Submarines in the United States Navy
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There are three major types of submarines in the United States Navy:
The submarine has a long history in the United States, beginning with the
History
Early history (1775–1914)
The first submarine used in combat was the
Other submersible projects date to the 19th century.
Real progress began late in the century with the building of the USS Holland (SS-1), named after John Philip Holland. The USS Holland was the first submarine in the US Navy, commissioned on April 1, 1900. Submarines have been active component of the US Navy ever since. The boat was developed at Lewis Nixon's Crescent Shipyard located in Elizabeth, New Jersey. This pioneering craft was in service for 10 years and was a developmental and trials vessel for many systems on other early submarines.
Later submarines were given such names as Grampus, Salmon, and Porpoise, but were also named for venomous and stinging creatures, such as Adder, Tarantula, and Viper. Submarines were renamed in 1911 and carried alphanumeric names such as A-1, C-1, H-3, and L-7. In 1920 the U.S. Navy Department established a standard Type and Class letter designation system. "SS" was established as the two-letter Class designation for Submarine (first line). In addition to a name, each U.S. submarine carries a Class designation followed by an assigned hull number. Note that "SS" is not an acronym for 'Submersible Ship'; Warship classifications for U.S. submarines include "SSN", Submarine (nuclear-powered); "SSBN", Ballistic Missile Submarine (nuclear-powered), and "SSGN", Guided Missile Submarine (nuclear-powered).
World War I and the inter-war years (1914–1941)
The submarine truly came of age in World War I. The US Navy did not have a large part in this war, with action mainly being confined to escorting convoys later in the war and sending a division of battleships to reinforce the British Grand Fleet. However, there were those in the submarine service who saw what the Germans had done with their U-boats and took careful note.
World War II (1941–1945)
Doctrine in the inter-war years emphasized the submarine as a scout for the battle fleet, and also extreme caution in command. Both these axioms were proven wrong after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. The submarine skippers of the fleet boats of World War II waged a very effective campaign against Japanese merchant vessels, eventually repeating and surpassing Germany's initial success during the Battle of the Atlantic against the United Kingdom.[2]
Offensive against Japanese ships
Date | Additions | Losses | Net change | End of period total |
Index |
12 July 1941 | 6,384,000 | 100 | |||
12/1941 | 44,200 | 51,600 | −7,400 | 6,376,600 | 99 |
1942 | 661,800 | 1,095,800 | −434,000 | 5,942,600 | 93 |
1943 | 1,067,100 | 2,065,700 | −998,600 | 4,494,400 | 77 |
1944 | 1,735,100 | 4,115,100 | −2,380,000 | 2,564,000 | 40 |
1/45 – 8/45 | 465,000 | 1,562,100 | −1,097,100 | 1,466,900 | 23 |
During the war, submarines of the
The Navy adopted an official policy of
In addition to sinking Japanese merchant ships, postwar records compiled by the Joint Army-Navy Assessment Committee indicate Japan lost 686 warships of 500 gross tons (GRT) or larger to submarines during 1,600 war patrols. Only 1.6 percent of the total U.S. naval manpower was responsible for America's success on its Pacific high seas; more than half of the total tonnage sunk was credited to U.S. submarines. The tremendous accomplishments of American submarines were achieved at the expense of 52 subs with 374 officers and 3,131 enlisted volunteers lost during combat against Japan; Japan lost 128 submarines during the Second World War in Pacific waters. American casualty counts represent 16 percent of the U.S. operational submarine officer corps and 13 percent of its enlisted force.
Lifeguard League
In addition to their commerce raiding role, submarines also proved valuable in
Year | Days on Lifeguard station | Number of rescues |
1943 | 64 | 7 |
---|---|---|
1944 | 469 | 117 |
1945 | 2739 | 380 |
Total | 3272 | 504 |
As fighting in the Pacific theater intensified and broadened in geographic scope, the eventual creation of Standing Operating Procedure (SOP TWO) led to several improvements such as the assignment of nearby submarines before air attacks, and the institution of reference points to allow pilots to report their location in the clear.[11] After
Cold War (1945–1991)
After WWII, things continued along much the same path until the early 1950s. Then, a revolution that was to forever change the nature of the submarine arm occurred. That revolution was USS Nautilus (SSN-571).
The Nautilus was the first nuclear-powered submarine. Nautilus put to sea for the first time on 17 January 1955, transmitting the historic message, "Under way on nuclear power."[14] Up until that point, submarines had been torpedo boats tied to the surface by the need to charge their batteries using diesel engines relatively often. The nuclear power plant of the Nautilus meant that the boat could stay underwater for literally months at a time, the only operational limit being the amount of food that the boat could carry. With resupply by mini-subs, even this could be overcome.[15] The final limits would be for replacing equipment that wears out, the fatigue limit of the hull, and crew morale.
Strategic deterrence
Another revolution in submarine warfare came with USS George Washington (SSBN-598).[14] Nuclear-powered like Nautilus, the George Washington added strategic ballistic missiles making the nuclear triad. Earlier Regulus missile submarines were diesel powered. Their cruise missiles required the boat to surface in order to fire, and were vulnerable to air defenses in an era when there were no anti-ballistic missiles.
George Washington's missiles could be fired while the boat was submerged, meaning that it was far less likely to be detected before firing. The nuclear power of the boat also meant that, like Nautilus, George Washington's patrol length was limited only by the amount of food the boat could carry.
The United States lost two nuclear submarines during the Cold War: USS Thresher due to equipment failure during a test dive while at its operational limit, and USS Scorpion due to unknown causes.[16]
Post–Cold War (1991–present)
Given the lack of large scale conventional naval warfare since 1945, with the USN's role being primarily that of
The Tomahawk was first used in combat on 17 January 1991, on the opening night of
With the decommissioning of the final Barbel-class diesel-electric submarine in 1990, this meant that the USN submarine fleet is made up entirely of nuclear-powered vessels; each submarine possesses one nuclear reactor, which powers propulsion and all shipboard equipment.[18]
Composition of the current force
- Los Angeles class (29 in commission, 2 in reserve) – fast attack submarines
- guided missile submarines(SSGNs)
- Seawolf class (3 in commission) – fast attack submarines
- Virginia class (19 in commission, 1 delivered, 1 fitting out, 7 under construction, 2 on order) – fast attack submarines
Fast attack submarines
The U.S. currently operates three classes of fast attack submarine: the
The final 23 boats in the Los Angeles class, referred to as "688i" boats, are quieter than their predecessors and incorporate a more advanced combat system.[19] The 688i boats are also designed for under-ice operations. Their diving planes are on the bow rather than on the sail and they have reinforced sails.
Ballistic and guided missile submarines
The U.S. has 18 Ohio-class submarines, of which 14 are Trident II
In order to comply with arms reduction against the
The
Personnel
U.S. Navy submarines are manned solely by volunteers from within the Navy.[20] Because of the stressful environment aboard submarines, personnel are accepted only after rigorous testing and observation; as a consequence, submariners have significantly lower mental hospitalization rates than surface ship personnel.[21] Furthermore, submariners receive submarine duty incentive pay (SUBPAY) in addition to sea pay.[22]
Some 5,000 officers and 55,000 enlisted sailors make up the submarine force. In addition to submarines, they are assigned to
Until 2014, submarine watchkeeping had an 18-hour day, as opposed to a standard 24-hour schedule. Sailors spent 6 hours on watch, 6 hours maintenance and training and 6 hours off (3 watches of 6 hours.)[24] In 2014, the Navy began transitioning the fleet to a 24-hour schedule.[25]
The submarine force has always been a small fraction of the active Navy. During
Training
After acceptance into the submarine program, candidates undergo a demanding training schedule, which includes attendance by all Officers and non-nuclear trained enlisted personnel at the U.S. Naval Submarine School New London, located within the Naval Submarine Base New London, in Groton, Connecticut, (NAVSUBSCOL at SUBASENLON) as well as rigorous technical training in different specialty areas.[citation needed] Officer and enlisted engineering staff have their own advanced training at Nuclear Power School in Charleston, South Carolina, then nuclear prototype training at various locations.
Besides their academic and technical training, much of which is Classified Secret or Top Secret, all prospective US Naval Submariners, both officers and enlisted personnel, undergo 3 phases of physical training and testing related to the intense pressure differential between the surface and submarine operating depth.
Pressure training
Pressure training is conducted in a 2-day course including classroom and lab training:
The first test is for the ability to perform the Valsalva maneuver, named for Antonio Maria Valsalva. If a submarine training candidate cannot perform the Valsalva maneuver under doctor's supervision at normal atmospheric pressure, that candidate is not rejected as unfit for submarine service but may not continue the high risk pressure training as follows.
In the second phase of testing, called Pressure Testing, candidates who have successfully performed the Valsalva maneuver will be subjected to increased ambient pressure. This test is performed under the supervision of a diving-certified medical doctor. All testees enter a pressure chamber, accompanied by the doctor, and the 'tank' is sealed. Typically, there is in the chamber a somewhat surprising object: an inflated volleyball, water polo ball or similar inflated ball. Upon sealing the tank, pressure is increased, while the testees equalise their eardrum pressure. (if any testee is unable to 'Valsalva', the test stops, and pressure is slowly released.) Pressure builds within the chamber until the chamber is equal to water pressure at "escape depth". At this point, the chamber feels very warm and dry, and the volleyball has become compressed enough that it has become the shape of a bowl, and appears to have been emptied of air, due to the greatly increased air pressure inside of the tank. Sounds inside the tank at pressure sound as if they are "far away".
During the controlled release of pressure from the tank, the air in the chamber becomes quite chilled and a fog forms in the chamber, often precipitating as a sort of dew. (See
Escape training
The third phase of testing for submarine fitness is escape training, utilizing the
The escape testing proceeds as in the pressure test, except that this time, a hatch in the floor of the pressure chamber is opened. The chamber immediately adjoins a cylindrical tower full of water, tall enough to simulate the depth of a stranded submarine. Because the air pressure inside the chamber is equal to the pressure of the water in the tower, the water does not enter the chamber.
Donning the Steinke hood, the test subject enters the water and immediately commences a rapid ascent, due to the buoyancy of the escape device. As they ascend, each test subject must allow the air in his lungs to escape, this is facilitated by yelling as loudly as possible. Typically they are told to yell "HO HO HO" repeatedly. If one does not forcefully and continuously expel air from the lungs in this manner, they may be gravely injured or killed. The air exiting the lungs is allowed to exit the hood through a set of two
Successfully completing the escape training requires two trials, one of them at double the depth of the first. On completion of escape training, subjects are now considered bubbleheads.
As of 2008[update], the Steinke Hood has been replaced with the Mark 10 Submarine Escape Immersion Equipment (SEIE) suit. The Mark 10 allows submariners to escape from deeper depths than possible with the Steinke Hood, i.e., 600 feet vs. 400 feet.
The Mark 8 SEIE, predecessor to the Mark 10, was a double layer suit which gave the wearer the appearance of a Michelin Man. One layer was eliminated, and the fabric was used to build a life raft that would fit in the same package that the original suit came in.
Because it is a full body suit, the Mark 10 provides thermal protection once the wearer reaches the surface, and the British Royal Navy has successfully tested it at six hundred foot depths.
The navies of twenty-two nations currently use SEIE units of some type.
Traditions
Insignia
Submarine Insignia
Further training and qualification at sea are required before submariners are awarded the coveted
The insignia of the U.S. Navy's Submarine Service is a submarine flanked by two stylized
The origin of this insignia dates back to June 1923, when Captain
In 1941 the Uniform Regulations were modified to permit officers and enlisted men to wear the submarine insignia after they had been assigned to other duties in the naval service, unless such right had been revoked.[27] The officer insignia was a bronze gold-plated metal pin, worn centered above the left breast pocket and above the ribbons or medals. Enlisted men wore an embroidered silk insignia on the outside of the right sleeve, midway between the wrist and elbow until 1947 when it was shifted to above the left breast pocket. In 1943 the Uniform Regulations were modified to allow enlisted men, who were qualified for submarine duty then subsequently promoted to commissioned or warrant ranks, to continue wearing the enlisted submarine insignia until they qualified as submarine officers when they were entitled to wear the officers submarine pin. A 1950 change to Uniform Regulations authorized the embroidered insignia for officers (in addition to pin-on insignia) and a bronze, silver-plated, pin-on insignia for enlisted men (in addition to the embroidered device).[27]
Other insignia
In addition to the Submarine Warfare insignia there are several special insignia.
Following the tradition of the
Unofficial insignia
The person on active duty, officer or enlisted, with the most deterrent patrols is presented with the Neptune Award. That person retains the award until someone else attains more patrols than the current holder or until he retires and it goes to the member with the next highest number of patrols.[31]
Two sets of lyrics for the Submarine verse of the
- Bless those who serve beneath the deep,
- Through lonely hours their vigil keep.
- May peace their mission ever be,
- Protect each one we ask of thee.
- Bless those at home who wait and pray,
- For their return by night or day.
In 1965, David Miller composed the following lyrics, which are used for submariners and divers:
- Lord God, our power evermore,
- Whose arm doth reach the ocean floor,
- Dive with our men beneath the sea;
- Traverse the depths protectively.
- O hear us when we pray, and keep
- Them safe from peril in the deep.
See also
- List of submarines of the United States Navy
- List of lost United States submarines
- List of United States submarine classes
- Familygram, the method by which the families of submariners can communicate with their loved ones at sea
- Submarine Combat Patrol insignia
- Admiral Hyman G. Rickover – (Father of the Nuclear Navy)
- Submarine Safety Program
External links
- Submarine Warfare Division website Information, history, and US Navy articles
- Undersea Warfare magazine Archived 17 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine Undersea Warfare is the official magazine of the US Navy undersea warfare community.
- Official US Navy submarine websites Archived 16 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine
References
- ^ *"Turtle I". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 12 January 2012.
- ^ a b Poirier, Michel Thomas (20 October 1999). "Results of the German and American Submarine Campaigns of World War II". Submarine Warfare Division. Archived from the original on 9 April 2008. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
- ISBN 978-1-55750-677-1.
- ISBN 978-0-415-35640-4.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-60344-083-7.
- ISBN 978-0-306-80764-0.
- ^ Milner, Marc (1985). North Atlantic run: the Royal Canadian Navy and the battle for the convoys. Annapolis Md.: Naval Institute Press.
- ISBN 978-1-55750-217-9.
- ^ Video: American Sub Rescues Airmen (1944). Universal Newsreel. 1944. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7603-2392-2. Retrieved 12 January 2012.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-87021-731-9. Retrieved 12 January 2012.
- ISSN 0024-3019. Retrieved 12 January 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-7658-0730-4. - Access date: 12 January 2012
- ^ ISBN 978-1-57488-530-9.
- ISBN 978-1-84908-173-3.
- ^ "Titanic Was Found During Secret Cold War Navy Mission". The National Geographic. 21 November 2017. Archived from the original on 26 August 2019.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-59114-685-8.
- ^ Ronald O'Rourke (21 July 2021). Defense Primer: Naval Forces (Report). Congressional Research Service. p. 2. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
- ISBN 978-1-101-00258-2.
- ^ Submarine Warfare Division. "Submarine Frequently Asked Questions". Chief of Naval Operations. Archived from the original on 2 August 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
- ^ Burr, Ralph G; Lawrence A Palinkas (10 March 1988). Mental Disorder Hospitalizations among Submarine Personnel in the U.S. Navy. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
- ^ Murray, Carla Tighe (2007). Evaluating military compensation. Congress of the U.S., Congressional Budget Office.
- ^ "Navy.com – Submarine Officer (Nuclear Submarines) : Nuclear Energy: Careers & Jobs". navy. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
- ^ "Submarine Frequently Asked Questions". Archived from the original on 2 August 2013.
- ^ "Submarine Force Now on 24-hour Work Day". Military.com. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
- ISBN 978-0-521-85749-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-59114-459-5.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-55750-843-0.
- ^ Shannon Renfroe (April 2011). "Earning your Dolphins One Point at a Time" (PDF). All Hands. US Navy. p. 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 September 2015.
- ^ Navy Personnel Command (22 August 2002), MILPERSMAN 1200-010: SUBMARINE PATROL INSIGNIA QUALIFICATIONS (PDF), archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2011, retrieved 11 January 2012
- ^ Parmar, Sunil (4 January 2022). "THE NEPTUNE AWARD – A TRADITION WITHIN THE SUBMARINE FORCE". NSL Archive. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
- ISBN 978-1-58297-408-8.
- War in the Pacific: The Pacific Offensive
- The Silent Service: Submarines in the Pacific