Submarine Quotes of the Month

- 1 -

Background... shower videos of women submariners
A Navy official confirmed to Navy Times in December that investigators suspected seven (7) videos had been taken with a cell phone camera aboard the Kings Bay, Georgia-based ballistic missile submarine Wyoming.   more background


"My information is that the use of the devices was widespread among most of the crew, officers included. I also have information that by the time the sub hit the docks, officers and enlisted men were using the devices."  -  Told to Navy Times in a Jan. 16 phone interview of James Stein, defense attorney for a sailor implicated in  USS Wyoming (SSBN-742) shower videos.

 - 2 -

Background...  60 kilometers from the border to Norway's border

[T] he world is facing a worst case scenario described as "an Arctic underwater Chernobyl, played out in slow motion," according to Thomas Nilsen, an editor at the Barents Observer newspaper and a member of a Norwegian watchdog group that monitors the situation. According to a joint Russian-Norwegian report issued in 2012, there are 17,000 containers of nuclear waste, 19 rusting Soviet nuclear ships and 14 nuclear reactors cut out of atomic vessels at the bottom of the Kara Sea.  more background

Norway has over the last 20 years granted some NOK 1.5 billion (€175 million) into nuclear safety projects related to the military navy’s activities, including decommissioning of four old submarines, development of casks for spent nuclear fuel, radioactive waste management, physical protection of radioactive- and fissile material. In addition, hundreds of millions are granted to civilian nuclear safety projects including Kola nuclear power plant and the nuclear icebreaker fleet in Murmansk. “It is timely to look into what we are going to spend Norwegian money on. Russia must take responsibility.”

“So far we have followed EU’s restrictive measures. When it comes to the possible new measures will this depend on Russia,” says Brende pointing to Putin as the man in key position to stop supporting the separatists in Eastern Ukraine with soldiers, tanks and artillery.

“Sanctions was right, is right and has had an effect.”  -  Norway’s Foreign Minister Børge Brende  source

Submarines are always silent and strange.

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.

Beware of This Clever Deceit to Disarm

Background

Oct 22, 2013  -  CBO Says Navy Shipbuilding Plan $76 Billion Short

 "In particular, the plan would lead to temporary shortfalls relative to the Navy's goals for ballistic missile submarines, attack submarines, large surface combatants, and amphibious warfare ships," the report said.

Nov. 22, 2013 - Markey Seeks Cost Options for Modernizing Ballistic-Missile Submarines
Washington -- A proposed amendment to the U.S. Senate's fiscal 2014 defense authorization bill would require the Navy to update Congress on cost projections for different alternatives for modernizing the nation's ballistic-missile submarine fleet.

The measure submitted by freshman Senator Edward Markey (D-Mass.) would give the Navy until the end of March to report on the latest cost projections for all options for replacing the expiring generation of Ohio-class nuclear-armed submarines.

The estimated $90 billion expense of modernizing the sea-based leg of the country's nuclear triad has worried some lawmakers and Defense officials, who say it could eat up a huge chunk of the service's available shipbuilding funds for many years to come.


More Recently

Obama Administration Leader

February 2014 -Navy Secretary Ray Mabus in late February told a think tank audience there should be public debate over how to fund the submarine-modernization program.  <<<<<

Democrat Followers

March 12, 2014 - Some U.S. Lawmakers Eye Funding New Submarines Outside Normal Process Some U.S. lawmakers are calling for funding the Navy's new fleet of ballistic-missile submarines outside its regular shipbuilding budget, Inside Defense reports.  U.S. Representative Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) contend that the tens of billions of dollars needed to build a successor fleet to the Ohio-class submarine should not come out of the usual funds because the vessels are a national strategic asset.

"I think this is a debate that, between now and 2019, which is now inside the five-year defense budget, that we need to have because we need to build these [submarines]. ...    <<<<<

****************

At a time when the U.S.  has wasted $billions in taxpayer subsidies on dozens of solar outfits (Solyndra), healthcare premiums are rising for the unemployed (Obamacare), the Sequester is beginning to effect us all, and nuclear is still (Fukushima ) a very bad memory, how many people does anyone know that even cares about somethiing few understand and even
fewer will ever see --- Trident submarines?

At the very time P.O.T.U.S. has unilaterally proposed warhead reductions, inadvertently injected fear and uncertainty into U.S. foreign policy posture, provoked ire among Europe's leaders (NSA phone intercepts), concern among our allies as to the ongoing value of military commitments (Benghazi, Ukraine), and raised concern in the Middle East (Syria, Israel, Saudi Arabia) about U.S. steadfstness, Democrats (so far, but soon to be joined by RINO lawyer-politician colleagues) suggest having public debate over how to fund a successor fleet for a strategic asset.

The outcome of such a debate would produce only a bigger question, the same one D.C. lobbyists working for elite, one-world globalists have pushed since WW2: Why have nuclear weapons and subs, at all.   

At stake:  Just perpetuation of Liberty, the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  Don't be one of those fooled by their transparent ploy.


Submarines are always silent and strange.