We did a number of Seal and Marine Corps training missions. There are a select number of fast attacks that were configured and designated for Seal Operations.
Yep. And I was on one of them...took her through decommissioning, in fact. The USS L. Mendel Rivers (SSN-686). Her decommissioning was scheduled to occur only AFTER the first ever 688 class was converted to be able to carry the Dry Deck Shelter. That was the USS Dallas (SSN-700).
If you guys mean no one is boarding subs, fine, but the days of surface crews boarding surface ships is now. Oh, and body armor, M4s, shotguns, and M9s.
-kBob
Yes, I mean nobody is conducting boarding operations
from submarines. This is not to say they can't, just that there are no missions for that. Submarines do a lot of surveilence, tracking, and intelligence operations which may be in support of such missions, however. Rescue missions aren't out of the question, either. But direct boarding operations? Nope. The crew isn't trained or armed for that.
Could a SEAL team aboard a Spec Ops sub conduct such operations? I'm sure they could...but there are huge logistics and tactical issues with being able to to that kind of mission in open waters between two independently mobile platforms. There are better ways of coordinating efforts for such activities than this.
Many here have pointed out that there's really no chance of small arms rounds penetrating the hull. My question is there a chance a round, while not penetrating it, cause enough damage, ie stress fractures and the like, to weaken it enough to become a danger especially if the boat is deep or at the very least prevent it from going deep.
Good question.
The answer is that any such occurance would be thoroughly evaluated at the earliest opportunity in order to determine whether or not any significant damage occured and what to do about it, if anything.
There are a variety of things that can be done, starting with a simple visual inspection of the affected areas and including radiography. (Think "X-rays" using a radioactive source instead of an X-ray machine.) Damaged areas can be readily repaired by a variety of means, including cutting/welding small areas or even cutting out an entire section of the pressure hull and replacing it with a section from another submarine. This would restore the damaged hull to full strength.
Would there be any operational limitations until repairs? Possibly. Depends on the crew evaluation of the damage, tactical situations, and response to messages sent off ship about the nature of the problem. It probably wouldn't affect routine operations because submarines don't routinely operate at "Test Depth". Most of their time is spent at shallower depths for routine matters.
I have a question for our retired chiefs. Why was it during all my shipboard experiences was it that all the young sailors who planned to leave the Navy looked forward to getting a small khaki colored small dog and wanted to kick it around?
Ron
The answer is obviously they never learned enough to be able to put on khaki's and enjoy the experience.
Remember that very well, in fact I was surprise that the pictures they did release were released.
You weren't the only person to be surprised by that. I remember the COB on my boat at the time posting those pictures on the bulletin board while we were in the shipyard, right after the San Fransisco was drydocked. I asked why they were being posted, since they were unauthorized photographs of classified information. His only response was "they're on the internet".
(That was a facepalm moment...the fact that they were on the internet didn't change the fact that they were still pics of classified information...only that it had been "leaked" to the public through improper channels without having been reviewed and declassified properly.)
For those who don't understand what is so impressive by the posts about the San Francisco slamming into an underwater mountain and surviving to return to port under her own power, let's put it this way:
Using only information found on the internet (like Wikipedia, which lists the following submerged speed of
"+20 knots (23 mph; 37 km/h) (official),[3] 33+ knots (reported)" (which I can neither confirm nor deny and will not give any hints or winks to, so please don't ask), let's do a little thought experiment.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles-class_submarine
Assume that the maximum speed is 33 knots, the "reported" number listed in Wikipedia. That's about 38 mph.
Now, get into your car and DO NOT PUT ON YOUR SEAT BELT.
Find yourself a good, solid concrete abutment, like that of an overpass somewhere, that you can drive into at 38 mph. Not a block or brick wall, which might crumble when you hit it. Solid, thick concrete that ain't gonna crumble or collapse on impact.
Then imagine yourself driving into that abutment at 38 mph. After the impact, and without any outside assistance whatsoever, immediately recover and drive the vehicle about 800 miles to a repair facility.
THAT is what makes that event so impressive. The hull will take plenty of small arms fire before it has any appreciable effect on performance. (It'll still be evaluated, regardless.)
How do you like THEM apples?
