USS SQUALUS Commemorative

U.S. Navy Helium Helmet Page

Last revised April 15, 2010

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Progress Updates        About USS Squalus        Salvage Diving Operations

HDS Limited Edition DESCO U.S. Navy Mark V Helium Helmets

DESCO has been commissioned by the Historical Diving Society USA to produce 26 U.S. Navy Mark V Helium Helmets to commemorate the successful salvage of the USS Squalus and honor the 26 souls lost in the vessel.

This salvage operation was the first practical use of Helium Oxygen diving, and was the culmination of years of research by the US Navy and civilian experimenters. The 26 helmets also commemorate the 24 crewmen and 2 civilians who were lost when USS Squalus sank during a training dive May 23, 1939.

These helmets are the third commemorative series produced for the HDS. Each helmet in the issue will bear a special USS Squalus Commemoration tag, and will be numbered 01-26 to 26-26. The tag will also bear the dates 9/13/39 - 9/13/09. The USS Squalus was successfully raised on September 13, 1939, and the recorded date of manufacture for the 26 Helium helmets will be September 13, 2009, the 70th anniversary. The production run will be offered first to HDS members who were purchasers of previous commemorative helmets issued by HDS. Any helmets not claimed by the previous commemorative helmet purchasers will be offered to general HDS members.

Sample tag

Numbering will actually read 01/26.

Photos by Torgny & Co.  Jewelers Thousand Oaks CA.

Helmet Delivery Schedule

Original Plan:

The 26 USS Squalus HEO2 helmets will be constructed to a point where with a little additional work (clean up & media blasting) they will be ready for plating. This will be the "stop point". In the spring 2009 the helmets will be sent two or three at a time to the platers every week or so. This spacing will allow us to control the pace of final assembly so we can have them ready for delivery on the Anniversary date. The intent is to have all 26 helmets finished and together for a "family photo" opportunity. The helmets would then be shipped to the owners.

New Plan:

DESCO and HDS have decided not to wait until September to deliver the USS Squalus helmets. The original plan was to hold all 26 helmets for a group photo. Two helmets per week will be sent for plating and then assembled. Those purchasers who expressed a desire to receive their helmets immediately have had their helmets scheduled accordingly. If any USS Squalus Commemorative Helium Helmet purchaser wishes to know the status of their helmet or request early delivery they should contact us.

Progress Updates  As of 04/15/10

04/15/10 Happy Tax Day.   Yesterday the last USS Squalus Helium helmet was taken from the display room and polished up, boxed up and readied for shipment to a new home. It served well as a representative of the USS Squalus helmet edition in our display room. Last month we had a visit from some U.S. Navy Divers from Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois. They were very impressed and also happy never to have to work in one. 

Number 00 is being worked on to fill the space in the display room. The pedestal is temporarily occupied by the Kirby Gas Hat, a fitting place holder.

12/23/09 The last of the 26 USS Squalus helmets have been assembled. Number nine was completed yesterday and currently resides in our display room. It will remain there until it is called for, or 00 is finished. The economic slump played merry havoc with delivery of these helmets. That was what prompted us to change the delivery plan last spring. It is ironic that when the project started the economy was booming and raw material prices skyrocketed. At the end the economy tanked and made selling all 26 helmets difficult. Our crew will be happy not to see a helium canister for awhile. Business is not as good as we would like but there is work in the shop to keep us busy. To all those who purchased one of the 26 thank you for your business and we hope you will enjoy your helmet for many years.  We will post photos of 00 when it is completed.

12/03/09 We have started assembly on number nine. With the downturn in the economy delivery of a few helmets was deferred.  Other work pushed back finishing this 

last helmet. The final phase of this project will be construction of the proto helmet 00/26 which will become part of DESCO's collection. As yet the two unsold helmets remain unsold. The helmet on ebay (26/26) did not draw a bid above the reserve so it didn't sell.

11/17/09 As of Nov. 9th we placed two unsold helmets on our In Stock Page. Number 26 is currently up for sale on ebay by the owner.

10/08/09 We're down to the last of the 26 helmets for assembly. 09/26 is on the shelf patiently awaiting it's turn. Next to it are the parts for the prototype 00/26.

09/01/09 We're just 13 days from the anniversary date and we have three helmets to go. Helmets 19 & 23 have been plated and are back on the shelf awaiting final assembly. They were sidelined by Jim filling Mark V orders and Christian gearing up to produce a heritage sporting goods product from the 1950's. For about 10 years DESCO was involved in making water sports equipment. We manufactured a full line of water skis, and aquaplanes. Other items included swim masks, ear plugs, search boards, and other items. While cleaning up the basement Christian came across some old rubber molds. One of the molds is for the heel & toe pieces for the skis. We had a couple of pairs of skis on display so we reverse engineered the bindings. From asking around water ski teams favor the old wood type skis and there is a market for them.

When Torgny & Co. produced the Silver commemorative tags for the helmets they sent us a sample tag numbered 00/26. Ric has decided to build a helmet for the prototype tag to be placed in DESCO's display area. The original 26 helmets were dedicated to those souls who were lost on the Squalus. We're thinking 00 should be dedicated to the divers who braved the cold, pressure, and the unknown to salvage the USS Squalus and return her to her rightful place in America's fleet.

   The last three helmets.

   Jim working on Mark Vs.

07/28/09 We are seeing light at the end of the tunnel. The last two helmets (9 & 23) waiting for plating are on the shelf. Two other helmets are in the assembly process (20 & 21). All the helmets will be completed by the anniversary date.

05/20/09 A milestone has been reached today. The last of the soldering is being done on the last helmet. Jared is soldering in the large return duct inside the bonnet. He also has to install the transceiver studs and wire tabs. Reviewing the history of this project we find it has been going on for almost 2 1/2 years. The initial conversations with Leslie Leaney at HDS took place in October of 2006. The first production began in April of 2007.

The storage racks are emptying out as the helmets are assembled and boxed for shipment. Six helmets are boxed and ready to ship out. The holding racks for the work benches are also becoming empty as the project winds down. Christian and Jim are finishing up numbers 24 and 25 for their owners. We still have one unsold helmet available.

As of today May 20th: Helmet #1 is in the possession of HDS and is doing the show circuit. It will be raffled off. Helmets# 3,5,6,8,10,11,15, and 17 have been shipped to their owners. Helmets #4,7,13,14,18, and 19 are boxed and in the shipping department. Helmets #2,9,12,16,20,21,and 22 are in the storage racks waiting being sent to the platers. Helmets # 24 and 25 are in final assembly and will be boxed up by the end of the week. Helmet #26 is being finished as this is being written so the physical manufacture of the 26 helmets will end today. From here on it is all assembly work. The progression of completion is not sequential as purchasers who wanted their helmets right away were moved up in the schedule.

05/12/09 Assembly and shipment of the helmets is moving forward. As of today eight helmets have been shipped to their owners, four are boxed and ready to go, and two more are in final assembly. If purchasers wish to know when their helmets will be available contact us. The storage rack and the racks by the workbenches we use for in process helmets are becoming empty.

We had a request for photos of a helmet with the recirculator system installed. Helmet number 18 of 26 volunteered for the assignment. The assembly consists of the Air Control Valve and corresponding 3 foot 1/2" hose (whip) running to the main air inlet, and the Helium Adapter and corresponding 3 foot 5/16" hose (whip) running to the injector assembly. The Helium Adapter has a valve to regulate the circulation of air through the canister. The person who requested the photos also asked that the communications plug be included.

04/28/09 Due to a dispute with the hosting company the USS Squalus Helium Helmet website has been closed down. Future progress updates will be posted here on this website.

04/10/09 Work continues on the USS Squalus helmets. Five helmets have shipped out. The HDS helmet (01/26) has been doing personal appearances. Current economic conditions have made turnaround at the platers very fast. Our other suppliers are also happy to get right on our stuff as we drop it off. Except for some small parts like the high pressure nozzles and jets all the parts for the 26 are done and in stock. Not being under time pressure allows us to fuss a bit more with each helmet.

Our orders are off some too but we are managing to keep busy. Orders for Mark V helmets have slowed some but we still have to replenish part inventories depleted by the Squalus helmets.  The slack time also lets us build up the supply of in stock products. Diving contractors have been sending in their air hats for annual servicing and inspection in anticipation of a reasonably good diving season. New Air Hat sales are slower than the yearly norm (as expected) but are moving well enough to require construction to continue with only a minor slow down in rate. 

03/12/09 We have begun plating and assembling helmets. The plan was to hold all 26 for a "family" photo opportunity but it was decided in the current economy to deliver the helmets as they are completed. If any purchaser would like to check the status of his/her helmet contact us. There is some flexibility in the schedule so we can work on particular helmets for specific delivery times.

Helmets returning from the platers. They are moved in boxes for safety. All threaded protrusions on the top (except the toggle bolt) are capped to prevent damage.

A helmet being assembled while a second one is on the shelf awaiting it's turn. The last three Squalus Helium helmets are going through the final part installations.

01/22/09 The last soldered parts are going on #24, #25, and #26. Normal production on other helmets and products continues as we fit the Squalus helmet manufacturing in. #26 doesn't have its breastplate yet and that is the next order of business.

Pictured are all 26 helmets as they were 1/16/09. #24, #25, and #26 are in the foreground and #1 is just behind on the center shelf. #26 is the top sitting on the stand in front. The breastplate still needs to be made.

12/18/08 Helmet number 22 has made it to the rack. Helmet number 26 is started. While construction continues on the Squalus helmets other work also needs attention.

The rack is filling up. Christian and Jim lift #22 onto the top shelf. It can be tricky threading a bonnet and breastplate together without a gasket installed, especially while standing on a ladder. Don't try this at home.

Other jobs need attention and orders filled. Projects include lightweight shoes, Air Hats, old helmet repairs, and a new Mark V.

11/03/08 As we are coming down to the end of the basic construction of the helmets it is time to turn our attention to all of the small parts. Each helmet has a box of parts associated with it. All the necessary metal parts for finishing the helmets are in the boxes. These boxes will be taken down to the buffing room and finishing will be started.

The boxes are inventoried to get a part count.  Front doors are sanded in a batch. Construction continues.

10/23/08 A couple of the canister castings have small pin holes which are leaking. The holes are Silver Soldered closed to seal them. On older Helium helmets significant patching is not uncommon. We have been much more fussy in accepting castings (to the dismay of the foundry) and have had little of this type of repair to do. The repairs will be noticeable on canisters after they begin to patina as the repair spots will discolor a few shades differently. On helmets meant for use this is of little consideration but in the case of collector helmets we do our best to reduce flaws and repairs.

 Jared and Christian Silver Solder a pin hole closed on a canister. The size of the casting leeches heat away from the work area so two torches are used.

10/22/08 We have received the new canister castings. Our metal finishing subcontractor was instructed to only sand them. At this point we are plugging the openings and pressure testing each casting. Once they pass this first test the nuts, collars, and plug are soldered on. the canisters then receive a second pressure test to determine if the heating opened any unseen flaws. The next step will be to buff and polish the canisters and then a final pressure test. Progress continues on the bonnets and breastplates. As Jim and Christian attach parts Jared solders them up.

Canisters are now only sanded coming from the subcontractor to allow us to deal with bad castings before too much labor is invested.

Jared cleans up a breastplate after soldering in the studs. the next thing to go on is the wire bead around the perimeter of the bottom strap.

Washing the part between operations prevents excessive corrosion from the soldering flux.

10/6/08 Over the last month steady progress has been made. We now have 14 helmets done to the stop point. The foundry has sent more ring set castings to the machine shop, and canisters to the metal finishers. The foundry has made the canister walls thicker to address the problems we encountered in the last batch. All 26 helmet shells are cut and awaiting assembly. Currently there are eight helmets waiting to be fitted with canisters. Once the new canisters arrive work on these helmets can resume. The three remaining top shells won't be worked on until the new ring sets arrive. Last week we received two sheets of Copper for making the ductwork inside the helmets.

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Fourteen helmets racked at the stop point.

Six helmets waiting on canisters. The last three helmet shells are on the top shelf.

Two helmets in the soldering area.

A note on why we are waiting on the canisters to mount the elbows and finish the tops. When we did a single helium helmet the necks on the canister were filed by hand to level them. This allowed just enough variance in the the angles where the canister might not fit very well on another helmet (limited interchangeability). With 26 canisters to fit we decided to take the time to make a fixture for the milling machine to hold the canisters. These canister necks are milled flat and to the exact angles specified on the drawings. The collars and nuts are soldered on using a fixture for level and spacing. Even hand filed canisters should be interchangeable because the collars are soldered using this fixture, but this was not always the case. To eliminate as much of the variances as possible the canister us used to align the elbows attached to the helmet. We can also assure proper clearance between the bottom of the canister and the back of the breastplate. We have tried interchanging canisters on the helmets at the stop point and they have all worked well. We even had a old Helium helmet in for repair and the new canisters fit it, so we seem to be doing the machining right on the money. Each helmet and canister has been marked and we will still keep each canister with the helmet it was mated to. These canisters are heavy, bulky, and a challenge to handle. We do not want the customers to have any trouble attaching them to the helmets.

09/03/08 Today we finished machining the front window retaining rings for 21 front doors.

Last week we had to return a half dozen canisters to the foundry to be remade. They had significant flaws which did not appear until the canisters were sanded and polished. The sanding and polishing is subcontracted to a local metal finishing firm due to the amount of labor involved. The subcontractor did not know what to look for in the way of defects, but that has now been addressed. Most times porosity or other flaws are not visible until the casting is sanded, and sometimes not until buffing is done. The subcontractor has been instructed to stop work immediately on questionable castings so we can inspect them.

Porosity is the main problem with castings like these. Very small holes can form in the casting. Another problem is when the core shifts in the mold and the wall thickness is reduced in one area. These are things we look for when receive a raw canister casting here. Using a subcontractor for finishing the canister castings is a double edged sword. The labor involved does not interfere with our ability to serve all of our customers, but we do not see the finished parts until they are done.  The other downside to subcontracting then having to remake the canisters is DESCO has to absorb the cost of sanding and polishing done by the subcontractor. The foundry replaces the bad castings but does not reimburse for the additional labor. The price of the helmet is based on time and material put into the helmet so there is no allocation for recouping the wasted labor. The bad canisters are melted down and recast. With the demand for raw materials drive up metal costs we have been seeing large surcharges on brass from the foundry. Reusing the bad castings eliminates the surcharge as the Brass is already paid for. The surcharges are a serious problem as the foundry has maintained the original price for the parts but the metal surcharge can sometimes be greater than the part price. We believe the quality control problems with the canisters is a result of the number of pieces being made. The last time canisters were produced in numbers was in late 1970 - early 1971 with about 20 Helium Helmets produced in a row. From old helium helmets we have seen porosity problems are not new. When the problem is just a few small holes or one or two larger hole they are drilled out and Silver soldered. We have seen old canisters with significant patch work done on them. Even a canister that looks perfect can leak when under pressure.  Each canister is pressure tested to locate flaws and then appropriate repairs are made.

8/27/08 The breastplate tags have arrived from Torgny & Co.. We installed the tag on helmet 01/26 which has been on display in our offices. It took some Brasso and elbow grease to get the helmet ready for pictures which will appear in the HDS magazine.

 The manufacturer's tag in the photos is not permanently mounted yet as these helmets have not received serial numbers. The serial numbers will be assigned and stamped in as we get near the completion date, so as to keep them in the proper order with our Mark V helmet production. All helmets will bear the manufacturing date of 09/13/09 which is the 70th anniversary of the successful recovery. The date of manufacture is also stamped on the welding lens bracket.  Each brail will be stamped with the sequence number of the helmet (01 - 26).

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8/7/08 We have been making slow but steady progress on the Squalus helmets. Helmets 14 through 20 are in various stages of construction. Other projects have been drawing our attention away. The arcing issue with the switch on the lathe returned and the electrician replaced the switch with a better (read more expensive) one. Sales of other helmets take time and parts from this project.

Helium helmets 14 -20 on shelves Mark Vs 411 &                   Breastplates for Mark Vs 411 & 412                            Finished orders waiting for shipping

412 on the top left.

6/11/08 Progress has slowed somewhat on building the helmets. Other projects are drawing our attention. Several helmets are waiting in the soldering area for their turn in front of the torch. Sales of other products have been steady and so draw manpower and material away from this project. 

The storage racks are set up and we are putting the completed sub-assemblies on them. We have received the first batch of shells from our new supplier. They are using hydro forming to shape the top of the shell, then shaping the taper on our old wood mandrel. The finish we are seeing is superior to that which we were getting from our previous supplier. This means we have to do less in house finishing of the shell.

Last week we also received more door and door base castings from the foundry. We placed a large order for Brass stock and 32 blanks of Copper for breastplates with our metal supplier. The 3 foot bar of 3" Hex we use for the canister nuts, and the 2 1/2" round for the canister sleeves has arrived. The Copper blanks are on the way. The supplier shears full sheets of Copper into a standard sized blanks we can use for Mark V, Commercial, or Lightweight breastplates.

05/14/08: The lathe was repaired the day after the switch melted down. Other jobs conspired to delay the start of the discharge nozzles. Christian & Jim ran out of Communication elbows so those were bumped to the head of the line. Meanwhile we received a couple of helmets for repair, and some equipment & parts orders. Servicing customers take priority so other part machining for the Helium helmets got back burnered. The revised Silver tag proof has come in from Torgny & Co.

As of today we have 8 Helium helmets at the stop point, and 5 under construction. Additional parts are on order and should arrive within a week. Having 8 helmets to the stop point with more to be done in short order has raised the issue of safe storage. We have reconfigured our finish storage area and purchased a additional large rack. A stand has been designed to hold 3 helmets a piece per shelf. We are waiting on reinforcing brackets for the new rack unit then we can consolidate the helmets in the new storage space. Pictures 1 & 2 below show the current state of storage, and picture 3 shows the new racks. The new storage system will also allow is to take a "group picture" when the helmets are done.

4/17/08: This page created to post updates on the progress of the project.

Recap; At this time we have one helmet plated and on display in our office (01/26). Seven helmets are completed to the stage where they would go to plating. The foundry delivered 200 lbs of castings today. Our subcontractor for the machining of neck ring castings is working on castings they received. The canister nut machining is complete (52 pieces). It took three weeks on and off to complete. The discharge nozzles were started yesterday with cutting billets. Unfortunately on the first piece to be machined the on/off switch for the lathe went up in smoke so we are waiting on the electrician.

USS Squalus patch

About the USS Squalus

USS Squalus, a Sargo class submarine, was built at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, in Kittery, Maine. Squalus was commissioned on March 1, 1939 and began crew training and fine tuning of the new boat. She was conducting test dives off the coast of New Hampshire on May 23rd when the main induction valve failed to close, which flooded the after compartments. The Squalus sank to the sea floor 240 feet below the surface.

When Squalus failed to report at the appointed time vessels were dispatched to look for her. Sister boat USS Sculpin SS-191 spotted a flare fired by Squalus. Soon other rescue vessels converged on the location.

Salvage ships and Navy divers quickly responded. The next day operations began to rescue the 32 crew members and one civilian from the forward sections of the boat. At 11:30 on  May 24th, USS Falcon (ASR-2) lowered the newly developed McCann rescue chamber and, over the next 13 hours, all 33 survivors were rescued from the stricken submarine. Four trips with the McCann chamber were required to rescue all survivors. After extensive preparation Squalus was raised on September 13, 1939 and towed into the Portsmouth Navy Yard. The Squalus was formally decommissioned on November 15, 1939. She was renamed USS Sailfish on  February 9, 1940, and recommissioned on May 15, 1940.

The subsequent rescue and salvage operations ushered in several new technologies. The two main ones being the first use of the McCann Rescue Chamber, and the first operational use of Helium diving by the USN. 

USS Squalus was one of 10 Sargo class submarines. These were the newest and most advanced submarines in the US Navy at the time. The loss of one of its newest submarines sent a shock wave through the Navy. Squalus would have to be salvaged to determine if there was a flaw in the Sargo class design. The salvage would have to be done quickly as the first four of the Sargo subs were in commission and the six follow on ships would be commissioned by years end.

Commissioning order and date:

USS Squalus (SS-192): Crew - Survivors and Casualties

From Naval Historical Center Website

Survivors
Blanchard, Roland - F2c, USN    Bland, Jutson T. - EM1c, USN    Booth, Arthur L. - RM1c, USN    Boulton, William D. - Sea1c, USN   

Bryson, Allen C. - F1c, USN    Campbell, Roy H. - CTM, USN    Coyne, Gavin J. - MM2c, USN    Cravens, Eugene D. - GM1c, USN   

Doyle, William T., Jr., Lieutenant, USN.  Elvina, Feliciano - Matt1c, USN    Fitzpatrick, William J. - TM2c, USN    Gainor, Lawrence J. - CEM, USN   

Galvan, Basilio - Matt1c, USN    Isaacs, William - SC2c, USN    Jacobs, Theodore - SM3c, USN    Kuney, Charles S. - Y2c, USN   

Maness, Lloyd B. - EM3c, USN    McLees, Gerald C. - EM2c, USN    Medeiros, Leonard de - TM3c, USN    Murphy, Francis Jr., QM1c, USN   

Naquin, Oliver F., Lieutenant, USN (Commanding Officer of Squalus)    Nichols, John C., Lieutenant (junior grade), USN 

O'Hara, Raymond F. - PhM1c, USN    Persico, Donato - Sea1c, USN    Pierce, Carol N - MM2c, USN    Powell, Carlton B. - MM2c, USN   

Powell, Charles A. - RM2c, USN   Preble, Harold C. - civilian naval architect    Prien, Alfred G. - MM1c, USN    

Robertson, Robert N., Lieutenant (jg), USN     Smith, Warren W., Jr. - SM2c, USN    Washburn, Robert L. - Sea2c, USN   

Yuhas, Charles - MM1c, USN

Casualties
Aitken, James A. - FC3c, USN    Batick, John J. - EM1c, USN    Casey, Joshua - F1c, USN    Chestnutt, John A. - CMM, USN   

Coffey, Robert L. - EM2c, USN   Deal, Elvin L. - MM2c, USN    Fletcher, Lionel H. - EM3c, USN    Garrison, Kenneth R. - CMM, USN   

Gibbs, Robert F. - TM1c, USN    Hathaway, John P. - F1c, USN    Hoffman, Eugene A. - MM1c, USN    Keegan, Alexander B. - Sea1c, USN   

Marino, John P. - Sea2c, USN    McAfee, Huie K. - EM2c, USN    Patterson, Joseph H. - Ensign, USN    Priester, Alfred C. - TM2c, USN   

Schulte, Frank H. - MM1c, USN    Scypers, Bascom S. - EM1c, USN    Shirley, Sherman L. - TM1c, USN   

Smith, Don M. - civilian electrician, General Motor Corporation    Strong, Jack J. - MM1c, USN    Thomala, John M. - MM1c, USN 

Thompson, Robert P. - SC3c, USN    Ward, Marion L. - RM3c, USN    Weld, Robert R. - F2c, USN   

Woods, Charles M. - civilian electrician, attached to US Navy Yard.
 

USS Sailfish

The USS Sailfish went on to have a successful and distinguished service record. She was awarded nine battle stars during WWII. Decommissioned on  October 27, 1945, she was initially scheduled to be a target ship in the atomic bomb tests or to be sunk by conventional ordnance. However, she was placed on sale in March 1948 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on  April 30, 1948. The hulk was sold to Luria Brothers of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for scrap on June 18, 1948. The conning tower of USS Sailfish stands as a memorial to the lost crew of the USS Squalus at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.

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Above are two envelopes referring to the USS Sailfish.

The resources listed below were used in our research of the USS Squalus.

Books:

The Terrible Hours by Peter Maas

Back from the Deep by Carl LaVo

A more detailed history on USS Squalus/Sailfish is available on the US Navy Office of Naval Research website at:

http://www.onr.navy.mil/focus/blowballast/squalus/default.htm

Other websites with information on USS Squalus/Sailfish:

http://www.fleetsubmarine.com/ss-192.html

http://www.pigboats.com/subs/192.html

http://www.lostliners.com/Peril/squalus.html

http://cisatlantic.com/trimix/other/squalus.htm

USS Sailfish war record:

http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/submar/ss192.htm

About the diving operations

Soon after the rescue of the crew was completed plans were formulated to recover the submarine. This was important in order to determine the cause of the accident. If a fatal flaw existed in this new class of submarine it was vital to ascertain it as quickly as possible.

On May 25th orders were issued to salvage the Squalus. Commander Charles "Swede" Momsen was in command of the recovery mission. He had at his disposal the USS Falcon ASR-2, a vessel equipped to conduct rescue, diving, and salvage operations.

LCDR Momsen

Early on it was determined that diving on surface air to the depth of Squalus would not be safe or practical.

Below is a excerpt from a lecture given by Swede Momsen to the Harvard Engineering Society on October 6, 1939. To see the full text go to http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq99-6.htm

"After one or two exploratory dives it was clearly indicated that we had little chance of success unless we used helium.

At the Experimental Diving Unit we had found that the ill effects of nitrogen under high pressure were almost entirely eliminated when using helium oxygen mixture as a substitute. We had spent nearly two years developing the proper decompression procedure following exposures with helium. Unfortunately some writers had created the impression that very little, if any, decompression is required when using helium. I have found in experimental work that most failures are caused by disregarding the simple laws of physics. Here was an example. Helium, nitrogen, argon or any other non-reacting gas that might be used as a dilutent or carrier in respiration, goes into the blood in simple solution by way of the lungs. As pressure is applied this gas is distributed throughout the body and enters the various tissues, water, fat etc. The quantity of gas that enters depends on the rate of blood supply. The tissues with great blood supply such as the brain, kidney, liver, stomach are fast tissues while those with a meager supply such as fat, joints, bones, etc. are called slow tissues. Naturally given time enough all tissues approach a condition of full saturation for the given pressure. It follows that when the pressure is released the non-reacting gas must be given an opportunity to come off and if insufficient time is taken, those parts known as slow tissues will be the first to give trouble by the gas forming as bubbles. While gas does move from one part of the body to another by direct diffusion as well as by the blood stream, and the rate of diffusion varies with various gasses, it can be clearly seen that all gasses must require decompression.

The theory of handling helium had been worked out, but the equipment for handling it was not quite ready when we were called to this job. That is the reason that helium was not used immediately. However, we started in, within a few days, to use the helium and thence forth used it exclusively when working at great depths. Knowing that 2.5 atmospheres of oxygen is safe to breath, the percentage of oxygen in the helium mixtures was calculated to give slightly less than this amount, and was roughly 28%. Since the gas that goes into solution in the blood varies directly as the percentage present in the lungs, it is advantageous to use as low a percentage of helium and as high a percentage of oxygen as is possible, but keeping the oxygen tension below 2.5 atmospheres.

In order to conserve helium which costs the government about one cent per cubic foot we devised a means of recirculating the gas in the helmet, through a CO2 absorbent, using a small gas supply as the driving agent, by admitting it through a venturi tube. By this means the oxygen supply was adequate in the driving gas and CO2 was kept at its proper level. This apparatus was not quite satisfactory at first but by making daily corrections and with the assistance of Mr. Philip Drinker and his friends we finally obtained satisfactory performance, and used the helium.

The minds of the divers were clear and they were so much more efficient when breathing helium that all divers were quickly converted to helium users by choice. As regards to this mental effect I feel sure that there is a definite relation between the molecular weight of the carrier gas to the mental effect. For instance the ratio of molecular weights of helium to nitrogen is as 4 is to 28, and the consensus of opinion of the divers as to feeling of depth seems to verify this. As a further study of the effect we used argon, molecular weight 40 as a carrier gas and found the effects on the minds to be similar to nitrogen, but proportionally worse. At ten atmospheres, I myself, was able to endure breathing a mixture of argon and oxygen, but a few moments. At atmospheric pressure the argon was not unlike air. If hydrogen were not so dangerous as an explosive it might make the ideal carrier gas. It may be used in the future for very great depths where the percentage of oxygen required would be very low.

The greatest single development produced on this job was the decompression system. Divers were brought by stages, calculated to be safe, to 50 feet. From this depth they were brought quickly to the surface, undressed and placed in a pressure tank within five minutes after surfacing. There he was fitted with a mask and given pure oxygen for a time sufficient to remove all of the excess gas from his body. 50 feet of salt water is equivalent to 1-1/2 atmospheres of pressure which added to the atmospheric pressure gives us 2-1/2 absolute. At this pressure the blood stream can handle in physical solution just about the amount of oxygen that is required by the body. Thus the blood stream as transportation is free to carry the greatest amount of the helium away to the lungs. Since the solubility of a gas in a liquid varies as the pressure, at a pressure of less than 2-1/2 atmospheres, the carrying capacity of the blood would be reduced, hence it would take longer to remove the gas.

Since at pressures substantially greater than 2-1/2 atmospheres man develops serious symptoms, commonly and I believe erroneously, called oxygen poisoning, we do not desire to use higher pressures. It is my own opinion that when the oxygen tension is increased beyond 2-1/2 atmospheres, the carbon dioxide removal is interfered with, for the reason that the oxygen in the hemoglobin is not reduced and the hemoglobin is unable to function as a chemical carrier of carbon dioxide. The removal of carbon dioxide by physical solution alone is insufficient. If this theory were correct we would expect to find the venous blood stream so crowded with CO2 in physical solution that the removal of helium or other carrier gases would be interfered with. This is, in fact, exactly what we did find. The amount of helium or nitrogen given off when breathing oxygen, following a measured exposure, reached a maximum at 2.5 atmospheres and then fell off rapidly as the oxygen tension was increased. The symptoms developed by breathing excess oxygen were found by Dr. R.A. Behnke to disappear very rapidly when the pressure was released and to leave no after effects. This gives further evidence that the symptoms are caused by excess carbon dioxide and not a "poison." We were little concerned over the possibility of our divers developing symptoms from breathing excess oxygen.

An interesting problem arose when using helium which was easily explained once we saw the light. Divers suffered much more from cold water, than from breathing air. The answer was that the specific heat of helium is greater than nitrogen and body heat was lost through radiation from the body. The development of electrically heated clothing solved this one. Resistance wire, wrapped in glass thread woven into glass cloth to reduce the fire hazard, was made up into panels. These were inserted between layers of wool. Electricity supplied by storage batteries furnished as much heat as was necessary."
 

The plan was to attach salvage pontoons along the sides of the submarine with chains slung under the hull. The boat would then be lifted off the bottom and moved to shallower water where the pontoons would be reset. The process would be repeated until Squalus was shallow enough to enter the river at Portsmouth.

This was the first practical use of Helium gas in deep diving. Max Gene Nohl made a dive to 420 feet two years earlier but it was a experimental dive. The Navy divers would have to be able to work effectively at more than two hundred feet.

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