Zeke Zellmer's Correspondence from the USS Cavalla

USS TAUTOG: Length: 292 ft Compliment: 95 enlisted men, 15 officers Power: Nuclear Operating depth: more than 400m Commissioned: August 17, 1968 Decommissioned: March 31, 1997 USS Tautog was a Sturgeon-class submarine that served during the Cold War, and whose primary objective was to monitor the Soviet Union’s operations in the Pacific. Following a successful patrol surveilling Soviet cruise missile testing near Petropavlovsk in 1969, Tautog was sent to monitor a Soviet submarine training...

Taffy 3, one of three task units in the U.S. Navy during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, played a pivotal role in protecting the invasion fleet and supporting U.S. forces in the Philippines. Despite facing overwhelming odds, Taffy 3 courageously engaged the Japanese Center Force in a dramatic battle. The US Fleet Consisted of: 6 escort carriers (512 feet long) 3 destroyers (376 feet long,) 4 destroyer escorts (306 feet long) 400 aircraft from Taffy 1, 2, and 3 In stark contrast, the Japanese Center...