NEWS: Russian Mini Sub Stranded On Ocean Floor - Japanese To Rescue

A Russian Pritz mini submarine is at present stranded on the ocean bottom in the Bay of Kamchatka in Eastern Russia after becoming trapped in fishing nets. It is believed the submarine was taking part in routine exercise when it's propeller became entangled in the nets. The crew has enough oxygen to survive another two days at sea and it is understood that their are seven men onboard. A Japanese ship is rushing to the area to attempt a rescue of the crew and try to disentangle the propeller.



First reports were that the crew had four days of oxygen and ironically these particular submarines are themselves used in rescue operations as in the case of the failed attempt to save the crew members of the doomed submarine Kursk which sank in 2000.

This is not the first time that particular region of Russia has been in the news lately with the Kamchatka area which is famous for its volcanoes becoming intensely active since February this year.

volcano.und.nodak.edu



[edit on 5-8-2005 by Mayet]

Mayet,

Do you think there could be any connection here? Do we have any reports that say when this sub allegedly "got stuck in fishing nets"?

Magnitude: mb 4.7
Region: NEAR E. CST KAMCHATKA PEN.
Date Time: 2005/08/04 at 17:38:28.2 UTC
Location: 53.05 N ; 159.90 E
Depth: 60 km
References: 83 km E Petropavlovsk-kamcha ; 16 km S Boza ;

www.emsc-csem.org...

Hope all goes well to get everyone home safe. It would be interesting to know if any volcantic activity was occuring just prior to the accident. Thanks for the information.

Theres not much news around about this situation yet for much more info.
Questions I have include what was the sub doing in the particular area that has been so seismically active.

Is there more than meets the eye to this is another big question.

It is interesting if there was a quake around the time the sub got "entangled" which would be an unusual situation for a sub. Entangled in a net?

Just happened on this article:
U.S. to Help Rescue Russian Mini-Sub

The U.S. Navy is rushing an unmanned, remote-controlled vehicle from San Diego to Russia to help in the rescue efforts, the Navy said.

The Russian sub's propeller became entangled in a fishing net Thursday, and the craft is stuck 625 feet below the surface, Russian navy Capt. Igor Dygalo said on state-run Rossiya television.

Further mentions:

Dygalo also said Britain was providing "rescue means," but he did not specify what those were.

The mini-sub, called an AS-28, was too deep to allow the sailors to swim to the surface on their own or for divers to reach it, officials said.

The accident occurred early Thursday after the mini-submarine was launched from a rescue ship during a combat training exercise, Kosolapov said.

seekerof

Kamchatka is a HUGE fishing area... On the peninsula of Kamchata the primary industries are fishing and those that support fishing.

www.travelkamchatka.com...
They say that Kamchatka's industries can be divided into two categories: fishing and those that support fishing. Seafood is plentiful, with crab, salmon and caviar being the main exports. During the spawning season, smoked salmon and red caviar can be found in every market and store.

So them saying it was caught in fishing nets really isn't that far fetched. I really doubt any volcanic or other seismic activity had anything to do with it.

Keep in mind that in WWII submarine nets were a common practie to defend harbors. Sure, larger submarines would need larger nets, but something this small probably would get caught in a fishing net. Think about it, those nets are used to haul in several tons of fish at a time, through the drag of water, and cannot break. They must be pretty strong.

If this is going to be another Kursk i'm gonna f-ing scream!

How many Russian sailors will have to die on those subs?

Looks like the russian rescue effort has hooked onto the sub
and has begun towing it!
Crossing fingers..

Seems like the most immediate effort should be to snag the net and try to either pull the net loose or use it to raise the sub to a reachable depth for an attempted rescue. I'm not surprised the Russians were reluctant to ask for help because of the area where this event is taking place. The Kamchatka Penninsula is teeming with sensitive Russian military installations. As some of you may recall, this is close to where the Russians shot down that off-course airliner several years ago because they thought it might have been spying on those installations. The complete story of KAL 107 (the airliner shot down) may never be known, but the U.S. was, and had been, conducting electronic reconnaissance flights through that general area.

[edit on 5-8-2005 by Astronomer68]

Hoorah Japan for showing commradiere (sp) and helping out a neighbor. This is what we need to see more of

Latest stories have the US and Britain helping out too...

My assumption is the US sending drone subs, while Britain sends a hospital ship perhaps....

We;ve got some rescue ROV's en route as well.

AS for caught in nets, American Trident subs used to have this problem often around Bangor. Though they hardly got stuck. My grandfather and dad used to fish in the area and there were stories.

Amongst deep sea fishers at Westport and anyone who fished international or deeper waters, and various international fishing boats, the story was you could tell what nationality of submarine you caught. An American boat would stop and surface to cut the nets free. A Russian sub would dive or speed up and you'd have to cut the line or you'd lose your winch and the boat.

Some of it had to do with avoiding bad press, but even in the late 60's, American subs were vastly quieter than their Soviet counterparts-a bit of net hanging on the hull increased the acoustic signature greatly, and an attempt to run with it would damage the fragile composite outer hull, sensors, or acoustic absorbent medium. It was better to surface, clean off the debris quickly, then dive.

My grandfather said he knew how Pinnocio felt, having a Trident crusing underneath his boat, deep enough to not roil the surface, but still a large, dark shape there. And a few incidents where he had to make sure he was out of the path of a little tube stickong out of the water, doing about ten knots and making a little wake....the proverbial tip of the iceberg.

Back on topic, I'm so glad the Russians aren't hiding any secrets that make sacrificing their crew "worthwhile" like the Kursk incident. I can't think of a worse way to go...except maybe pirhanas...or vivisection.

Does anyone know whether or not the little sub carries carbon dioxide scrubbers aboard? If they don't the buildup of carbon dioxide will likely get the crew before the lack of oxygen.

The latest I've heard is that the Russians haven't yet been able to successfully connect with the sub yet to tow it. The Super Scorpio equipment is being loaded onto a Air Force transport plane in San Diego as quickly as possible.

They have problems with the dragging cable. The rescue operation will continue into the night. The health of the 7-man crew is "satisfactory", but they don´t have much oxygen. About 14-16 hours or so. The Japanese will be too late to the scene (3-4 days).

RIA Novosti: URGENT: Strain of sweeper to hook stuck submersible insufficient

RIA Novosti: Submersible crew's health satisfactory, rescue work continues

MosNews: U.S. Rescue Vessel Sent to Sunken Russian Mini-Sub

ITAR-TASS: Russian sailors using sweepnets to free trapped minisub


BBC: Russians attempt deep-sea rescue


[edit on 2005/8/5 by Hellmutt]

According to the latest news article the Russians are trying to drag the sub, net & all into shallower water. Link:

news.yahoo.com...

Latest news is that the mini sub is being held down by a 60 ton anchor. Link:

www.interfax.ru...

[edit on 5-8-2005 by Astronomer68]

The Yahoo link says "dragged"...but as far as I can tell they haven't successfully raised the craft or saved the crew yet?

Yeah, that's what I get as well. I'm monitoring AP, UPI, REUTERS, CNN, FOX, the BBC, ITAR-TASS and Interfax continuously, but nothing further has come through yet.

From the live pics on FOX, it appears the C-5 Galaxy has been loaded with all the equipment as the nose has been lowered, but it's still sitting there...maybe they're waiting for some more personnel or something. Hopefully it takes off soon, time is of the essence here...

edit:

It just took off, but 10 hours flight time to Russia.


[edit on 8/5/2005 by djohnsto77]