I am aware of only one which is the U-864 was sunk by the HMS Venturer but that was when both were being submerged -- according to wikipedia. Is that accurate? Which battles did happen between two (or more) submarines whether they were submerged or not?
While the WW2 tag is there, I am interested in the whole history of submarine warfare from 1775 to now a days.
The Venturer also sank U771 which was not submerged while being hit by torpedoes.
This is wikipedia info, but apparently the British also used submarines for ASW. They seem to have lured in places where retreating/coming out of port, and would not be detected by passing submerged submarines.
Alas, let us consider which other wars might have seen submarine vs submarine action. Post WWII, technological development meant that submarines spent most of their time submerged, thus naval action in which at least one submarine was surfaced is unlikely.
Pre WWI, submarines were not really widespread, so the chances of both sides in a conflict having access to submarines are slim. In what wars could they have been involved?
In the American Secession War, both sides used submarines, but they were generally unfit for service and saw little action.
In the Russo-Japanese War, both sides had submarines, but wikipedia states that Japanese subs never saw action.
Balkan wars? Greece and Ottoman Empire might have had submarines.
During WWI, the Entente powers developed ASW submarines, but they came too late and saw no action.
Thus, I conclude, sub vs sub action is most likely found during WWII and nowhen else.
EDIT: During WW1, Italian submarine F-12 sunk Austrio-Hungarian submarine U-20. I admire the effort people put in some wikipedia articles.
On 9 January 1942, the Japanese submarine I-73 (or I-173) was sunk by the US submarine USS Gudgeon (SS-211).
References:
I agree that the above was the only battle between two submerged submarines. More to the point, I'd be surprised if there was ever a battle between two SURFACED submarines.
BY DEFINITION, submarines do not like to fight on the surface. They are small ships with no guns (to speak of), and are therefore not a match for a warship when surfaced. Their primary weapon is torpedoes, and ships armed with torpedoes are basically at a severe disadvantage against ships armed with larger guns than their own. (This is true for destroyers and cruisers as well as subs.)
The reason subs are used at all is because they can attack with torpedoes from underwater, where large ships like battleships cannot effectively retaliate. The best "subchasers" are small, fast surface ships like destroyers and corvettes. Their weapon of choice during World War II were "depth charges," strings of explosives set to explode at varying depths, thereby "chasing" a submarine down. Subs are too small to carry many such charges, and too slow to use them effectively.
The Venturer had only eight torpedoes (basically, one "string") when it attacked the German sub, and was lucky to sink it. That's why such actions are so rare. And knowing this, naval commands would seldom use a sub to chase another sub.
While the WW2 tag is there, I am interested in the whole history of submarine warfare from 1775 to now a days.
It depends on how one defines warfare. If we do not limit ourselves to the countries technically at war, then submarine-to-submarine interaction is rather commonplace. This notably includes the American submarines shadowing the Russian ones (and possibly also the other way around.) This was, e.g., openly acknowledged in the aftermath of Submarine incident off Kola Peninsula
The incident took place when the American submarine, who was trailing her Russian counterpart, lost track of Novomoskovsk. At the time that Grayling reacquired the other submarine, the short distance of only half-mile made the collision unavoidable.
This followed an earlier Submarine incident off Kildin Island, although in the latter case there is some doubt as whether the actions of the American submarine were directed against the Russian one, or whether it was engaged in a different kind of mission.
A more general quote about the submarine-vs.-submarine practices in modern time:
What is certain, however, is that the Russian Arctic-based Northern Fleet is continually “stalked” by American (and perhaps British and French) fast-attack submarines from the moment the Russian submarines leave port. While, as noted above, the number of Russian “boomer” patrols has sharply declined since the days of the Cold War, the underwater games of “cat and mouse” continue as before, and several near-collisions have been reported as the Russian subs become increasingly successful in shaking off their American “tails.”
According to most records the USS Herring, SS-233 was credited in sinking a German U-Boat in the Atlantic earlier in the war. Herring was lost in the Pacific on 1 June 1944, the only submarine ever lost by fire from a shore battery.
