China Confirms Likely Answer to a Superficial Submarine Question

The Submarine Question:

[13 FEB 2017]  "Does China Have a Nuclear Submarine That Could Beat the U.S. Navy?"  

China's Simple Answer:

[20 FEB 2017]  "China wants foreign submarines to stop traveling below the surface in the vast waters it claims"

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

 So much for the U.S.'s technical superiority, then? NOT

Submarines are always silent and strange.

A Submarine Too Strange to Really Believe

Background

This post is certainly NOT about the USS JIMMY CARTER (SSN-23).  For prposes of contrast Vigilis notes a recent article The Navy's Most Shadowy Spy Is 450 Feet Long & Named After Jimmy Carter, for readers to consider in relation to what will follow. Although the key point of this background lies in the last sentence of this section, lets start with this SSN-23 image.
 

"So what does the Jimmy Carter do with all its modifications? Like its USS Halibut, USS Seawolf, USS Richard Russell and USS Parche [and perhaps others never publicly acknowledged], which were modified ‘special mission’ subs that came before it, the Jimmy Carter conducts espionage, and could even conduct sabotage, in a variety of manners" 

Remember, all submarines are intended to be "SLIENT AND STRANGE".  Whether you remain mystified by the utility of some or all of the "shadowy" features illustrated above, the link confirms only what cannot be refuted by widely available photographic evidence, which is:

The Jimmy Carter differs from the standard Seawolf Class submarine via a slew of modifications made during her initial construction, including a "massive 100-foot long hull extension".

The Strangeness of the S-80 

Again, lets start with an image of the Spanish Navy's yet-to-be-completed, domestically constructed (by Navantia, Cartagena) S-80 sub.


Construction on the S-80 class submarines began in early 2005. The keel for the first submarine was laid and the steel for the second submarine was cut in December 2007. Construction of the third submarine began in 2009.    VIGILIS NOTES: Wasted space in bow?

Strangeness (should we believe any of it?)

•  In May 2013, Navantia announced that a serious weight imbalance design flaw had been identified which will delay the delivery of the first submarine to the Spanish Navy until possibly 2017.^[15] Excess weight of 75 - 100 tons has been added to the sub during construction and the current design is not able to resurface after diving.^[16][17] A former Spanish official says the problem can be traced to a miscalculation — someone apparently put a decimal point in the wrong place or by the addition of new technologic devices.^[18] 

•  In June 2013, with the S-80 project suffering from an underperforming AIP system (allowing 21 days underway versus 28 planned) the Spanish Ministry of Defense announced that Navantia had signed the U.S.'s General Dynamics Electric Boat to help solve the excess weight problem.^[19] 

• In November 2014, Navantia again reported having completed the redesign work to address the problem of overweight. In all, the hull will be lengthened by seven metres, and the displacement increased by 75 tons. The intended delivery date of the first submarine will be is 2018. ^[21]

•  ^{In April 2015, 70 batteries for the new submarine, worth € 469,000 were stolen. They were recovered by the Guardia Civil in an operation that led to the arrest of five people including the head of Zaragoza recycling companies.}
  

So, nothing totally implausible has reportedly happened. Yet, why would Navantia solicit General Dynamics Electric Boat to solve ballasting problems (which engineers in Spain's fine universities could certainly have done)?  In fact, the original engineer's work could have been verified and regularly updated (and probably was)! 

Such embarrassing lapses (including stolen batteries) would ordinarily not bode well for any country's sub force. Perhaps Spain's unfortuitous delays and HULL EXTENSION are cover stories for an updated capability that is slightly shadowy and secret.

Submarines are always silent and strange.

U.S. SSNs: Excellent S.W.O.T. Analysis

Background

U.S. Navy submarines have been the world's preeminent submarine force since WWII.

S.W.O.T. Analysis is commonly the paramount planning vehicle used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in major business ventures. Neglect at your civilization's peril the structured S.W.O.T. methodology's rigorous and advantageous application to military strategy. Critical parallels are intensely identical.  Submarines, even in the same class must not be identical, however.

Five Reasons Virginia-Class Subs Are The Face Of Future Warfare

The article linked in the above subheading should be elucidating only to average pedestrians without an insider's knowledge of the U.S.submarine force.  In fact, it is probably the most succinct and penetrating expose that I have ever read in the mainstream (well, in the business press, anyway). 

If the word “submarine” makes you think of undersea warfare and protecting surface ships, then you only have the Old Testament part of the story.  Modern attack subs do a whole lot more, like covertly collecting intelligence that can’t be obtained any other way, precisely striking distant land targets, delivering special operators ashore on secret missions, and the like.  The Navy has good reason not to talk about such missions in public, but because the Virginia program runs silent and runs deep in popular culture, most people don’t realize that it is more than just a very big and successful weapons program — it may be the face of future warfare.  

Four of the five "Reasons" Virginia class subs are expected to be "The Face of Future Warefare" have been advertised since before SSN-774 was launched almost eleven years ago.  In review, the four no-surprises are:

• Stealth 
• Endurance 
• Versatility
• Evolution

(read more about each reason in the link above)

Now, to be clear, the fifth reason should hardly be any real surprise to qualified U.S. submariners.  It is, in fact, just business as usual for our attack (SSN) submarine fleet:

(from July 15, 2011) "Question #4: Which of the USS Ohio (SSGN-726) class subs, if any, also has a bunker buster (MOP) capability? What, you thought all submarines of a class were identical and their capabilities accurately disclosed publicly by Wikipedia?" 

The Leverage Revealed

"When you combine the stealth, endurance and versatility of the Virginia class, the result is a genuinely unique combat system providing potentially decisive warfighting leverage against even the most capable adversaries.  It can deny the Chinese or Russian navies access to the sea, destroy targets deep in the Eurasian or African interiors without warning, and intercept the most sensitive communications of dictators and terrorists.  It can even potentially blunt nuclear attacks on the American homeland by destroying the sea-going strategic forces of other nations.  This is a form of leverage no other nation will be able to claim in future conflicts, due mainly to the fact that only America plans to field such a large and capable fleet of attack subs."

The Block V contract, scheduled to commence in 2019, will triple the capacity of each boat to attack targets ashore, further contributing to Virginia’s technological evolution. Leverage will proceed from the possible presence of any of the by then 40 stealth Virginia class boats, each of unique capabilities and unknown inabilities.

 

In other words, a potential enemy who even begins to imagine he may have detected a Virginia, will still not know for certain what capabilities he may actually have to confront.  Therefore, he must assume the worst case, and guess that he would even know what that might be!

Submarines are always silent and strange.