The Atomic Submarine Page #3

and with his crew still in the dark

concerning their secret, fateful mission...

Skipper Wendover made

the first notation in the log.

The men would remain unbriefed

for two hours...

until the Tiger Shark

cleared Ruget Sound...

and was headed for open sea.

Who the devil belongs to this gear?

[Man]

Uh, we do, Chief.

Oh. You two guys, huh?

And just what do you do around here?

Underwater demolition.

Seaman First Class Powell, and I'm Carney.

Yeah, I know.

So you're frogmen.

Yeah, we're off tin cans.

We've, uh, looked the pigboat over

from, uh, fore to aft...

but can't seem to find an empty locker,

uh, to store our stuff in.

An empty locker?

In a sub?

Are you kiddin'?

This whole deal is makin'

less and less sense to me.

What are frogmen

doin'aboard the Tiger Shark?

Following orders,

like everyone else in the navy.

Beats me.

But orders are orders.

Yeah, well, uh, in the meantime,

where do you want us to stash these gizmos?

Come on.

[Narrator]

Shortly before dawn...

the Tiger Shark, running submerged

at better than 30 knots...

had left the sound behind...

and was headed for open sea.

Here are our orders, Reef.

Look 'em over while I fill in the crew.

Now hear this.

This is the captain speaking.

I know you're wondering

about all the mystery.

[Wendover On P.A.]

Well, our job had to be kept absolutely secret.

Our mission is to find out

what caused the disasters under the Arctic ice.

Once we cross the Arctic Circle,

any command you hear will be the real thing.

Rlease remember it.

That's about it.

Now you know as much as I

or anybody else does, for that matter.

Oh, incidentally,

I assured Washington...

that this was

the best sub crew in the fleet.

I know you won't make a liar out of me.

Carry on.

That's it.

What do you think?

I think I should have joined the air force.

[Narrator] A week later, the Tiger Shark

was still running due north at cruising speed.

So far, the voyage was routine, uneventful.

But the nearer they came

to the Arctic Circle...

the more the tension increased...

the more tiny irritations

were magnified into bitter feuds...

the more the crewmen pondered

their possible fate.

On the morning of May 20...

the Tiger Shark crossed the Arctic Circle

into the critical area.

You're always asking me

why I stay a bachelor.

There goes one of the best reasons

I can think of.

- Huh?

- Yeah. I might have a son like that.

I don't get it.

What goes with you two?

I guess his father, Skipper Neilsen, retired

before you enrolled at the academy, didn't he?

I guess.

One of the finest men and officers alive.

A real hero

in the best sense of the word.

World War II.

Taught engineering and design

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