days out of San Diego the Greyfish received a priority message asking him to immediately provide a detailed list of the work and supplies needed to make the Greyfish ready for sea. Just sending the long radio message with the response was a significant risk.

Once east of Pearl the Greyfish could now remain on the surface but supplies were running out. They had gotten less than two thirds of the requested food, by now, this was nearly gone. Fresh water was in short supply. When they arrived in San Diego even with reduced rations there was less than enough to feed the company for another day. The last hundred miles was covered with two Diesels which kept stalling because the fuel in the bottom of the tanks was contaminated. The captain requested a tow but none was available. When they docked Jack and the one hundred forty nine others were just glad to be home.

Men and parts were waiting when they docked. Even before the passengers were disembarked workmen came aboard and the refit of the boat began. With the deplorable condition of the machinery a peacetime refit would have taken several weeks. The Greyfish was back at sea in three days. Some repairs were not considered urgent and were just not done. She headed to the west at best possible speed along with fourteen other subs.

World War II – a Novel Chapter One

World War II 2: Off Japan in 1946

World War II Four: The Army Air Corps Readies for War