Silent Steel: The Mysterious Death of the Nuclear Attack Sub USS Scorpion

by Steven Johnson

Book Overview

Praise for Silent Steel "The magnitude of the tragedy of the USS Scorpion is matched only by the depth of the mystery surrounding her loss. Stephen Johnson has done a remarkable job of shining new light on this dark moment in U.S. submarine history." --Sherry Sontag, coauthor of Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage "What happened to the USS Scorpion? The question has vexed submariners for almost four decades. Now, with...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471267376
• ISBN13: 9780471267379
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
• Length: 292 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

Requiem at 12,000 Feet

Nearly four decades after the tragic and mysterious loss of the nuclear fast-attack Scorpion, it seems her 99-man crew is finally getting its due. At the time of the Scorpion's disappearance, the story was lost in the tumultuous 1968, with the assassinations of both Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King, and a media entranced with a rising Viet Nam body count, the Scorpion quickly fell from the front page. Of the two recent books illuminating the events, much from previously classified Navy documents, one, "Scorpion Down", by Ed Offley, chooses to sensationalize Scorpion in Cold War intrigue and Pentagon conspiracy. "Silent Steel", by Stephen Johnson, is the other, and for my money, the better. Rather than trying to grab headlines of his own, Johnson's documentary paints an accurate and surprisingly lively portrait not only of what is know about the last days of the Scorpion, but also of life aboard a US Navy nuke during the Cold War. Painstakingly researched but told in the vernacular, Johnson steps through the various theories of the Scorpion's demise: was it the accidental detonation of one of its own torpedoes, failure of a weld in the pressure hull, an explosion in the main battery compartment, or the highly unlikely attack by a hostile Soviet sub? Johnson is at all time is respectful of the sacrifices of the submarine service, and, in treatment reminiscent of Robert Kurson's "Shadow Divers", places the dignity and sanctity of the crew's eternal resting place above all else. While recounting the evidence as cited in a string of official investigations, Johnson also weaves in a strong and poignant dose of personal interest, bringing to life the officers and crew so long forgotten by so many. Ultimately, while the author offers no final solutions, he does the US Navy a great favor by shedding light on the clandestine operations of "the silent service". In short, a quick, intelligent, and educational read that is long overdue. Highly recommended.

The Benchmark on the Subject

With "Silent Steel", Stephen Johnson has written the most well-researched and comprehensive book on the Scorpion disaster to date. His exceptional human insight and unwavering devotion to the facts set this book apart from similar books on the subject. There is no smoking gun in this book; no government conspiracy, and no UFOs. Instead there is a comprehensive report on the brave men who took Scorpion on her final dive. Sadly, other new books on the Scorpion disaster have glamorized the conspiracy theory, using this incident to sell books. When reading Stephen Johnson's book, you may find yourself thinking "Okay, come on, you've obviously done a ton of research on this...let's hear your theory about the Soviet Echo-II that sank the Scorpion". Fortunately, he doesn't go there. I think that's because he's done the research and knows better. I just retired from the US Navy after 23 years. Half of that time was spent in the Integrated Undersea Surveillance System, tracking submarines around the world, and the other half was spent as a Submarine Sonar Technician, on submarines around the world. There is no conspiracy. Stephen Johnson did justice to USS Scorpion and the families of the crew. He didn't follow hare-brained theories or threads of circumstance; he merely reported what happened in a riveting book. This is a book for anyone...average citizens, military historians, or scientists. Read this book before or after you read any of the other current books on USS Scorpion; this will set you straight. Brett Beedles

Engrossing, well-written

Stephen Johnson's "Silent Steel: The Mysterious Death of the Nuclear Attack Sub USS Scorpion" is a highly detailed account of the last months of the US Navy nuclear submarine, lost in the Atlantic off the Azores on May 22, 1968, and of the various official investigations aimed at uncovering the reasons for that loss. Johnson follows the official chronology established by the Navy (in contrast to Ed Offley in "Scorpion Down: Sunk by the Soviets, Buried by the Pentagon, The Untold Story of the USS Scorpion") but reaches a different conclusion as to the underlying cause of the disaster (the Navy inquiries in general favored a torpedo accident of some kind, but Johnson believes some other equipment failure - perhaps a battery explosion or maybe merely a trash disposal unit that failed to seal properly - that led to an uncontrolled descent to a depth where the great pressure crushed the hull). The evidence for and against each proposed cause is examined in detail. All in all, an engrossing and well-written book.

A must read for any brother of the Dolphin

In July 2003, I'm president of the USS Robert E. Lee (SSBN-601) Association and was contacted by Stephen Johnson, the author of this book about a possible connection to the loss of the USS SCORPION (SSN-589) and an event that occurred on the Lee, involving a MK-37 torpedo. I won't ruin the suspense, because this book is a "page turner" that you won't be able to put down. It's a gripping & true story about 99 men who died and no one knows why. Mr. Johnson does a marvelous job illuminating several theories behind her loss. But, I was most moved by how he told the story of the men who perished. They aren't just nameless faces. Mr. Johnson brings them to life, using letters sent home. Just one example, his recanting the Torpedo Room Polka party when 20 women were brought on board helps us remember our own shipmate, Frank Mazzuchi (RE Lee Commissioning Gold Crew from 1960-62). Frank is brought to life over several pages. Any one who earned Dolphins will experience a range of emotions - from chuckling, anger and even shedding a silent tear. A must read for any brother of the Dolphin.

My Ship

I have been talking to Steve for over the last 3 years about this book, so it didn't come as a big surprise; but I was very happy about the depth of research and background material that was shown in the book. I didn't expect any definate answers as to what happened to my shipmates and the boat to go down and there weren't any. What I was glad to see, was documentation on some of the issues that have been speculated about. Hopefully this will stop some of the speculation that has gone on about possible causes of the accident. I use the word accident on purpose, because I spent two and one half years on the Scorpion from 64-67 and I know there is no way someone on the boat would have done anything to cause what ever sunk it. Having been on two other nuke subs and having been very active the last 5 years with almost 12,000 other subvets in USSVI, I feel now, just I did the day I walked off the Scorpion, that the crew on that boat was really special. They were extremely competent and dedicated to what we were asked to do. Steve talks about them having to fix things when the shipyard and other resources weren't available. This was routine, the whole time I was on it. Thanks in large part to our COB, Wally Bishop, we had no nuc/nonnuc attitudes and were all close friends. It is true that you are closer to some of your shipmates than to those in your family. Whatever caused the ship to sink, it was not negligence by the crew. There will be another book coming out soon that purports to tell what really happened to it. If you read that book, I would suggest you come back to this book and look at the listed research and Steve's very erudite explanation of it(and that is by no means all the research that Steve did on the book) and then look at what backs up whatever supposed proof that others feel make their viewpoint valid. I think one of the most important things this books shows is the background of what was going on during the 60s on subs. I can remember twice going out and doing ops because another boat couldn't. I can also remember working on equipment underway because we were not allowed to stay in port to fix things that didn't work. Cdr. Lewis, as described in Steve's book, was a master skipper. I think anyone in the crew would have done whatever he asked with full confidence that he would get us back safe and alive. I could tell a lot of stories about Admiral Fountain, but I also learned a lot about him later and came to realize why he was the way he was. He may not have been the most personable officer, but he was very good at his job and helped us be the best we could at what we did.Being the XO, is not going to win you awards for most liked officer anyway. Someone else, while not mentioned in the Book, but responsible for the high standards set by the officers, was LCDR Apple, the engineer when I was on the Scorpion. He set up expectations for the engineering department, that I am sure were carried on until the end. Wally B