Clear the Bridge! : The War Patrols of the U.S.S. Tang [Paperback]

Richard O'Kane (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 17, 1996

Tang carried the war to the enemy with unparalleled ferocity. This is her story as told by her skipper.

Product Details

• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Presidio Press (December 17, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0891415734
• ISBN-13: 978-0891415732
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #282,074 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Greatest submarine book ever written., April 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Clear the Bridge! : The War Patrols of the U.S.S. Tang (Paperback)

I could not put this book down. O'Kanes writing puts the reader inside the sub taking part in every detail of the Tang's patrols during WWII. I found myself refering to the maps every time he gave a description of the Tang's approach to enemy shipping and being able to see his detailed discriptions of the area thru the periscope. O'Kane's memories of details of shooting setups and the details of men at their stations in time of war is uncanny. This is truly a book that takes the reader to the dark days of WWII and the frustration of fighting with defective torpedos and equipment and the "jury-rigging" the crews had to do to make things work and in most cases make equipment better than what was issued. O'Kane was not only a great leader of men he is one of the great heros of WWII. It would be an honor to shake his hand.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Legend With Great Writing Skills 7 Stars, March 4, 2007

By 

Steve Dietrich (Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Monica CA, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Clear the Bridge! : The War Patrols of the U.S.S. Tang (Paperback)

O'Kane's the real deal, sailor, warrior, leader, survivor and writer.

This is his story and that of the USS Tang, one of the most successful submarines operating in the Pacific. O'Kane was one of a new breed of submarine skippers who traded caution for results with great success, but at huge risks. One of the most effective tactics was to take the surfaced submarine into the middle of Japanese convoys at night, attacking multiple ships and then escaping to the depths.

The action is heart stopping and explains why the Navy pulled some of the more conservative older skippers out of their boats and replaced them with men like this. But the story is much more than simply tactics and bravery above all expectations, it is a story about true leadership.

Young MBA's would do better asking themselves what characteristics of leadership did O'Kane and his officers utilize to achieve so much with so very little in tangible rewards to offer their crews? There were few rewards for the truly outstanding sub crews, congratulations, awards, a sense of team and the dubious honor of being sent back out on patrol as soon as possible.

One of the secrets was that O'Kane and other sub commanders under the leadership of senior officers at Pearl Harbor were given huge patrol areas and largely left to their own devices to take advantage of what they found. To prevent detection the subs seldom transmitted messages on the high power needed to reach thousands of miles across the ocean, the subs received intelligence information from headquarters, but no tactical instructions. On occasion they had schedules to keep, often lifeguard duty just offshore of enemy facilities which were being attacked from the air. Many young pilots, including George Bush Sr were plucked from waters off the Japanese held islands.

The book is also a reminder of a can-do nation at work. Battered and worn out subs returning from patrol were overhauled, updated and ready to depart on the next patrol in only a few weeks.

The description of various engagements may seem a little dry and technical to someone who has not been out on the sea on a dark night trying to make sense of faint shadows and movement. For fans of surface warfare who think subs are like hunting with poison gas, the descriptions of night surface attacks in the middle of escorted convoys will fully dispel that image.

The book is a great reminder of the incredible courage of those who have gone to sea to defend our country for more than 220 years and those who continue to do so today.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent history of submarine Tang by her only CO., November 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Clear the Bridge! : The War Patrols of the U.S.S. Tang (Paperback)

By the time of Tang's launch in 1944 most of the early war torpedo problems had been solved and better radar and tactics were in place. Submarine technology was state of the art. Bright, agressive officers like Dick O'Kane were the ramaining element to gain ultimate seccess.

"Clear The Bridge" privides a well written and consise chronology of the operations of Tang. O'Kane personalizes Tang's history by including some of the stories of the men who served on her.

We first met O'Kane in the pages of "Wahoo" commanded by "Mush Morton". O'Kane credits much of his success to the training he received serving under Morton as Executive Officer.

The book is a microcosm of the great conflict that was WW II. The Allies won the conflict through the courage and agressiveness of men like O'Kane and her crew.