General Submarine News

[Pelican]

Britain upgrading Tomahawk cruise missiles to ‘fly further’


The UK is spending £265 million to upgrade its submarine-launched Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles to Block V standard, meaning the upgraded missiles “will be able to travel further and be less vulnerable”.
According to a news release, the upgraded missile will be able to travel further than the previous Block IV iteration, “maintaining a precision-strike capability that is unmatched in range and accuracy. The upgrade will also make the weapon less vulnerable to external threats, with modernised in-flight communication and target selection”.

The release also states:
See - https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/britain ... 6Qwjb3BnYc


Submarine Service’s Tomahawk missiles receive £265m revamp

https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... OR2_GiVN6U


MoD confirms RN’s stock of 65 remaining submarine-launched Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAM) Block IV to be upgraded to Block V standard from 2024 in £265M contract.
Enhanced accuracy and resistance to countermeasures, range extended to approx 1,000 miles.

[Pelican]

Red carpet rolled out in Glasgow for event marking recognising Royal Navy submariners


A slice of Hollywood glamour descended on the Glasgow Hilton Hotel as the Submarine Oscars returned after a two-year hiatus.

The venue provided all the glitz and glamour you would expect for an event named after the iconic Hollywood showpiece. The red carpet was rolled out, black ties tied, and the stage set for a fantastic evening of celebration and recognition for serving Submariners, their families, friends, and affiliates.

Many awards were presented on the night, with Commodore Jim Perks, Head of the Royal Navy Submarine Service, doing the honours. Speaking of the return of the annual awards he said: “It is fantastic that we are once again able to come together as a cadre and community to recognise the sterling contribution of the Submarine Family.”

The annual event, which was established in 2017, had a two-year break during the height of Covid restrictions. During that time the Submarine Service continued to deploy on global missions and maintained the nation’s continuous at sea deterrent uninterrupted as it has done every day for over 50 years.

Commodore Perks continued:
See - https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... KcylxrcVtM

[Pelican]

Getting boats to sea – efforts to improve Royal Navy submarine availability



With the RN attack submarine fleet down to just 5 boats and the pressure of maintaining the nuclear deterrent unrelenting, initiatives to improve submarine reliability and availability have never been more important. Here we look at what is being done to mitigate chronic legacy issues and increase the time submarines spend at sea.


Background
The UK submarine procurement and support enterprise is an exceptionally complex, expensive and demanding endeavour with many interdependencies and difficulties that stem from poor decisions in the past. The two biggest single historical errors were made by politicians. When the Vanguard-class construction finished in the late 1990s a lack of orders to keep production going led to an exodus of submarine designers and builders, ultimately delaying the Astute class programme by almost a decade. The 2010 decision to delay the Dreadnought programme by five years means the Vanguard-class boat’s (originally designed for a 25-year service life) life-extension refits must keep them running for 40 years. Keeping 30-40 year old boats safe and operationally effective will be extremely demanding.

Much of the work of this colossal enterprise has to be done out of sight, in a highly restricted and regulated environment beyond much public scrutiny or understanding. From a national security perspective, a failure of the submarine force is not an option as the nuclear deterrent is UK defence priority one and is more relevant in 2022 than ever. If you were designing the RN from scratch right now, arguably a much larger proportion would be devoted to the underwater battlespace. Any adversary navy looking to take on the RN in the next few years at least, would undoubtedly consider the capabilities of the SSNs their single biggest concern.

There are many challenges and issues that have resulted in endless delays and decreasing availability of submarines. Given their importance, unlike most areas of defence, lack of funding is not the main constraint, although planning decades-long programmes into annual budget cycles is still an issue. For the Submarine Delivery Authority (SDA) there are conflicting priorities in the lifecycle of boats. The build phase is focused on cost and delivery date, once in service, the focus is on support and availability and at the end of their life, environmental responsibility is the key driver of decisions.

There is a total reliance on monopoly suppliers for very specialised equipment from the 3 key primes, Babcock, BAES and Rolls Royce and well into the second and third tiers of the supply chain. There is very little duplication of key infrastructure, for example, boats can only be built in Barrow and SSBNs can only be refuelled in a single dry dock. Development of the supporting dock infrastructure for (ever-larger) future submarines has to be done concurrently with ongoing critical projects. Any disruption at these single points of failure can have knock-on effects for the rest of the enterprise, potentially multiplying delays and costs.

Recruiting and retaining nuclear-qualified staff from a finite pool of talent in a small industry continues to be a struggle. There are generally enough trainees and experienced veterans close to retirement but a lack of people in mid-career. Demand for these people is likely to be further stretched by an energy crisis that makes civilian nuclear power generation increasingly attractive. Many of these issues are common to the wider defence enterprise but the nuclear submarine world is especially complex, a high hazard mix comprising around 70 major systems that use approximately 100,000 critical components.

Continues at - https://www.navylookout.com/getting-boa ... ilability/

[Pelican]

Plan to bring home Barrow's first nuclear submarine to act as monument

BARROW'S MP wants to return the UK's first ever nuclear submarine to the town to act as a lasting tribute to the area's shipbuilding heritage.

The Dock Museum has been earmarked as a potential location for HMS Dreadnought, the first nuclear submarine built in the shipyard between 1959 and 1960.

Simon Fell is now spearheading a campaign to bring the boat back to Barrow.

It is currently stationed at the Rosyth Dockyard in Scotland having been withdrawn from service in 1980.

The next generation of Trident submarines being built at the shipyard, Dreadnought, share a name with Britain's first nuclear fleet.

Mr Fell said he had received encouragement over the plan following discussions with government figures.

He said: "It is important to the heritage of the town that we celebrate its part in keeping the UK and its allies safe, and to the remarkable generations of people who have worked in Barrow's shipyards.

"Bringing HMS Dreadnought home would be timely as her successor is constructed on the same ground.

"I have asked the Ministry of Defence and the Submarine Delivery Agency to work with me on what would be needed to return Dreadnought, and have spoken to the Dock Museum about potentially being a permanent home for it."

The £20 million sub was hailed as a great step forward in naval history and the 3,600-tonne vessel spent 20 years in the navy before being taken out of active service.

It was launched from Barrow by the Queen in 1960.

The Submarine Dismantling Project (SDP) started at Rosyth in December 2016 around 15 years behind schedule.

A team of around 150 people are working on the site to remove radioactive waste.

A new generation of Trident submarines is under construction by BAE at the shipyard.

The boats are expected to enter service in the 2030s.

The Government announced in May a raft of contracts worth up to £2 billion to begin the third major phase of Dreadnought.

See - https://www.nwemail.co.uk/news/20196038 ... -momument/

Link from Tim.

[Pelican]

Faslane remembers its Falklands role on 40th anniversary of victory

See - https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... of-victory

Also - http://lewin-of-greenwich-naval-history ... 384#p26384

[Pelican]

The submarine rescue service for the Royal Navy


Should a submarine get into difficulty, the NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS) is ready around the clock for deployment to provide assistance. Here we look in detail at the history, capabilities and future of NSRS.

Background
The RN has not lost a submarine in an accident at sea since HMS Affray sank near Alderney in 1951. As an inherently dangerous business, the safety record of modern RN and NATO submarines is exceptionally good, although there have been several close calls including some not in the public domain. Despite the high standards of maintenance and operation, the risk of a submarine becoming trapped on the seabed remains a possibility. A credible rescue capability is therefore an important backup for any submarine force and a statement that the navy cares about the welfare and safety of those serving.

It is theoretically possible for personnel to evacuate directly from a bottomed submarine and ascend from the escape tower to the surface using escape suits. The RN trains its submariners in Submarine Escape, Rescue, Abandonment and Survival (SMERAS) techniques. However, this is fraught with risk and is a last resort option that is only viable at relatively shallow depths. Rescue by another submersible is a far safer means of escape where possible.

The NSRS can perform rescues down to depths of 610 meters, essentially covering the continental shelf but it should be remembered that about 90% of the ocean is more than 1,000 meters deep. Should an incident cause an uncontrolled descent in the open ocean, the boat would exceed crush depth, implode and be far beyond rescue. However, attack submarines at least, tend to spend a disproportionate amount of their time in shallower waters, either operating off coasts or in transit to their bases. NSRS is primarily intended to cover Northern European waters but overlaps with rescue systems provided by other navies worldwide.

Continues, including photos at - https://www.navylookout.com/submarine-r ... oyal-navy/

[Pelican]

Neutrino detectors could monitor treaty compliance by nuclear submarines

Two neutrino physicists in the US have proposed a novel way to detect the presence of weapons-grade uranium in nuclear-powered submarines without entering their reactor compartments. The procedure, which could be conducted in port while a submarine’s reactor is turned off, could help to safeguard against the diversion of highly-enriched uranium into weapons programmes.

The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons prohibits the transfer of nuclear material from civilian power plants – where it is monitored by the International Atomic Energy Association – to nuclear weapons. It does, however, permit its transfer to non-explosive military uses like nuclear-powered submarines and aircraft carriers. However, once nuclear material is transferred from the civilian realm to the military one, it becomes much harder to track.

Continues at - https://physicsworld.com/a/neutrino-det ... ubmarines/

[Proposals are one thing. Progressing them is another?]

Link from Tim.

[Pelican]

Devonport Dockyard refurb project to be delivered by Kier BAM Joint Venture

Kier BAM Joint Venture (KBJV) has been appointed by Babcock International Group to support delivery of the Devonport Dockyard refurb project at Devonport’s 10 Dock facility in Plymouth, Devon

The Devonport dockyard refurbishment project will take place at the Devonport Royal Dockyard, the largest naval base in Western Europe. The facility has been supporting the Royal Navy for more than 300 years since 1691. The vast site covers more than 650 acres and has 15 dry docks, four miles of waterfront, 25 tidal berths and five basins.

The Devonport Dockyard refurb project will support the Royal Navy’s submarine maintenance programme
The project includes the demolition of existing buildings and construction of new ones to support the Royal Navy’s submarine maintenance programme. A dry dock will also be redeveloped for nuclear submarines.

The scope includes all mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, control and automation technology within the new dock building, a new dividing headwall within the dock, ground anchors, new service subways to support submarines in their dry dock positions.

Continues at - https://www.pbctoday.co.uk/news/plannin ... re/113236/

[Pelican]

Devonport Dockyard nuclear submarine dock revamp set to create jobs


Joint venture between leading construction firms Kier and BAM will rebuild 10 Dock, the first part of a £2bn overhaul of facilities at the UK’s largest dockyard.


See- https://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/news/p ... ck-7350869

Link from Tim.

[Pelican]

Navy Lookout

So unlike the Daily Express to totally exaggerate:
"Britain sends warning to China with fleet of nuclear submarines to be based in Australia"
See - https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/16 ... -world-ont

CDS is visiting Australia this week. Australians keen for RN Astute boat to be based down under.
Reality check - we currently have just 5 active SSNs and our hands very full with Russian underwater activity.


Royal Navy tracks movements of Russian submarines into the North Sea

https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... submarines