USS Eagle 56
Country of origin
United States
United States
ManufacturerFord Motor Company
USS Eagle 56 (PE-56) was a United States Navy World War I–era patrol boat that remained in service through World War II. On 23 April 1945, while towing targets for U.S. Navy bomber exercises off the coast of Maine, Eagle 56 was sunk by the German submarine U-853. Only 13 of the 62 crew survived.
The loss was classified as a boiler explosion until 2001, when historical evidence convinced the U.S. Navy to reclassify the sinking as a combat loss due to enemy action. Eagle 56 was the second to last U.S. Navy warship to be sunk by Nazi Germany during World War Two.
The loss was classified as a boiler explosion until 2001, when historical evidence convinced the U.S. Navy to reclassify the sinking as a combat loss due to enemy action. Eagle 56 was the second to last U.S. Navy warship to be sunk by Nazi Germany during World War Two.
