Submarine Command Course

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The Submarine Command Course (SMCC), previously known as the Commanding Officers Qualifying Course (COQC), and informally known as The Perisher is a training course for naval officers preparing to take command of a submarine.

Created by the Royal Navy during World War I, the course was originally intended to address the high attrition rate of submarine commanders, as the previous method of handing down knowledge from officer to officer was prevented by wartime deaths. Following World War II, the Royal Netherlands Navy became involved in the course; the Dutch later partnered with the British to run the course, and following the British conversion to a fully nuclear submarine fleet, took over responsibility for running the course for diesel-electric submarines. Officers from other nations regularly participate.

The four-month course is run in four stages, the first and third involve learning ashore in simulators, while the second involves learning at sea. The fourth phase is the assessment, during which the candidates (of which the maximum is six) show their ability to command a submarine unaided during war-like conditions. The success rate for the SMCC is 60%[1] and the names of all those who have passed are inscribed on boards situated in the main stairwell of HMNB FASLANE's wardroom.

Formation and history

Prior to World War I, knowledge relating to command of a submarine was passed on from a boat's commander to his replacement.[2] However high attrition rates during the war meant this training could not always be passed on, and the less experienced submarine commanders were in turn more likely to make errors resulting in their death and the loss of the boat.[2] In 1917, the Royal Navy established the COQC for potential commanding officers.[2]

Perisher (as the Submarine Command Course is better known - owing to the fact the course used to be called the Periscope School and those officers attending being referred to as Perishers [3]) is a 24-week course that officers must take prior to serving as an executive officer on board a Royal Navy Submarine. It has been run twice a year since 1917, usually starting on 2 July and 14 November each year. It is widely regarded as one of the toughest command courses in the world.

Following World War II, the Royal Netherlands Navy began to send officers to the course.[2] Until 1995, the Royal Navy and Royal Netherlands Navy were jointly responsible for running the SMCC.[2][4] In 1995 the Royal Netherlands Navy took over the Perisher course for diesel-electric submarines, since the Royal Navy no longer operates boats of that type.

The SMCC is attended by submariners from other navies, including the Royal Australian Navy, the Brazilian Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy, the Republic of Korea Navy, and the United States Navy. Officers of the Royal Danish Navy also attended, prior to Denmark's withdrawal of its submarine capability.[2][4] Overseas candidates attend the course because its high standards enjoy widespread respect, and because it fosters links between allied navies and the Royal Navy.

The SMCC was ISO certified in 2004.[4]

Course structure

The diesel-electric course is four months long, with a combination of simulator time ashore and sea time under war-like conditions while operating off the coasts of Norway and Scotland.

active sonar to hunt for the submarine.[4]

Students who fail the course are, in most cases, no longer permitted to serve on submarines in any capacity.

situational awareness, or shows a narrow focus or over-reliance on one tool or aspect of operations.[4] Making mistakes does not cause a student to fail automatically, as long as the mistake is recognised and corrected before the submarine is endangered.[5]

If at any point during the training a candidate is withdrawn from training he will be nominated for boat or helicopter transfer and kept occupied until the transfer. Their bag is packed for them and they are notified of the failure when the helicopter or boat arrives. On departure they are presented with a bottle of whisky. A failure on Perisher means that the unsuccessful candidate is not permitted to serve as a permanent member of a submarine's crew, however, they may choose to remain part of the Submarine Service and return to sea in a submarine as part of a team augmenting the crew for specific operations. (They certainly retain the right to wear the dolphin badge as they remain qualified submariners). They may also choose to return to the Surface Fleet and most do very well.

Notes

  1. Plymouth Herald
    . Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Davidson & Allibone, Beneath Southern Seas, p. 108
  3. ^ Edward Young, Commander, D.S.O., D.S.C., R.N.V.(S.)R. "One Of Our Submarines", Penguin Books, 1952. p. 111
  4. ^
    Jane's Information Group
    . December 2004, pp. 20–25
  5. ^ Davidson & Allibone, Beneath Southern Seas, p. 109

References

External links
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