Photo Source: US Navy

This is the story of a submarine captain, CDR Slade Deville Cutter. Cutter sunk the second most ships in World War II, he was second only to Dick O'Kane and tied with "Mush" Morton. The man had actually received FOUR Navy Crosses. The first one was for extraordinary heroism when he sunk nine Japanese ships and damaged another while out on a patrol. The second award was a Gold Star in lieu of the second Navy Cross. This was for aggressively attacking Japanese convoys in heavily patrolled Japanese waters. He sunk 5 ships. The third award was a Gold Star in leu of the Third Navy Cross. He sunk 4 Japanese ships, survived a depth charge attack, ariel bombing and damaged a Japanese submarine. The fourth award was a Gold Star in lieu of the Fourth Navy Cross. He sunk six ships and damaged another while he was in heavily guarded Japanese waters. His submarine was the subject of severe anti submarine measures.

Slade Deville Cutter was born in Oswego, Illinois in November 1911 and entered the Naval Academy in 1931. He was an all star football player He had won the 1934 Army-Navy game with a first quarter field goal. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. He later coached another winning football team for the Army. After Pearl Harbor was attacked, he went on a patrol on the USS Pompano as the executive officer. Unfortunately his submarine was mistaken for an enemy sub by a patrol plane which called in dive bombers from the carrier USS Enterprise. The subs fuel tanks were damaged but she managed to shake the planes. The damaged fuel tanks eventually forced the sub to cut its mission short after firing torpedoes at a Japanese freighter and a destroyer.

The Pompano was truly an unlucky sub. Cutter went out on the boat on two more missions. On the first mission she was struck by a depth charge and sent to the bottom. She was flooding badly. It looked the end was in sight, but the boat was floated again and it limped away into the night. When he returned to Pearl Harbor after the second mission he was assigned to a brand new submarine as the executive officer again. The boat was the Seahorse. The current captain of the Seahorse was CDR Don McGregor. When the boat returned to Pearl, he was removed for allowing too many convoys to pass unattacked. He had only attacked two convoys. Cutter was now put in charge of the Seahorse.

Cutter in the torpedo room
Photo Source: US Navy

Here are some memorable events of his patrols:

On his first mission as captain of the Seahorse Cutter came across a freighter that had four escorts. He waited and launched a night attack sending the Nikko Maru to the bottom. He then went to his patrol area near Palau. He received a message that a convoy was heading his way. There were two freighters and three escorts. He hit both freighters with torpedoes The Ikoma Maru sank immediately . He attacked the second freighter again and sunk the Yasukuni Maru. Now he moved on to Palau itself. He saw three freighters leaving the harbor but they were under heavy escort. He couldn't attack then because it would have been suicide. He trailed the convoy for over 32 hours waiting for his chance. Then the chance came and he put three torpedoes into the Toku Maru sending her to the bottom. The stern blew off and her cargo of troops went down with her. Even after this Cutter somehow was able to follow the remaining ships. It took ten torpedoes but they sunk the Toei Maru but were under depth charge attack.

After returning to base she was sent out again to the Marianas. Her orders were to prevent the Japanese from reinforcing Guam and Saipan. He saw two freighters and torpedoed both of them. The Aratama Maru was hit and beached and was a total loss and the Kizugawa Maru was towed to Guam but couldn't be repaired because it was damaged further by air attacks. Luck was on his side as the next day he came across a large convoy of 15-20 ships that was under attack. Cutter shot two torpedoes into the Mimasaka Maru. The Mimasaka Maru was left adrift but Cutter couldn't finish her off because the escort ships kept driving him away, but the ship sank on its own from the damage. The next vessel the Seahorse came upon was a Japanese submarine. The sub was on the surface. He fired two torpedoes and hit it. The next victim was the Akigawa Maru, it was hit three times out of four torpedoes

Cutter had spotted very large Japanese task force headed by the battleship Yamato heading for the Marianas and warned fleet command. He couldn't follow because one of his engines was overheating. His warning was responsible for one of the greatest American naval victories. It was aptly called the Marianas Turkey Shoot. The Japanese had lost three carriers and 330 aircraft. The Seahorse was now part of a wolfpack. Cutter saw a freighter the Median Maru and sunk it immediately. He next damaged the Ussuri Maru and US aircraft finished it off. A week later he spotted a convoy and sank the Gyoku Maru and damaged the Nitto Maru. A second attack sunk the Nitto Maru and Kyodo Maru. He was given USS Requin which was a newly constructed sub but the war ended before he could continue his tally.