Submarine USS Ling at the New Jersey Naval Museum

The USS Ling is a WWII Balao Class Submarine. The sub's specs are:

Length: 311 feet 9 inches
Width: 13 feet 9 inches
Height: 27 feet 2 inches (with periscope)
Crew: 10 Officers 65 Men
Displacement: Surface - 1,526 tons / Submerged - 2,415 tons
Max Speed: Surface - 20.25kts / Submerged - 8.75 knots
Range: Surface - 11,000 miles at 15kts Submerged 48hrs at 2 knots
Fuel Capacity: 116,000 gallons of diesel fuel
Diving Depth: 412 feet test / 600 feet emergency
Armament:
 24 21" torpedoes with 600 pound (compare that to the 3000 pound warhead of the Kaiten) warheads, 6 bow tubes and 4 stern tubes
 2 5" x 25cal deck guns
 2 40mm Bofors AA guns (the submarine Ling now has 2 20mm Oerlikon AA guns for display)
Power Plant: 4 1600hp Fairbanks Morse two stroke diesel electric generators driving 2 screws
Launching Date: June 8, 1945 at the Boston Navy Yard

News Flash - 1/24/2007 - Malcolm A. Borg, the chairman of the Bergen Record, on who's property the USS Ling resides for a lease of $1/year, has asked for the submarine to be removed from his property. Borg is planning to sell or develop the property and now wants the land back. The Ling museum faces a tough time ahead having to find the location and funds to facilitate the move. Options being discussed include partnering the sub with the Battleship USS New Jersey museum in Camden, the Intrepid Museum in New York City, or another more local location.

What hasn't been discussed is the amount of dredging that will be required. 30 years of silt have left the submarine embedded in several feet of mud at low tide, and it is unknown how much of the length of the Hackensack River will have to be dredged to allow it to be towed from it's present location.

I personally would feel it a shame to see the museum and it's artifacts go. If you feel the same, please pay them a visit. You can help with a donation and also to add your signature to their petition to save and preserve the USS Ling in its current location. Hopefully it will stay local to North Jersey.

You can visit the USS Ling SS-297 at the New Jersey Naval Museum in Hackensack, NJ. The museum is open Saturdays and Sundays 10-4 and Wednesdays 10-3 (It's not a bad idea to call the museum first. They only just added the Wednesday hours in 2006). If you are interested in getting good photos of the whole sub, go early in the day. The sub is oriented roughly North-South and at that time of day the sun is low in the sky from the opposite side of the river. Park in the museum lot and walk over to the bridge. You will find you can get the most interesting shots of the sub from there.

All tours are guided but the best thing about the USS Ling is that there are no plexiglas partitions over compartments so you can really see the equipment and features well.When I visited the museum they were looking for volunteers so if you are in the area and interested stop by. They could sure use the help as the number of visitors has really picked up this year.

If you're adventurous and have a kayak or canoe you can cartop, you can easily paddle to and around the Submarine USS Ling via Foschini Park which is right off River Street in Hackensack behind the Toyota dealership. There is boating access behind the ball field directly onto the Hackensack River. I had an opportunity to see the submarine from the Hackensack River with The Interstate Hiking Club on 9/14/07. The river is surprisingly lush for such an urban area.

If you have not visited SS-297 in a while as I hadn't, stop by again.The New Jersey Naval Museum now has a Kaiten Suicide Sub, a German Seehund coastal defense midget sub, and a Vietnam era Patrol Boat Riverine or PBR. If you're in New England and Hackensack is a bit too much of a drive for a day trip, you can see the USS Ling's sister submarine USS Lionfish in Fall River, MA. Or for a more modern submersible pay a visit to the USS Nautilus Museum in Groton CT. It's a great way to see how far our naval technology has come. If you want to go back in time in terms of submersible development, John Holland's first and second submarine, the Fenian Ram are located in the Paterson Museum.