ANSWERS: Submarine Q.O.T.W. 22 JAN 15

Background information, photos and links for questions are found at original posting here.

Submarine Questions of the Week with Answers:

1 - Australia is weighing the sourcing of RAN's new submarine fleet.  Japan has figured prominently in such discussions. Teruhiko Fukushima, an expert on Australia at Yokuska's National Defense Academy, referring to Australia's No. 1 trade partner, noted that the public would never approve of political actions that could seriously damage those ties. What country is Australia's number one trading partner?  ANS: CHINA  more

2 - China's PLAN (People's Liberation Army Navy) is keenly interested in blue water operations and since 1985, acquired four retired aircraft carriers for reasons other than design familiarity.  How many of the acquisitions are now active PLAN vessels?   ANS: One; China refurbished the propulsionless Varyag hulk and completing a modernised carrier commissioned Liaoning (CV-16) in September 2012.

3 - What became of China's other vessel(s)?   ANS: HMAS Melbourne had been bought for scrap; the ex-Soviet carrier Minsk had been sold for a Chinese "museum"; and the ex-Soviet Kiev is a prominent feature at Tianjin Binhai Aircraft Carrier Theme Park.  link 

4 - The multirole Admiral Kuznetsov class aircraft carrier Riga was renamed in 1990. What was its new name?  ANS: Varyag, which became the CV-16 Liaoning.

5 - A former PLA basketball player, alleges he had been chosen to acquire the Varyag for Beijing, posing as a businessman who wanted to use it for a floating casino in Macau.
a) What does he allege about the vessel delivered to China?   ANS: He revealed that the ship was fitted with engines at the time it was transported, contrary to some later reports.
b) What auction price did he allegedly pay the Ukrainian sellers?   ANS: $20 million.  
c) What does he claim is the total costs of purchase and delivery?  ANS: $120 million.
d) What does he claim Beijing still owes him? ANS: $120 million.  source

Submarines are always silent and strange.

Submarine Mystery QOTW - 22 JAN 15

Background

Submariners derisvely refer to surface vessels of our own navy as "targets".  The put-down captures an ongoing rivalry between the fleets in a humorous manner intended to clearly distinguish skimmers from bubbleheads.  Proof of Molten Eagle's underlying and undiminished respect for our surface vessel navy may never have been better illustrated than with The Kingston Trio's rendition of Guthrie's  "The Sinking of the Reuben James".

This week's mystery questions includes both large targets as well as a sub, and sheds new light on the definition of Chinese skimmers. You can't make this stuff up.

Questions of the Week

1 - Australia is weighing the sourcing of RAN's new submarine fleet.  Japan has figured prominently in such discussions. Teruhiko Fukushima, an expert on Australia at Yokuska's National Defense Academy, referring to Australia's No. 1 trade partner, noted that the public would never approve of political actions that could seriously damage those ties. What country is Australia's number one trading partner?

2 - China's PLAN (People's Liberation Army Navy) is keenly interested in blue water operations and, since 1985, has acquired four (4) retired aircraft carriers allegedly for reasons other than design familiarity.  How many of the acquisitions are now active PLAN vessels? 

3 - What became of China's other aircraft carrier(s)?  

4 - The multirole Admiral Kuznetsov class Soviet aircraft carrier Riga was renamed in 1990. What was its new name?

5 - A former PLA basketball player alleges he had been chosen by Beijing to pose as a businessman wanting to acquire the ex-Varyag for use as a floating Macau casino. 
a) What else does he allege about the vessel delivered to China?
b) What auction price did he allegedly pay the Ukrainian sellers? 
c) What does he claim is the total costs of purchase and delivery?
d) What does he claim Beijing still owes him? 

ANSWERS: Thursday, 29 JAN 2015

Submarines are always silent and strange.

China's Navy Deep Sea Insurance Projects

Background

Via Chinese navy watchers at The Times of India's:

[1]

Apr 1, 2013 - Chinese navy signs up Uygur Muslim women for deep sea missions

BEIJING: The Chinese military has began recruiting Uygur Muslim women for its navy in what appears to be first such experiment to open up its ranks for minorities, especially from volatile Xinjiang province where Islamic militants are fighting a separatist movement. Twenty Uygur women were recruited for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) who now started their voyage missions on naval ships, according to state-run China Daily.

[2]

Jan 5, 2015 -  Chinese submarine dives into Indian Ocean to hunt for gold

BEIJING: A Chinese submersible vessel has conducted its first deep dive in the Indian Ocean in search of rare metals. The project involves collecting samples of hydrothermal fluid and sulfide, a kind of seabed deposit containing copper, zinc and precious metals such as gold and silver.

The project, which involves exploring the Indian Ocean for 120 days, reflects China's hunger for resources, and its long-term development plans, sources said.

Analysis

[1] 
China’s campaign against separatism and terrorism in its mainly Muslim west has now become an all-out war on conservative Islam, residents here say. ... “The police are everywhere,” said one Uighur resident. Another said it was like “living in prison.” Another said his identity card had been checked so many times, “the magnetic strip is not working any more.”  - September 19, 2014 

 M.E.: China may intentionally assign Uygur women to ships in harms way. Imagine the familiar Muslim outrage were a nation defending its coastal waters from Chinese interlopers somehow cause harm to these Uygur women.

[2]  China now joins the United States, Russia, France and Japan. The achievement will allow China to explore more than 99.8% of the ocean floor, Liu Cigui, director China’s State Oceanic Administration (SOA), told the media.

 M.E.: China may also clandestinely plant sensors, mines, and whatever it wants in offshore locations wherever it may choose (the Indian Ocean, or Pacific NW for instance, where Jiaolong also spent 2 months on research expedition.

Submarines are always silent and strange.

Consider the timing...

Background
Operation Wigwam  evaluated the detonation of a Mark 90 Betty, a nuclear depth bomb.  The test was conducted May 14th in 1955, some 500 miles southwest of San Diego.  OP Wigwam results helped determine (see declassified Wigwam film) the effectiveness of deeply detonated nuclear weapons (nuclear torpedoes and depth charges, for example) in combat against submerged eneny subs.


What prompted Operation Wigwam to surface at 'War Is Boring" in December of 2014?


First, we know that nuclear tests are conducted and evaluated with limited publicity and nil transparency of results until declassified decades later:

"The bomb was suspended by cable from an unmanned barge and detonated at a depth of 2,000 feet in water that was 16,000 feet deep. The test had a yield of 30 kilotons. ...

In 1980, when the details of Operation Wigwam became publicly known, Governor Brown of California issued an immediate call for the federal government to publicly release the names of all servicemen involved in Wigwam, so that they could receive suitable medical treatment."  source

Additionally, tests, capabilities, limitations and ceetain operations applicable to specific U.S. submarines are justifiable secrets kept from public knowledge for significant periods of time.
Wigwam participants had to sign 25-year nondisclosure and secrecy agreements. Since all submariners had already signed some form of secrecy agreement beforehand, it was also necessary for many to sign non-travel agreements to certain foreign destinations for x years after their discharge from active duty.


More Recent Events

North Korea Is In The Process Of Developing A Fleet Of Nuclear Missile-Capable Submarines

In October, US General Curtis Scaparrotti, the commander of US forces on the Korean peninsula, warned that North Korea had developed "the capability to miniaturize a device at this point and they have the technology to actually deliver what they say they have."

In addition to submarine and WMD ambitions of known and suspected bad actors like North Korea, there have been unprecedented programs to acquire updated subs by nations dependent upon oil for food and energy shipments in an age of piracy, crime and Russian imperialism:

Global Submarine Proliferation: Emerging Trends and Problems

"Russia continues to be an active exporter of finished diesel submarines and is now providing nuclear reactor and submarine-design technology to China and India. In the Middle East and elsewhere, Germany remains a major submarine exporter, despite the WMD potential of some of its clients."

 In Molten Eagle's opinion, the How to Nuke a Submarine article by War Is Boring contributor Steve Weintz is a very timely reminder to potential bad actors of a severe, unexpected vulnerability to any injudicious acts they may have planned.  Like India (unfortunately) the DPRK has decades of catchup to overcome.

Submarines are always silent and strange.