engaged . A protracted fight ensued, with Grumman TBF Avenger and Grumman F4F Wildcat aircraft from Bogue dropping depth charges and Fido homing torpedoes, and the destroyers expending roughly 200 depth charges in total. After 27 hours, the submarine was sunk with the loss of 13 crew (46 survived the action). After escorting another convoy from Norfolk to North Africa and back, Badger underwent conversion to high speed transport at Charleston and was redesignated APD-33 on 19 May 1944. Sailing for duty in the Pacific, she steamed via the West Coast and Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal where she arrived on 12 August. From there she carried to the Palau Islands. Reaching Angaur Island on 12 September, she screened warships bombarding the island and from 14 to 16 September sent her frogmen ashore for reconnaissance and demolition work. Intelligence was gathered and obstacles on the beach removed before the ship got underway on 12 October for Leyte, where until 18 October she supported the reconnaissance and bombardment of the east coast of that strategic island and again landed her frogmen. Departing on 21 October, she called at Kossol Passage, Manus, and Nouméa before participating in the Lingayen landings of 5–11 January 1945. In these she lent her effective fire support as requested, and on the first day of the landings, 5 January, shot down an attacking Japanese torpedo plane. Her frogmen landed on the beaches two days later, and, despite frequent air attacks, Badger continued screening during landings from 7 January until sailing on 11 January for Leyte and Ulithi. Until the spring of 1945, the veteran warship was overhauled at Ulithi; conducted patrols off Iwo Jima during heavy fighting on the island; and escorted ships from Guam to Guadalcanal, Nouméa, and Manus. She sailed from Ulithi on 2 April 1945 for Okinawa with carriers delivering replacement aircraft, and subsequently escorted convoys from Saipan to Okinawa. Badger sailed from Eniwetok on 24 June for Pearl Harbor. Ordered thence to San Francisco for reconversion, she reverted to DD-196 on 20 July 1945 and was later decommissioned at that port on 3 October 1945. George E. Badger was scrapped on 3 June 1946. As of 2005, no other U.S. Navy ship has been named George E. Badger. Awards George E. Badger received eight battle stars for World War II service and a Presidential Unit Citation. References External links uboat.net: U-613 uboat.net: U-172 Clemson-class