Enright assumed command of the newly built USS Dace on July 23, 1943,[4] and in October sailed out on her first war patrol into busy Japanese waters. On November 15[5] an Ultra message alerted him to intercept aircraft carrier Shōkaku; Enright located the target and "made a timid approach, abandoning the effort as daylight approached".[5] He then found another target, a tanker, but was depth charged by escort ships and withdrew from active pursuit.[5] In the end the 49-day patrol brought no results.[5][6] Enright took the blame for failure: "I was responsible for an unproductive patrol and request to be relieved by an officer who can perform more satisfactorily".[6] Admiral Lockwood[5] granted the request and demoted Enright to administrative duties ashore.[6] After half a year at Midway submarine base,[7] Enright requested to be given another submarine command[6] and received "a rare second chance",[5] command of USS Archerfish (SS-311) in September 1944.[7]
Archerfish left Pearl Harbor on October 30, 1944, and reached Saipan on November 9.[5] For the next two weeks the submarine provided search and rescue support to American aviators in the areas of planned air strikes.[5] On November 28, when the submarine was patrolling south from Nagoya, radar identified a surface contact 12 miles (19 km) away.[5] Visual contact became possible at 2140, and by 2300 Enright identified it as an aircraft carrier protected by three destroyers.[8]
Enright had initially assumed the target was a tanker. Once he realized it was a carrier, he ordered it tracked "from ahead" in hopes that he could get ahead and attack from below.[9]
At 0241, on November 29, the target turned away from Archerfish and then straight at her.[8] At 0305, Enright ordered Archerfish to dive.[9] At 0317 at a mere 1,400 yards (1,300 m) from the target, Enright fired all six available torpedoes at the carrier.[8] He deliberately set the torpedoes to run shallow (10 feet [3.0 m]); he not only wanted to ensure a hit in case they ran deeper than set, but also hoped to increase the likelihood of capsizing the carrier by holing it further up on its hull.[9] Enright stayed at periscope depth to see the first two torpedoes hit Shinano, then dived down to 400 feet (120 m) in order to escape depth charge revenge from her escorts. While rigged for silent running, Enright and his crew heard loud breaking-up noises for 47 minutes, and were certain they had sent their quarry to the bottom.[8] It was only after the war that the carrier was identified as Shinano, the long-rumored third battleship of the Yamato class. Her keel had been converted into a supercarrier while still under construction. Four of his sub's torpedoes had found their mark. Due to crew inexperience and design flaws, she struggled with damage for more than seven hours and finally capsized at 10:57. The damage was magnified because Shinano's commander, Captain Toshio Abe [ja], had inadvertently exposed his ship's entire side to Archerfish in his haste to escape, creating an ideal firing situation for a submarine. With a full-load displacement of 72,000 tons, Shinano is the largest warship in history to be sunk by a submarine. The action earned Enright his Navy Cross.[7][9]
After the end of the war, Enright commanded Submarine Division 31 (1949–1950), USS Fulton (AS-11) (1953–1954), Submarine Squadron 8 (1954–1955), was chief of staff for the submarine force of the United States Atlantic Fleet (1955–1957) and commander of USS Boston (CA-69) (1959–1963).[3]
Date Of Action: 30 October 1944 to 15 December 1944
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Commander Joseph Francis Enright, United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism and distinguished service in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the USS Archerfish (SS-311), during the Fifth War Patrol of that vessel in enemy Japanese-controlled waters in the Pacific War Area, from 30 October to 15 December 1944. Quick to act when his ship contacted a high-speed Japanese Task Force on 28 November Commander Enright commenced an all-out pursuit, maneuvering his vessel at top speed to outdistance the zigzagging enemy aircraft carrier. After six hours of determined chase, he succeeded in bringing the submarine to a favorable attack position ahead and, submerging to attack, expertly directed his ship in penetrating the escort screen. Still undetected by the enemy, he launched a full torpedo salvo against the carrier to strike the target with four torpedoes and inflict severe damage which later sank the carrier. Although counterattacked by his victim's escorts, he skillfully evaded all hostile countermeasures and brought the Archer Fish safe to port. By his courage and determination in the face of overwhelming odds, Commander Enright contributed materially to the success of his vessel in sinking the 72,000-ton Japanese carrier. His leadership and zealous devotion to duty throughout were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.[10]
