USS Flier and the swim to Mantangule
In 1944 an American submarine hit a mine in the Balabac Strait. Eight men survived, with help from people on the islands.
Written from public sources to get this page started. We'll replace it with the story as Balabac residents tell it.
During World War II, the Balabac Strait was a shortcut between the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea, and it was mined. Two American submarines were lost near Palawan in the summer of 1944, both probably to mines.
On the night of August 13, 1944, at about 10 p.m., USS Flier was crossing the strait when an explosion sank it. Its commander believed it had struck a mine.
About fourteen men made it into the water. Only eight survived. They swam for more than fifteen hours and came ashore on Mantangule Island on the afternoon of August 14.
On August 19 they met local people, who led them to a US Army coast-watcher unit on Palawan. A later account also credits guerrillas of the Bolo Battalion of Bugsuk Island. On the night of August 30, the survivors left in two small boats and were picked up by the submarine USS Redfin.
A few weeks earlier, on July 26, USS Robalo had been lost off Palawan, probably to a mine. Four of its crew were captured and never recovered.
A war grave
Flier's wreck was found in 2009 and confirmed by the US Navy in 2010. It lies on the floor of the strait as a war grave for the men who didn't come home. Leave it undisturbed.
