Interested in submarines? Learn more about USS Virginia

Interested in submarines? Enjoyed Captain Ray Wellborn’s posts? https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/08/the-efficacy-of-submarine-warfare/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-evolution-of-a-submarine-as-a-warship/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-advent-of-submarine-warfare/ You can also preview Captain Wellborn’s course slides here https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/ati-offers-submarines-and-anti-submarine-warfare/ Please read on and learn more about USS Virginia On July 4, 2004, the U.S. Navy commissioned the lead ship in a new class of nuclear-powered attack sub-marine: USS VIRGINIA (SSN 774). The new submarine […]
Interested in submarines? Enjoyed Captain Ray Wellborn’s posts? https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/08/the-efficacy-of-submarine-warfare/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-evolution-of-a-submarine-as-a-warship/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-advent-of-submarine-warfare/ You can also preview Captain Wellborn’s course slides here https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/ati-offers-submarines-and-anti-submarine-warfare/ Please read on and learn more about USS Virginia On July 4, 2004, the U.S. Navy commissioned the lead ship in a new class of nuclear-powered attack sub-marine: USS VIRGINIA (SSN 774). The new submarine warship is 377 feet in length, 34 feet in the beam, has a draft of 30.5 feet at the designer’s waterline and displaces 7,800 dead weight tons submerged. She can accommodate a ship’s company of 134 including 14 officers. VIRGINIA’s length-to-breadth ratio of 11.09 is com-parable to an 11.01 for LOS ANGELES-Class submarines with a 33-foot beam, and is somewhat more than SEAWOLF’s 8.4 with a 42-foot beam, but a little less than Ohio’s 13.3, also with a 42-foot beam. Officially, the U.S. Nary will neither confirm nor deny any U.S. submarine’s speed to be greater than 20 knots, nor any test-depth to be greater than 400 feet. According to open liter- attire, however, VIRGINIA is powered by a S9G pressurized water reactor, made by General Electric, which will not require re-coring for the life of the ship./ Her propulsion plant is rated to produce 40,000 shaft horsepower for a single shaft, and sustain a maximum rated submerged speed of 34 knots. The wall-thickness and diameter of VIRGINIA’s inner pressure hull of cold- rolled, high-yield strength steel, with scrupulously designed hull-penetrations and conscientious seam-welds, allows submarine design engineers to impose a safe-diving test-depth of 1,600 feet. Furthermore, this innovative design reduces the number of needed hull-penetrations with eight non-hull penetrating antennae packages. To meet yet another top-level requirement VIRGINIA is fitted with SEAWOLF-level acoustic quietness for stealth, as well as acoustic tile cladding for active acoustic signal absorption. For additional tasking, VIRGINIA is fitted with an integral nine-man lockout chamber for use with the Advanced SEAL (sea, air and land) Delivery System (ASDS), which essentially is a mini-submarine capable of dry-delivery of a SEAL team. Moreover, the internal torpedo magazine space arrangement can be adapted to provide 2,400 cubic feet of space for up to 40 SEAL team members arid their equipment. And, VIRGINIA is capable of carrying and operating advanced unmanned underwater vehicles, wake-homing detection equipment and a deployable active hi-static sonar source. VIRGINIA is an extremely capable submarine and, in the hands of a well- trained, experienced ship’s company skilled in the operational arts of submarine warfare, has an incisive ability for both deep-ocean and shallow- water operations of all kinds, including antisubmarine warfare. So, for comparison to early strivings for more precise navigation on the open sea, consider the most sophisticated state-of-the art computer-data processors, which precisely calculate the output of an absolutely ingenious arrangement of gyros and accelerometers as they sense the slightest nano-scale movement. This ever-so-precise, self-contained navigational system is fitfully named SINS, the Ship’s Inertial Navigation System. In the modem era, the encapsulated inner workings of SINS can be held in the palm of your hands. But, at the top of the list, are the technological advancements resident in the Common Submarine Radio Room (CSRR) in that a U.S. submarine can be in constant communication with the submarine operating authority while submerged at sea anywhere in the oceans of the world For perspective and historical comparison of technological advances, note that the first nationally authorized submarine warship was not officially commissioned until 1900, while the first trans-Atlantic radio-telegraph was not operational until 1901. VIRGINIA’s modern CSRR for entering the 21st century is for a worldwide battle space. A modernized ship self-defense system will replace the advanced combat direction system in VIRGINIA-Class upgrades. All the software programs for the command-control system module in VIRGINIA are compatible with the Joint Military Command Information System. The Global Command-Control System (GCCS) is a multi-service information management system for maritime users that displays and disseminates data through an extensive array of common interfaces. GCCS is also a multi-service information management system for maritime users that can display and disseminate data through an extensive array of common interfaces. GCCS is also a multi-sensor data-fusion system for command analyses and decision- making. Thus, in the main, it is utilized for overall force coordination The ocean surveillance information system receives, processes, displays and disseminates joint-service information regarding fixed and mobile targets on land and at sea. The innovative design of the upgraded Automated Digital Network System (ADNS) encompasses all radio frequency circuits for routing and switching both strategic and tactical command control communication computer information (C41) with an internet-like transmission control protocol. In doing so, ADNS links battle group units with each other and with the digital information system network. The ADNS now has 224 ship-based units, and four shore-based sites. Network operation centers are linked to three naval computer and telecommunication area master stations, plus one in the Persian Gulf at Bahrain. The Global Broadcast Service is the follow-on for U.S. Navy ultra-high- frequency radio communication via satellite. By 2009, the advanced wide- band system will be the communication upgrade for all U.S. submarines and surface ships, and there is a version planned for U.S. aircraft installation that is under study, Virginia’s combat system suite satisfies a top-level requirement to counter multiple threats with a mission-essential-need statement that details a very effective set of acoustic sensors. The suite features two reel-able towed, linear sonar arrays, the TB-l6 and the thin-line TB-29. Just inside the thin-skinned acoustic window in the bow section of the outer hull is a very sophisticated, state-of-the-art active-passive spherical sonar array, the AN/BQQ-5E. In addition, there are wide-aperture flank-mounted passive sonar arrays; a keel and fin-mounted high sonic frequency active sonar for under-the-ice ranging and maneuvering, and for mine detection and avoidance; a medium sonic frequency active sonar for target ranging; a sonar sensor for intercept of active-ranging signals from an attacking torpedo; and, a self- noise acoustic monitoring system. Moreover, all acoustic systems have advanced signal processors and, where appropriate, algorithms are programmed for beam forming. The Electronic System Measures suite features the AN/BRD-7F radio direction finder; the electronic signal monitors, AN/WLR-lH and AN/WLR-8(V2/6); the AN/WSQ-5 and AN/BLD-1 radio frequency intercept periscope-mounted devices; and the AN/WLQ-4(V1), AN/WLR-l0 and AN/BLQ-l0 radar warning devices. The AN/BPS-15A and BPS-16 are I and J-band navigational piloting radars, respectively, with each having separate wave-guides—one mounted inside a retractable mast and the other mounted inside a periscope. Virginia has four 21-inch-diameter internally loaded torpedo tubes with storage cradles for a combination of an additional 22 torpedoes, missiles, mines, and 20-foot-long, 21-inch diameter Autonomous Underwater Vehicles. In the free-flooding area between the outer and inner hulls, just aft of the bow-mounted AN/BQQ-5E spherical sonar array is Virginia’s Vertical Launch System, comprised of twelve externally loaded 21-inch diameter launch tubes for Tomahawk, the Sea-Launched-Cruise-Missile (SLCM). Shallow water is an anathema for submariners because submarines on the surface are exceptionally vulnerable. Thus, it is said that the best place to sink a submarine is while it is in port. Does that mean that Virginia cannot operate effectively in shallow water?Absolutely not! Another disconcerting imprecation to submariners is hearing the high-pitch “pings— active sonar accompanied by the shrill of cavitations from small, high-speed screws, which are the distinctive sounds of an acoustic torpedo running to ruin your entire day. French author Jules Verne (1825-1905) entertained readers with exciting tales of undersea adventure featuring his fictional submarine Nautilus in his book 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Notably, USS Nautilus (SSN 571) logged much more than 20,000 leagues under the sea—like, 80,000 nautical mile before her first re-coring, and Virginia will log over 125,000 leagues of submerged steaming in her service life– without refueling. The nuclear-powered submarine is a far-ranging, very effective, versatile warship for the 21st century—and, the projection of national power by ASDS and SLCMs from international waters only requires unilateral action by the National Command Authority. _____________________________________ Over a 30-year U.S. Navy career Captain Ray Wellborn served some 13 years in submarines. He graduated with a B.S. from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1959, a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in 1969, and a M.A. from the Naval War College in 1976. He was a senior lecturer for marine engineering at Texas A&M University Galveston from 1992 to 1996, and currently is a consultant for maritime affairs, and a once-a-year part-time instructor for the Applied Technology Institute’s three-day course titled “Introduction to Submarines—and, Their Combat Systems.     You might also want to visit the home site of USS Virginia veterans and their families. http://www.ussvirginiabase.org/  
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ATI Offers Submarines and Anti-Submarine Warfare

If you enjoyed the previous post on Submarines and Submarine Warfare by Captain Ray Wellborn, https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/08/the-efficacy-of-submarine-warfare/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-evolution-of-a-submarine-as-a-warship/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-advent-of-submarine-warfare/ you will be interested in ATI’s Submarines and Anti-Submarine Warfare course.  This three-day course presents the fundamental philosophy of submarine design, construction, and stability as well as the utilization of submarines as cost-effective warships at sea. A thumbnail […]
If you enjoyed the previous post on Submarines and Submarine Warfare by Captain Ray Wellborn, https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/08/the-efficacy-of-submarine-warfare/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-evolution-of-a-submarine-as-a-warship/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-advent-of-submarine-warfare/ you will be interested in ATI’s Submarines and Anti-Submarine Warfare course.  This three-day course presents the fundamental philosophy of submarine design, construction, and stability as well as the utilization of submarines as cost-effective warships at sea. A thumbnail history of waging war by coming up from below the surface of the sea relates prior gains—and, prior set-backs. Today’s submarine tasking is discussed in consonance with the strategy and policy of the US, and the goals, objectives, mission, functions, tasks, responsibilities, and roles of the US Navy. The foreboding efficacy of submarine warfare is analyzed referencing some enthralling calculations for its Benefits-to-Cost, in that Submarines Sink Ships! You can preview the course slides here:  
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The Advent of Submarine Warfare

The Advent of Submarine Warfare.  The epoch for Submarine Warfare, for all intents and purposes, opened with the brusque plume of an exploding torpedo launched by a German U-boat sinking SS LUSITANIA, a British passenger liner, off the southwest coast of Ireland on May 7, 1915, leaving 1154 dead, including 114 Americans.[1] Patently, the submarine […]
The Advent of Submarine Warfare.  The epoch for Submarine Warfare, for all intents and purposes, opened with the brusque plume of an exploding torpedo launched by a German U-boat sinking SS LUSITANIA, a British passenger liner, off the southwest coast of Ireland on May 7, 1915, leaving 1154 dead, including 114 Americans.[1] Patently, the submarine evolved from a very awkward beginning into a very versatile, very stealthy, and very cost-effective warship.  The following Benefit-to-Cost, B/C, analyses compare the costs of ships sank by warships to the costs of those warships lost in the effort.  Statistically, this B/C portrays the efficacy of the submarine warship as a very cost-effective, ship-sinking interdictor of ocean sea-lanes. In WW-I, German U-boats sank 5,708 merchant ships, and 62 warships. To absorb the magnitude of those numbers, you may have to read them twice-over so as not to trivialize their significance—or, their economic significance.  These sinking numbers equate to some 11,018,865 dead-weight tons (dwt) of steel in merchant-ship hulls plus their consigned cargo, and 538,535 dwt of warships.  Figuratively, and literally, that’s a colossal “sunk cost.” This sunk cost can be estimated parametrically to be $39.4-billion—at the time-value of money for 1918.  Then, dividing that “Benefit” by the “Cost” of the lost of 178 U-boats estimated parametrically to be $1.3-billion, yields a B/C ratio of 30.5! Notably, a B/C of 1.0 is breakeven, doubling your money is 2.0, and 4.0 is considered a beneficial venture. There was a lot to be learned in the two intervening decades between WW-I and WW-II.  Ardent studies of the technologies and techniques associated with Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) were lessons that had to be learned by the “Hunter,” and the “Hunted.” Inevitably, as if portended by the foreboding Winds of War, German U-boats in WW-II sank 23.4-million dwt of allied shipping plus their cargo, which together is estimated to be $78.5-billion.  Dividing that by the lost of 781 U-boats estimated to be $5.7-billion yields a B/C of 13.8. In comparison to the greater B/C ratio in WW-I, one deduces that ASW in the Atlantic apparently helped to cut this telltale ratio by more than half.  I doubt though that this lesser B/C was any solace to those having to stomach the lost of $78.5-billion– at the time-value of money for 1945. Meanwhile, On the Far Side, how did US submarines fare in WW-II against the Eastern island empire of Japan in the Pacific? US submarines sank 4.9-million dwt of Japanese warships, and merchant ships plus their cargo, which together is estimated to be $16.3-billion.  Dividing that Benefit by the Cost of the lost of 52 US submarines materially estimated to be $355.3-million yields a B/C of 45.9![2] At the beginning of 1943, as another statistical example, over the sea-lane between Taiwan and the Philippines at the Bashi Channel choke-point for the Luzon Straits connecting the South China Sea with the Philippine Sea, Japanese oil-tankers were transporting some 1.5-million barrels of crude oil per month for Japan’s refineries to make distillate fuels for their war-machines.  That sea-lane was interdicted by US submarines, literally torpedoing Japan’s oil-imports.  By the end of 1944, this crude-oil supply had been reduced by 80 percent to something less than 300,000 barrels per month. US submarines, with only 2% of all US Navy personnel, were credited with sinking 55% of all Japanese merchant ships, and 29% of all Japanese warships. This era of submarine warfare, however, is still a “work-in-progress.”  It began auspiciously on May 7, 1915, when a German U-boat torpedoed and sank SS LUSITANIA off the southwest coast of Ireland.  For the moment, its log’s tab is set on May 21, 1982, when a British nuclear-powered attack submarine, HMS CONQUEROR, torpedoed and sank Argentina’s battle cruiser BELGRADO off the Argentine coast in the approaches to the Falkland Islands—a 150-year-old British colony that occupying Argentine armed forces two weeks later surrendered back to British armed forces on June 4, 1982. The lead-in photo for this closing is a subtle depiction of the forebodingness of Submarine Warfare for several significant reasons.  It could be said to be a chilling photo because it is of a submarine warship entering a German port. In 1936, Chancellor Adolf Hitler officially opened the Kiel Canal, and relegated the inaugural passage to one of Der Kriegsmarine Unterseebooten. So, the Third Reich’s construction of the Kiel Canal may have been for other means to bolster Germany’s maritime economy.
  Thus, HARDER’s transit of the Kiel Canal at the end of Kieler Woche could be deemed to have been some surrealistic scheme to top-off the Kiel Canal’s twenty-fifth anniversary with a transit of a Type XXI U-boat.  But perhaps, I just consider this photo to be significant because I am the young submarine officer pictured on deck with the Anchor Detail as HARDER stood in to Kiel that day.  Nevertheless, it remains: Submarines Sink Ships!

[1] Notably, in 1916, the year after a U-boat sank SS LUISITANIA, USS E-1 (SS 24), which was 135 feet in length with a submerged displacement of about 400 dwt, became the first submarine to cross the Atlantic under her own power, that is, the first trans-Atlantic crossing by a coal-oil-powered submarine.
[2] Notably, this B/C was higher than that for German U-boats because by my deductive reasoning the US tactics of submarine approach and attack were with more stealth, and that ASW by the Japanese Navy was less intense and less effective. Read previous posts by Captain Wellborn here https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/08/the-efficacy-of-submarine-warfare/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-evolution-of-a-submarine-as-a-warship/
 

The Evolution Of The Submarine As A Warship

THE EVOLUTION OF A SUBMARINE—AS A WARSHIP. At the close of the 19th century, the hail heard around the world was Britannia Rules the Sea. Ships of the Royal Navy were high profile targets for their enemies—both foreign and domestic. Douglas Porch, in his book The Path to Victory published in 2004, by Farrar, Straus, […]
THE EVOLUTION OF A SUBMARINE—AS A WARSHIP. At the close of the 19th century, the hail heard around the world was Britannia Rules the Sea. Ships of the Royal Navy were high profile targets for their enemies—both foreign and domestic. Douglas Porch, in his book The Path to Victory published in 2004, by Farrar, Straus, and Giroux in New York, revealed that Irish revolutionaries in 1876, known as the Fenian Brotherhood, contracted John P. Holland, an Irish-American who had immigrated to the US in 1872, to develop a way to sneak up on British ships from underwater, and sink them. Holland’s work began in Paterson, New Jersey, on the Passaic River, and then moved to New York harbor. The Fenian’s, however, withdrew their support of Holland’s research when he failed to meet their timetables. Private investors though kept Holland afloat. By 1898, Holland had produced his sixth prototype—and, the US Navy was ready to buy. On April 11, 1900, the US Navy purchased Holland-VI for $150,000; and, for the record, the US Navy Submarine Force was born. Then, on October 13, 1900, USS HOLLAND (SS 1) duly was commissioned, Lieutenant H. H. Caldwell, US Navy, Commanding.   HOLLAND was 53.3 feet overall, with a maximum beam of 10.3 feet, a cruising draft of 8.5 feet, and a submerged displacement of 75 deadweight tons, dwt. HOLLAND was constructed with fitted steel-plate attached to angle-iron rib-frames that had been forged into perfect circles starting at 10.25 feet for the central one, and then decreasing to end-closures to form a parabolic, spindle-shaped hull. Safe test-depth was set at 80 feet to correspond to an external, water-head, crushing pressure of 35 psi, pounds-per-square-inch. HOLLAND featured an ingenious dual-propulsion system. A 50-horsepower Otto (gasoline) engine was geared to drive a propulsion-screw– a propeller– directly, or by a friction clutch could be connected as a dynamotor for charging HOLLAND’s electric battery. This battery then could be switched to provide electrical energy to an electric motor that by friction clutch could be connected to the propulsion shaft. HOLLAND’s maximum speed on the surface by gasoline-powered engine was rated at 7 knots; and, when topped-up with fuel, HOLLAND had an endurance-range of about 1500 nautical miles, nm, at her engine’s maximum continuous rating for making turns for 7 knots. When submerged, HOLLAND’s fully charged battery discharging at the six-hour rate had the ampere-hour capacity for electric motor propulsion at a rated maximum submerged speed of 5 knots for a submerged endurance-range of about 30 miles! And, to go in harm’s way, HOLLAND had a single internally loaded 18-inch diameter tube that extended through the pressure hull in the bow for launching the new, improved Whitehead diving-torpedo Mark-III that was 11.65 feet in length, and rated at 30 knots for a run of 2000 yards. Moreover, HOLLAND was designed with space-and-weight accommodation for two torpedo reloads. Submarines were now stand-off warships. Submarine Weapon Development.  The British, however, lagged in early submarine development.  The Admiralty apparently thought submarine attacks were dishonorable; and, declared that captured submariners would be treated as pirates, and be hanged, accordingly. After Britain’s rivals at sea commissioned Holland to build submarines for them, the Admiralty changed its tune.  As what could be expected, Holland later profited from selling submarines to that same Admiralty whose fleet he once had been paid to sink. It is interesting to note that it was the US inventor Robert Fulton who in 1805, after studying the design of Bushnell’s Turtle, positively demonstrated in a weapon-trial the feasibility of sinking a ship by detonating an explosive charge against its underwater hull. Some sixty years later in 1866, two years after the submarine CSS H. L. HUNLEY was lost detonating a torpedo attached to a bow-sprit spar that sank USS HOUSATONIC in Charleston harbor, Robert Whitehead, a Scottish inventor, demonstrated his advanced development model of an auto-mobile torpedo—to the Germans. At the behest of officials representing the German Kaiser’s government in Austria, Whitehead demonstrated an unmanned, underwater vehicle that was a self-propelled, lighter-than-water dirigible—a “diving submarine.”  It essentially was an automated-mobile—an auto-mobile—underwater vehicle that could deliver a “numbing” explosive charge—a torpedo—to detonate against the underwater hull of a target-ship, and sink her—from a stand-off distance! As the world turned into the 20th century, a booming Industrial Revolution seemingly elevated science and technology as if they were its King and Queen, their supreme overseer.  It was like there had been a royal Coronation of Science & Technology. Figuratively, a silver spoon was placed in the mouth of each new steamship born in modernized shipways.  They indeed were capital-intensive assets.  This was Big Time financing. With the continuing evolution of submarines as reliable warships, torpedo advancements burgeoned to keep pace with them.  For instance, by the onset of WW-I, US submarines had the new Bliss-Leavitt Mark-X torpedo, which weighed in at a hefty 1,628 pounds with a 326-pound warhead, stood 17.1 feet in length with an 18-inch diameter-girth, and ran 6,000 yards (3 nm) with a rated speed of 35 knots. Now, enter the most efficient, the most cost-effective, the most peerless shipping interdictor, the most devastating business-loss inflictor, and most menacing national economic strangler of them all: Der Kriegsmarine Unterseebooten! The Enemy Below. During WW-I the word “U-boat” entered the world’s lexicon as a contraction of Unterseeboot, the German labeling of their new submarine warships. U-boat also entered the world’s consciousness as an offensive instrument of warfare that devastated commercial shipping. Contrary to popular belief, the crews of Germany’s feted Ubootwaffe were not all volunteers.  Once committed though, each German submarine-sailor soon came to understand that he must take pride in being a member of a unique undersea brotherhood.  Thus, the sailors of this brotherhood– this Ubootwaffe– became bound together by an intense camaraderie, by ever-present dangers, and by a unity of purpose more powerful than any known to other sailors. So, with over-extended capital investments, the British built new, capital-intensive, ocean-going steamships to bolster their colonized trade—strategic imports—from overseas.  The strategic plan of the Germans—Britain’s “new” continental rival– was to interdict British capital-intensive, economic assets that sailed those seas, and do so with stealth and surprise from a hidden position just below the surface of the sea. Germany set about to build and crew cost-effective U-boats whose individual tactical ship-sinking combats could be managed strategically to achieve their national goal of Economic Equality with their rival Great Britain.  These U-boats were armed with a German version of an advanced Whitehead torpedo that very effectively—very cost-effectively– delivered an explosive charge to a target-ship at a stand-off distance that typically was less than half a mile even though the torpedo had a maximum run of three miles. These U-boats featured a dynamo with an innovative design of an internal combustion engine that was not fueled with gasoline—and, did not require an ignition system.  Thus, this “rational heat engine” was more efficient, and safer, than gasoline-fueled ones.       In 1897, after a major re-design of the lubrication system for this coal-dust fueled, single cylinder, four cycle pump-engine for flooded mineshafts, the first successful engineering development model of a liquid-fueled, “coal-oil,” engine was completed by its then-bankrupt inventor in collaboration with the Krupp firm and an Augsburg-Nuremberg machine shop, Maschinefabrik Augsberg Nürnburg– MAN. Some fifteen years later, in 1912, a year before the death of the engine’s impoverished inventor, the US Navy procured a number of them from New London Ship and Engine Company, NELSECO, teamed with Vickers– a British shipbuilder licensed by this German conglomerate.  These engines were the coal-oil fueled, four cycle version having four cylinders with a 12.75-inch bore and a 13.5 stroke that were rated 275 BHP @400 RPM.  They were scheduled for installation in E-1 Class (ex-SKIPJACK) US-submarines to replace the scheduled gasoline-powered prime movers for the dynamos in their dual-propulsion hybrid system.[1] In 1908, the German Navy favored the lighter (pounds-per-horsepower), two cycle version; but, in preparatory expediency for their inevitable war plans, they proceeded to fit all their U-boats with a six-cylinder, four cycle version of this now-feted engine as designed by its fatherly inventor whose name they bear– Rudolf Diesel, 1858-1913. The rest of the story is legendary. Diesel Boats Forever!
 
[1] Notably, on March 5, 1912, a month before SS TITANTIC sank, President Taft established the Atlantic Submarine Flotilla– Lieutenant Chester W. Nimitz, US Navy, Commanding. Continue to read here https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-advent-of-submarine-warfare/ Read the previous post by Captain Wellborn here https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/08/the-efficacy-of-submarine-warfare/    
 
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TORPEDOS LOS! -The Efficacy of Submarine Warships.

SUBMARINE TASKING. Pursuant to mission accomplishment in support of national policies, and in particular for a duly delineated national armed-force objective to “Project National Power,” submarines can be tasked to launch land-attack cruise-missiles from international waters– as directed unilaterally by our National Command Authority, NCA. Submarines can be tasked to conduct surveillance and reconnaissance operations […]
SUBMARINE TASKING. Pursuant to mission accomplishment in support of national policies, and in particular for a duly delineated national armed-force objective to “Project National Power,” submarines can be tasked to launch land-attack cruise-missiles from international waters– as directed unilaterally by our National Command Authority, NCA. Submarines can be tasked to conduct surveillance and reconnaissance operations inside and outside the battle space, covertly.  In that same vein, submarines can be tasked to insert, and, or retract Special Operating Forces, SOF, on the littoral shores of the world’s oceans– covertly. In more poignant warfare scenarios, submarines can be tasked to mine sea-lane choke points as well as enemy harbors. Moreover, and perhaps most particular, submarines can hunt and kill other opposing submarines in the same undersea medium with them.  Besides the deep ocean, that undersea medium includes the shallow waters for our coastal defense as well as that for projecting US national power by amphibious forces in foreign waters. Notwithstanding the brassy jingoism above, submarines were first procured to sink threatening warships by surprising them from below the sea with the numbing sting of a torpedo.  For over a hundred years now, submarines have been so tasked; and, since WWI, submarines have been tasked to interdict sea lanes and sink unarmed merchant ships to deny re-supply.  Yes, VIRGINIA, an economic strangler lurks in the seaSubmarines Sink Ships! When SEAWOLFconceptualized in the painting above—was launched in 1995, there were some 24,000 merchant ships of over 1,000 gross-registered-tons plying the sea lanes of the world for international trade and transport.  For national comparison, a table of Merchant Fleets of the World, ranked by number of oceangoing vessels, is provided below delineating a grand total of their displacements as about 657-million dwt (deadweight tons). As capital-intensive assets—meaning their annual amortized construction cost and operating expense well exceed the cost of labor to operate them—their collective loan-value, without any consigned cargo, can be estimated parametrically to total about $1.5-trillion.  Moreover, the annualized value of their consigned cargo that they deliver each year can be estimated to total about $3.0-trillion. Ask yourself which of these national economies today could stay afloat with the sunk cost of its Merchant Fleet? And today, with near instantaneous news around the world, when the first explosion from a submarine-launched torpedo plumes brusquely, so will ocean-shipping insurance rates. In regard to fleet operations, submarines can be tasked to provide INDIRECT, ASSOCIATED, and DIRECT Battle Group support.  For deployments, Time-On-Station for modern nuclear-powered submarines is dependent only on the amount of food they must carry to feed their crew—like, a 90-day supply, without replenishment. Some submarine-patrol stations literally are On the Far Side.  For instance, our forward submarine base on Guam in the western Pacific is about 12 days of submerged steaming from San Diego.  Then for a submerged transit from Guam to a patrol station in the Gulf of Oman via the Java Sea and the Lombok Straits thence across the Indian Ocean could take as long as 16 days. Continue to read here: https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-evolution-of-a-submarine-as-a-warship/ https://aticourses.com/blog/index.php/2011/07/11/the-advent-of-submarine-warfare/  
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Did You “Hear” About the Underwater Acoustical Courses at ATI?

Video Clip: Click to Watch Maybe Being “Underwater” is a Good Thing?   Since 1984, the Applied Technology Institute (ATI) has provided leading-edge public courses and onsite technical training. Whether you are a busy engineer, a technical expert or a project manager, you can enhance your understanding of complex acoustical systems in a short time. […]
Acoustic simulation in a simple ocean environment
Video Clip: Click to Watch Maybe Being “Underwater” is a Good Thing?   Since 1984, the Applied Technology Institute (ATI) has provided leading-edge public courses and onsite technical training. Whether you are a busy engineer, a technical expert or a project manager, you can enhance your understanding of complex acoustical systems in a short time. Why not take a short course? ATI short courses are less than a week long and are designed to help you keep your professional knowledge up-to-date. Our courses provide a practical overview of acoustical technologies which provide a strong foundation for understanding the issues that must be confronted in the use, design and development of such complex systems. The three courses below present the fundamentals of underwater acoustic analysis and modeling, which deals with the translation of our physical understanding of sound in the sea into mathematical formulas solvable by computers. The courses provide a comprehensive treatment of all types of underwater acoustic models including environmental, propagation, noise, reverberation and sonar performance models. ATI’S UNDERWATER ACOUSTIC SYSTEM ANALYSIS COURSE This four-day course is based upon the text Underwater Acoustic System Analysis by William Burdic. The course presents the fundamentals of underwater acoustics, acoustic signal generation and acoustic signal processing in sufficient depth to permit the analysis and optimization of the performance of underwater systems. The sonar systems include a variety of applications including active and passive detection of surface and sub-surface targets, acoustic communications, acoustic intercept and underwater depth sounders. The course will stress the required skills and techniques for system analysis and performance prediction. Course Outline: • Introduction to Sonar Analysis: Historical overview; important acoustical properties and characteristics; Acoustical Waves; Reflections and Refraction in the Ocean; Units and db. • Sound Propagation In The Ocean: Sound Speed Variation in the ocean with variation in temperature, depth, salinity; Geographic Variation; Acoustic bottom and surface losses; absorption losses; Typical propagation modes; surface layer; shallow channels; deep channels; convergence zones; RAP; Typical Propagation Curves. • Ambient Noise in the Ocean: Sources of noise; shipping; wind generated; thermal; others; Noise spectra; ambient noise angular distribution and correlation properties; use of the spatial correlation function in system calculations. • Target Characteristics: Passive signature sources including propulsion, propeller, auxiliary machinery, flow-induced noise; effect of self-generated noise on sonar performance; Target strength for mono-static and bi-static sonars; Reverberation from volume, surface and bottom. • Acoustic Transducers: Definitions, piezo-ceramic properties; Hydrophone configurations; equivalent circuits and sensitivity; Projector configurations, equivalent circuits, efficiency and operation. • Beamforming-Spatial Filtering: Purpose and types of beamforming; spatial filters, multi-element arrays, array shading functions; beam steering; gain of arrays in distributed noise; angle estimation. • Performance Analysis-Statistical Basis: Hypothesis testing and optimum detection processors for active and passive systems; ROC curves; Estimation of time delay, frequency and bearing. • Performance Analysis: Practical examples; Examples illustrating the analysis of sonar systems; passive narrowband and broadband detection; passive angle tracking and ranging; High-power system detection for multipath reverberation and noise-limited conditions with Doppler Processing. Your Instructors for this Course: William Burdic received his BS and MS at Oregon State University. He served as an instructor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, Oregon State University when he joined Rockwell International. He has been engaged in the analysis and design of advanced radar and sonar systems. He is the author of two books “Radar Signal Analysis” and “Underwater Acoustic System Analysis”. James W. Jenkins joined the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in 1970 and has worked in ASW and sonar systems analysis. He has worked with system studies and at-sea testing with passive and active systems. He is currently a senior physicist investigating improved signal processing systems, APB, own-ship monitoring, and SSBN sonar. He has taught sonar and continuing education courses since 1977 and is the Director of the Applied Technology Institute (ATI). ATI’S UNDERWATER ACOUSTICS 201 COURSE This two-day course explains how to translate our physical understanding of sound in the sea into mathematical formulas solvable by computers. It provides a comprehensive treatment of all types of underwater acoustic models including environmental, propagation, noise, reverberation and sonar performance models. Specific examples of each type of model are discussed to illustrate model formulations, assumptions and algorithm efficiency. Guidelines for selecting and using available propagation, noise and reverberation models are highlighted. Demonstrations illustrate the proper execution and interpretation of PC-based sonar models. Each student will receive a copy of Underwater Acoustic Modeling and Simulation by Paul C. Etter, in addition to a complete set of lecture notes. Your Instructor for this Course: Paul C. Etter has worked in the fields of ocean-atmosphere physics and environmental acoustics for the past thirty-five years supporting federal and state agencies, academia and private industry. He received his BS degree in Physics and his MS degree in Oceanography at Texas A&M University. Mr. Etter served on active duty in the U.S. Navy as an Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Officer aboard frigates. He is the author or co-author of more than 180 technical reports and professional papers addressing environmental measurement technology, underwater acoustics and physical oceanography. Mr. Etter is the author of the textbook Underwater Acoustic Modeling and Simulation (3rd edition). Course Outline: • Introduction. Nature of acoustical measurements and prediction. Modern developments in physical and mathematical modeling. Diagnostic versus prognostic applications. Latest developments in inverse-acoustic sensing of the oceans. • The Ocean as an Acoustic Medium. Distribution of physical and chemical properties in the oceans. Sound-speed calculation, measurement and distribution. Surface and bottom boundary conditions. Effects of circulation patterns, fronts, eddies and fine-scale features on acoustics. Biological effects. • Propagation. Basic concepts, boundary interactions, attenuation and absorption. Ducting phenomena including surface ducts, sound channels, convergence zones, shallow-water ducts and Arctic half-channels. Theoretical basis for propagation modeling. Frequency-domain wave equation formulations including ray theory, normal mode, multipath expansion, fast field (wavenumber integration) and parabolic approximation techniques. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Specific examples. • Noise. Noise sources and spectra. Depth dependence and directionality. Slope-conversion effects. Theoretical basis for noise modeling. Ambient noise and beam-noise statistics models. Pathological features arising from inappropriate assumptions. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Specific examples. • Reverberation. Volume and boundary scattering. Shallow-water and under-ice reverberation features. Theoretical basis for reverberation modeling. Cell scattering and point scattering techniques. Bistatic reverberation formulations and operational restrictions. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Specific examples. • Sonar Performance Models. Sonar equations. Monostatic and bistatic geometries. Model operating systems. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Sources of oceanographic and acoustic data. Specific examples. • Simulation. Review of simulation theory including advanced methodologies and infrastructure tools. • Demonstrations. Guided demonstrations illustrate proper execution and interpretation of PC-based monostatic and bistatic sonar models. ATI’S UNDERWATER ACOUSTIC MODELING AND SIMULATION COURSE The subject of underwater acoustic modeling deals with the translation of our physical understanding of sound in the sea into mathematical formulas solvable by computers. This course provides a comprehensive treatment of all types of underwater acoustic models including environmental, propagation, noise, reverberation and sonar performance models. Specific examples of each type of model are discussed to illustrate model formulations, assumptions and algorithm efficiency. Guidelines for selecting and using available propagation, noise and reverberation models are highlighted. Problem sessions allow students to exercise PC-based propagation and active sonar models. Each student will receive a copy of Underwater Acoustic Modeling and Simulation by Paul C. Etter (a $250 value) in addition to a complete set of lecture notes. View course sample for this course Your Instructor for this Course: Paul C. Etter has worked in the fields of ocean-atmosphere physics and environmental acoustics for the past thirty years supporting federal and state agencies, academia and private industry. He received his BS degree in Physics and his MS degree in Oceanography at Texas A&M University. Mr. Etter served on active duty in the U.S. Navy as an Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Officer aboard frigates. He is the author or co-author of more than 140 technical reports and professional papers addressing environmental measurement technology, underwater acoustics and physical oceanography. Mr. Etter is the author of the textbook Underwater Acoustic Modeling and Simulation. Course Outline: • Introduction. Nature of acoustical measurements and prediction. Modern developments in physical and mathematical modeling. Diagnostic versus prognostic applications. Latest developments in acoustic sensing of the oceans. • The Ocean as an Acoustic Medium. Distribution of physical and chemical properties in the oceans. Sound-speed calculation, measurement and distribution. Surface and bottom boundary conditions. Effects of circulation patterns, fronts, eddy and fine-scale features on acoustics. Biological effects. • Propagation. Observations and Physical Models. Basic concepts, boundary interactions, attenuation and absorption. Shear-wave effects in the sea floor and ice cover. Ducting phenomena including surface ducts, sound channels, convergence zones, shallow-water ducts and Arctic half-channels. Spatial and temporal coherence. Mathematical Models. Theoretical basis for propagation modeling. Frequency-domain wave equation formulations including ray theory, normal mode, multipath expansion, fast field and parabolic approximation techniques. New developments in shallow-water and under-ice models. Domains of applicability. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Specific examples (PE and RAYMODE). References. Demonstrations. • Noise. Observations and Physical Models. Noise sources and spectra. Depth dependence and directionality. Slope-conversion effects. Mathematical Models. Theoretical basis for noise modeling. Ambient noise and beam-noise statistics models. Pathological features arising from inappropriate assumptions. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Specific example (RANDI-III). References. • Reverberation. Observations and Physical Models. Volume and boundary scattering. Shallow-water and under-ice reverberation features. Mathematical Models. Theoretical basis for reverberation modeling. Cell scattering and point scattering techniques. Bistatic reverberation formulations and operational restrictions. Data support requirements. Specific examples (REVMOD and Bistatic Acoustic Model). References. • Sonar Performance Models. Sonar equations. Model operating systems. Model summary tables. Data support requirements. Sources of oceanographic and acoustic data. Specific examples (NISSM and Generic Sonar Model). References. • Modeling and Simulation. Review of simulation theory including advanced methodologies and infrastructure tools. Overview of engineering, engagement, mission and theater level models. Discussion of applications in concept evaluation, training and resource allocation. • Modern Applications in Shallow Water and Inverse Acoustic Sensing. Stochastic modeling, broadband and time-domain modeling techniques, matched field processing, acoustic tomography, coupled ocean-acoustic modeling, 3D modeling, and chaotic metrics. • Model Evaluation. Guidelines for model evaluation and documentation. Analytical benchmark solutions. Theoretical and operational limitations. Verification, validation and accreditation. Examples. • Demonstrations and Problem Sessions. Demonstration of PC-based propagation and active sonar models. Hands-on problem sessions and discussion of results.
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ATI Offers Advanced Courses Sonar and Submarine Engineering

Do you Need Active or Passive Sonar? Video Clip: Click to Watch Advanced Topics in Underwater Acoustics and Warfare From active versus passive sonar to nuclear versus diesel submarines; how are you keeping up with the latest advances in underwater acoustics and warfare? These two four-day short courses summarize both basic and “leading-edge” topics. In each […]
Do you Need Active or Passive Sonar?
Do you Need Active or Passive Sonar?
Video Clip: Click to Watch
Advanced Topics in Underwater Acoustics and Warfare
From active versus passive sonar to nuclear versus diesel submarines; how are you keeping up with the latest advances in underwater acoustics and warfare?
These two four-day short courses summarize both basic and “leading-edge” topics. In each class, the basics principles are reviewed and then current achievements and challenges are addressed. The aim of the instructors is to make available practical results and lessons-learned in a tutorial form suitable for a broad range of people working in underwater acoustics and warfare. The course is designed for sonar systems engineers, combat systems engineers and undersea warfare professionals who wish to enhance their understanding and become familiar with the “big picture”. Why not take a short course from ATI?
Since 1984, the Applied Technology Institute (ATI) has provided leading-edge public courses and onsite technical training. ATI short courses are less than a week long and are designed to help you keep your professional knowledge up-to-date. Our courses provide a practical overview of space and defense technologies which provide a strong foundation for understanding the issues that must be confronted in the use, regulation and development of complex systems. Whether you are a busy engineer, a technical expert or a project manager, you can enhance your understanding of complex systems in a short time. You will become aware of the basic vocabulary essential to interact meaningfully with your colleagues. Course Outline, Samplers, and Notes These two advanced courses provide an in-depth treatment, taught by experts in the field, of the latest results in a selection of core topics of underwater acoustics and warfare. After attending either of these courses, you will receive a full set of detailed notes from the class for future reference, as well as a certificate of completion. Please visit our website for more valuable information. ATI’S ADVANCED TOPICS IN UNDERWATER ACOUSTICS COURSE Course Objectives: • Provide a general understanding of ocean acoustics and sonar principles • Make attendees conversant with all aspects of ocean acoustics and sonar technology, engineering and performance assessment in the context of naval applications. • Provide detailed, critical knowledge for understanding of basic concepts in ocean acoustics, physics and modeling, transduction technology and engineering, processing for sonar signal detection and estimation, and sonar system design and performance assessment. • Provide understanding of the design, development and use of the acoustic propagation modeling software. • Provide information and perspectives on new and emerging sonar technology and techniques and new sonar system configurations and functions. ATI’S ADVANCED UNDERSEA WARFARE COURSE Advanced Undersea Warfare (USW) covers the latest information about submarine employment in future conflicts. The course is taught by a leading innovator in submarine tactics. The roles, capabilities and future developments of submarines in littoral warfare are emphasized. The technology and tactics of modern nuclear and diesel submarines are discussed. The importance of stealth, mobility, and firepower for submarine missions are illustrated by historical and projected roles of submarines. Differences between nuclear and diesel submarines are reviewed. Submarine sensors (sonar, ELINT, visual) and weapons (torpedoes, missiles, mines, special forces) are presented. Advanced USW gives you a wealth of practical knowledge about the latest issues and tactics in submarine warfare. The course provides the necessary background to understand the employment of submarines in the current world environment. This short course is valuable to engineers and scientists who are working in R&D, or in testing of submarine systems. It provides the knowledge and perspective to understand advanced USW in shallow water and regional conflicts. Determine for yourself the value of this course before you sign up. Slide Sampler USW#1 Slide Sampler USW #2 About ATI and the Instructors Our mission here at ATI is to provide expert training and the highest quality professional development in space, communications, defense, sonar, radar, and signal processing. We are not a one-size-fits-all educational facility. Our short classes include both introductory and advanced courses. ATI’s instructors are world-class experts who are the best in the business. They are carefully selected for their ability to clearly explain advanced technology. ATI’s Advanced Topics In Underwater Acoustics Course Instructors Dr. Duncan Sheldon earned his PhD Degree in 1969. He has over twenty-five years’ experience in the field of active sonar signal processing. His experience includes real-time direction at sea of surface sonar assets during ‘free-play’ NATO ASW exercises. He was also a sonar supervisor during controlled and ‘free-play’ NATO ASW exercises. Paul C. Etter has worked in the fields of ocean-atmosphere physics and environmental acoustics for the past thirty- five years supporting federal and state agencies, academia and private industry. He is the author or co-author of more than 180 technical reports and professional papers addressing environmental measurement technology, underwater acoustics and physical oceanography. Mr. Etter is the author of the textbook Underwater Acoustic Modeling and Simulation (3rd edition). Dr. Harold “Bud” Vincent has served on active duty on fast attack and ballistic missile submarines, worked at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, and conducted advanced R&D in the defense industry. Dr. Vincent received the M.S. and Ph.D. in Ocean Engineering (Underwater Acoustics) from the University of Rhode Island. His teaching and research encompasses underwater acoustic systems, communications, signal processing, ocean instrumentation, and navigation. He has been awarded four patents for undersea systems and algorithms. Dr. John P. Ianniello received his Ph. D. Degree in Physical Oceanography from the University of Connecticut in 1977. He has been a member of the Underwater Acoustics Signal Processing Committee of the IEEE Signal Processing Society since 1980. He has received a number of awards including the American Society of Naval Engineers Solberg Award for Individual Research in 1998, and the Department of the Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Award in 2000. His recent research has specialized in the processing of array data from Autonomous Undersea Vehicles. ATI’s Advanced Undersea Warfare Course Instructors Capt. James Patton (USN ret.) is President of Submarine Tactics and Technology, Inc. and is considered a leading innovator of pro- and anti-submarine warfare and naval tactical doctrine. His 30 years of experience includes actively consulting on submarine weapons, advanced combat systems, and other stealth warfare-related issues to over 30 industrial and government entities. Commodore Bhim Uppal former Director of Submarines for the Indian Navy and he is now a consultant with American Systems Corporation. He has direct experience onboard FOXTROT, KILO, and Type 1500 diesel electric submarines. He has over 25 years of experience in diesel submarines with the Indian Navy and can provide a unique insight into the thinking, strategies, and tactics of foreign submarines. He helped purchase and evaluate Type 1500 and KILO diesel submarines. Times, Dates, and Locations Either of these courses can be scheduled on-site at your facility. For the times, dates and locations of all of our short courses, please access our schedule.


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Does Sonar Testing Causes Whales To Beach Themselves?

The new concrete evidence was recently published by Peter Tyack of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the PLos One journal. Dr. Tyack and his colleagues describe a study in the Bahamas where they used underwater microphones to monitor “clicks” emitted by Blainville’s beaked whales while hunting. The whales that were hunting around Navy’s test […]
The new concrete evidence was recently published by Peter Tyack of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the PLos One journal. Dr. Tyack and his colleagues describe a study in the Bahamas where they used underwater microphones to monitor “clicks” emitted by Blainville’s beaked whales while hunting. The whales that were hunting around Navy’s test range started to emit fewer “clicks” as soon as the sonar exercises began and then swam away miles away from the sound. They did return to the same spot a few days later. The problem is that sometimes the whales are unable to get out of the way of sonar quickly enough. The mid-frequency sonar blasts may drive certain whales to change their dive patters in a way their bodies can’t handle, causing fatal injuries. In fact, many of the beached whales have suffered physical trauma, including bleeding around brain, ears and other tissues. These are symptoms similar to “the bends”- the condition that can kill scuba divers if they surface too quickly. On the occasions listed below testing of mid-frequency to low-frequency active sonar was conducted in the area.
  • 1996: 12 Cuvier’s beaked whales beached in Greece
  • 1999: 4 beaked whales beached in the US Virgin Islands
  • 2000: 3 beaked whales beached in Madeira
  • 2002: 14 different whales beached in the Canary Islands
http://news.discovery.com/animals/navy-sonar-scares-whales-110323.html
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The USS Virginia – America’s Newest Nuclear Sub

By Captain Ray Wellborn, Instructor, Applied Technology Institute On July 4, 2004, the U.S. Navy commissioned the lead ship in a new class of nuclear-powered attack sub-marine: USS VIRGINIA (SSN 774). The new submarine warship is 377 feet in length, 34 feet in the beam, has a draft of 30.5 feet at the designer’s waterline […]
By Captain Ray Wellborn, Instructor, Applied Technology Institute On July 4, 2004, the U.S. Navy commissioned the lead ship in a new class of nuclear-powered attack sub-marine: USS VIRGINIA (SSN 774). The new submarine warship is 377 feet in length, 34 feet in the beam, has a draft of 30.5 feet at the designer’s waterline and displaces 7,800 dead weight tons submerged. She can accommodate a ship’s company of 134 including 14 officers. VIRGINIA’s length-to-breadth ratio of 11.09 is com-parable to an 11.01 for LOS ANGELES-Class submarines with a 33-foot beam, and is somewhat more than SEAWOLF’s 8.4 with a 42-foot beam, but a little less than Ohio’s 13.3, also with a 42-foot beam. Officially, the U.S. Nary will neither confirm nor deny any U.S. submarine’s speed to be greater than 20 knots, nor any test-depth to be greater than 400 feet. According to open liter- attire, however, VIRGINIA is powered by a S9G pressurized water reactor, made by General Electric, which will not require re-coring for the life of the ship./ Her propulsion plant is rated to produce 40,000 shaft horsepower for a single shaft, and sustain a maximum rated submerged speed of 34 knots. The wall-thickness and diameter of VIRGINIA’s inner pressure hull of cold- rolled, high-yield strength steel, with scrupulously designed hull-penetrations and conscientious seam-welds, allows submarine design engineers to impose a safe-diving test-depth of 1,600 feet. Furthermore, this innovative design reduces the number of needed hull-penetrations with eight non-hull penetrating antennae packages. To meet yet another top-level requirement VIRGINIA is fitted with SEAWOLF-level acoustic quietness for stealth, as well as acoustic tile cladding for active acoustic signal absorption. For additional tasking, VIRGINIA is fitted with an integral nine-man lockout chamber for use with the Advanced SEAL (sea, air and land) Delivery System (ASDS), which essentially is a mini-submarine capable of dry-delivery of a SEAL team. Moreover, the internal torpedo magazine space arrangement can be adapted to provide 2,400 cubic feet of space for up to 40 SEAL team members arid their equipment. And, VIRGINIA is capable of carrying and operating advanced unmanned underwater vehicles, wake-homing detection equipment and a deployable active hi-static sonar source. VIRGINIA is an extremely capable submarine and, in the hands of a well- trained, experienced ship’s company skilled in the operational arts of submarine warfare, has an incisive ability for both deep-ocean and shallow- water operations of all kinds, including antisubmarine warfare. So, for comparison to early strivings for more precise navigation on the open sea, consider the most sophisticated state-of-the art computer-data processors, which precisely calculate the output of an absolutely ingenious arrangement of gyros and accelerometers as they sense the slightest nano-scale movement. This ever-so-precise, self-contained navigational system is fitfully named SINS, the Ship’s Inertial Navigation System. In the modem era, the encapsulated inner workings of SINS can be held in the palm of your hands. But, at the top of the list, are the technological advancements resident in the Common Submarine Radio Room (CSRR) in that a U.S. submarine can be in constant communication with the submarine operating authority while submerged at sea anywhere in the oceans of the world For perspective and historical comparison of technological advances, note that the first nationally authorized submarine warship was not officially commissioned until 1900, while the first trans-Atlantic radio-telegraph was not operational until 1901. VIRGINIA’s modern CSRR for entering the 21st century is for a worldwide battle space. A modernized ship self-defense system will replace the advanced combat direction system in VIRGINIA-Class upgrades. All the software programs for the command-control system module in VIRGINIA are compatible with the Joint Military Command Information System. The Global Command-Control System (GCCS) is a multi-service information management system for maritime users that displays and disseminates data through an extensive array of common interfaces. GCCS is also a multi-service information management system for maritime users that can display and disseminate data through an extensive array of common interfaces. GCCS is also a multi-sensor data-fusion system for command analyses and decision- making. Thus, in the main, it is utilized for overall force coordination The ocean surveillance information system receives, processes, displays and disseminates joint-service information regarding fixed and mobile targets on land and at sea. The innovative design of the upgraded Automated Digital Network System (ADNS) encompasses all radio frequency circuits for routing and switching both strategic and tactical command control communication computer information (C41) with an internet-like transmission control protocol. In doing so, ADNS links battle group units with each other and with the digital information system network. The ADNS now has 224 ship-based units, and four shore-based sites. Network operation centers are linked to three naval computer and telecommunication area master stations, plus one in the Persian Gulf at Bahrain. The Global Broadcast Service is the follow-on for U.S. Navy ultra-high- frequency radio communication via satellite. By 2009, the advanced wide- band system will be the communication upgrade for all U.S. submarines and surface ships, and there is a version planned for U.S. aircraft installation that is under study, Virginia’s combat system suite satisfies a top-level requirement to counter multiple threats with a mission-essential-need statement that details a very effective set of acoustic sensors. The suite features two reel-able towed, linear sonar arrays, the TB-l6 and the thin-line TB-29. Just inside the thin-skinned acoustic window in the bow section of the outer hull is a very sophisticated, state-of-the-art active-passive spherical sonar array, the AN/BQQ-5E. In addition, there are wide-aperture flank-mounted passive sonar arrays; a keel and fin-mounted high sonic frequency active sonar for under-the-ice ranging and maneuvering, and for mine detection and avoidance; a medium sonic frequency active sonar for target ranging; a sonar sensor for intercept of active-ranging signals from an attacking torpedo; and, a self- noise acoustic monitoring system. Moreover, all acoustic systems have advanced signal processors and, where appropriate, algorithms are programmed for beam forming. The Electronic System Measures suite features the AN/BRD-7F radio direction finder; the electronic signal monitors, AN/WLR-lH and AN/WLR-8(V2/6); the AN/WSQ-5 and AN/BLD-1 radio frequency intercept periscope-mounted devices; and the AN/WLQ-4(V1), AN/WLR-l0 and AN/BLQ-l0 radar warning devices. The AN/BPS-15A and BPS-16 are I and J-band navigational piloting radars, respectively, with each having separate wave-guides—one mounted inside a retractable mast and the other mounted inside a periscope. Virginia has four 21-inch-diameter internally loaded torpedo tubes with storage cradles for a combination of an additional 22 torpedoes, missiles, mines, and 20-foot-long, 21-inch diameter Autonomous Underwater Vehicles. In the free-flooding area between the outer and inner hulls, just aft of the bow-mounted AN/BQQ-5E spherical sonar array is Virginia’s Vertical Launch System, comprised of twelve externally loaded 21-inch diameter launch tubes for Tomahawk, the Sea-Launched-Cruise-Missile (SLCM). Shallow water is an anathema for submariners because submarines on the surface are exceptionally vulnerable. Thus, it is said that the best place to sink a submarine is while it is in port. Does that mean that Virginia cannot operate effectively in shallow water?Absolutely not! Another disconcerting imprecation to submariners is hearing the high-pitch “pings— active sonar accompanied by the shrill of cavitations from small, high-speed screws, which are the distinctive sounds of an acoustic torpedo running to ruin your entire day. French author Jules Verne (1825-1905) entertained readers with exciting tales of undersea adventure featuring his fictional submarine Nautilus in his book 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Notably, USS Nautilus (SSN 571) logged much more than 20,000 leagues under the sea—like, 80,000 nautical mile before her first re-coring, and Virginia will log over 125,000 leagues of submerged steaming in her service life– without refueling. The nuclear-powered submarine is a far-ranging, very effective, versatile warship for the 21st century—and, the projection of national power by ASDS and SLCMs from international waters only requires unilateral action by the National Command Authority.
U.S. Navy career Captain Ray Wellborn
Over a 30-year U.S. Navy career Captain Ray Wellborn served some 13 years in submarines. He graduated with a B.S. from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1959, a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in 1969, and a M.A. from the Naval War College in 1976. He was a senior lecturer for marine engineering at Texas A&M University Galveston from 1992 to 1996, and currently is a consultant for maritime affairs, and a once-a-year part-time instructor for the Applied Technology Institute’s three-day course titled “Introduction to Submarines—and, Their Combat Systems.