US Nuclear Sub collides with Japanese merchant ship

A US nuclear-powered submarine and Japanese merchant ship collided in the Arabian Sea, the US Navy and Japanese Government said today. No one was seriously injured.

There was no damage to the fast-attack USS Newport News submarine or the ship that affected either vessel's ability to navigate, said a navy official who requested anonymity because the details of the incident had not yet been released.

The official said the accident occurred late last night local time and that neither vessel reported any injuries or serious damage. The Japanese Government said it was informed soon after by the navy and the US embassy in Tokyo.

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Since there aren't a lot of details available I don't want to jump to conclusions. But given that Sonar has been around since post World War One and Radar has been around for about sixty years you have to sit up and take note.

How and why dose such a thing happen today ?

[edit on 9-1-2007 by xpert11]

Good question...

Its not really a very good indictment on the US Navy is it?

A submarine full of (I assume) some of the most sophisticated equipment in the world - crashes into a fishing boat??

Now you would never see that happen with the Australian Navy =)

Being girt by sea and all....

It was an Oil Tanker not a fishing boat. How it happened though the only explanation has to be navigational error I cant see how it would have happened otherwise. Lucky they wre going slow.

It really does make one stop and wonder doesn't it ?

Well at least nobody was killed this time.

In September 2005, a U.S. nuclear submarine collided with a Turkish cargo ship in the Gulf. In July 2004, the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy collided with a dhow in the Gulf, leaving no survivors on the traditional Arab sailing boat.

In February 2001, a U.S. Navy submarine rammed into a Japanese fishing vessel in waters off Hawaii, killing nine people. The American captain's delay in apologizing for the crash triggered protests by the victims' families.

From original source

...Well I dont really know how you miss a large oil tanker when supposedly these things can track the latest russian boomer submarine in wartime...but hey weirder things have happened.

I wonder how much damage ramming into the stern of a tanker would cause to a submarine or the tanker itself...

You would think the US navy would learn from its mistakes.

How a sub surfaces without knowing whats above it boggles my mind.

I think it just goes to show the humility of man, and and the equipment we use.

I also don't think these collisions are from two random ships, just going 'bout their business. I'm pretty sure these submarines are tracking, and practicing maneuvres againts these civilian ships. So they are accidents, but the situational proximity is purposeful.

Originally posted by nextguyinline

I also don't think these collisions are from two random ships, just going 'bout their business. .............. So they are accidents, but the situational proximity is purposeful.

Pretty darn close thenextguyinline...pretty darn close. Read the article again...closely..between the lines...tell me what you see??

Thanks,
Orangetom

I'll bite orange, so I reread the article a couple times.

-I didn't mean to imply anything nefarious with the maneuvres, I just thought it was common practice for subs to practice tracking and sorts, on ships they come across.

But, I'm looking for something deeper as you suggest. I am afterall, entertained with a good plot.

I'm not having much luck, seeing much into it, except perhaps that these subs may have ramming in their arsenal of attacks, and this could have been a practical test of those capabilities. ???

Maybe the Japanese have a dirty hand-print somewheres in Iran, and this was just a "hey, we know we you got in that boat, you can have it, but just know that we know!" kind of thing. ???

Lol, I don't know. Will you say?

it was the USS NEWPORT NEWS.

a city i hold dear..

"Hey, how come my periscope won't go up?" / "Um, I think there's a ship on top of it."

[edit on 9-1-2007 by opinionsarefree]

They obviously sneak into or out of the straights by shadowing a tanker at night and hiding in its wake...very closely by the looks of this accident. It hides them. Unless ....that is ..the ship makes a wrong turn or slows down.

You have to come in close to pull this one off. You have to have big brass ones hanging to do this with a large tanker. If they run over a submarine they will probably leave them squashed deep in the mud..no one will get out. Especially one of these supertankers. Looks to me like the tanker did not know they were there. Submarines dont exactly advertise their presence or whereabouts.

No one is going to say offically but that is what I read in the article. Read it again.
I believe they have been doing this for years and years now..since the first gulf war.

Could I be wrong about this..certainly... but I know the Iranians and others consider the straights their territory and have probably seeded it with listening devices. THe deep water parts for large ships to navigate in the gulf are not very wide. Large Ships must transit a narrow corridor in many places. One side of that narrow Straight of Hormuz is Iranian.

Orangetom

I see. Are you saying this an uncommon practice? I guess I would of assumed that subs went in and out of the Persian Gulf regurlarly considering the circumstances. I really don't know these kinds of operations.

MY GUESS is that they were wearing the tanker as a hat using the noise from the tanker to cloak them from iranian detection. my guess is that the botton of the gulf got shallow and in the rush to get to safety they bumped the tanker.

The Gulf is a shallow stretch of water, less than 200' in most places. A supertanker can have a draft up to 67'. I think the theory of the US trying to sneak a sub into the persian gulf is a viable conclusion. It could be trying to sneak off the coast of Iran for a little recon and snooping. The article says the US Navy was conduction Anti-terror drills in the area. Sounds like CYA to me(cover your a@#).

Originally posted by nextguyinline
I see. Are you saying this an uncommon practice? I guess I would of assumed that subs went in and out of the Persian Gulf regurlarly considering the circumstances. I really don't know these kinds of operations.

No I am not saying that this is an uncommon practice. I am saying that this is an "Unofficial " practice.

Chron's point about wearing the cover of the tanker as a hat for masking purposes is appropriate. Well said.

As I stated in my previous post...this has most likely been going on since the first Gulf War. Also Iran considers these Straights OF Hormuz to be under their Jurisdiction. On a map you can see that one side of the straight is bordered by Iran. It is also the narrowest point and obviously seeded with listening devices....Just like the Straight of Gibralter entering the Mediterian Sea. In the shadow of another vessel is the logical way to enter and exit unseen.

Nothing new here...skippers in WW2 diesel boats did this too. A common maneuver and training for a submarine skipper.

Thanks,
Orangetom

Why would this happen? Because we the people never stood up for our rights. We let govt legislate every aspect of our lives. Rule 1: Always question authority

Wait untill June when the nucelar reactors Iran has are blown up.

Govt will say.. It was a Sunami...caused a chain reaction. Show pictures of another year.

Folks I dont think what the founders of the constitution ment this.

But Now We Are Sleeping With the Devil! Deal With It I'm just wondering if I should cut my tongue out now or wait and let the police do it.
You know since Big Brother now whats Best

[edit on 10-1-2007 by HDLady]

Anyday now a strike against Iran will happen!

It seem we are waiting on the CVN-74 John C. Stennis to arrive in the gulf before any attack will happen, so we have a few days before the Stennis to get into position.

And possibily tonights speach from GWB will be directed toward Iran...

Here is a quote from a Russian Admiral on the Sub / Jap ship collision.

Russian admiral predicts impending US strike against Iran!

www.kuna.net.kw...

Former Russian Black Sea Fleet Commander Admiral Edward Baltin

"He blamed Monday's collision between a US submarine and a Japanese sea liner near the Strait of Hormuz on the fact that US submarines needed to sail relatively higher than their usual depths to get clearer vision enabling them to zero in on likely targets."

US submarines do not need to come to shallow water to get targeting information. The information can be pre loaded before they ever get to their operating area. They certainly wont be worried about targeting information when they are shadowing a huge tanker..they will be worried about navigation....not colliding. Nor do they have to sail higher than their usual operating depths to get this information. It can be fed to them from Aircraft, Satellite, or ultra low frequency radio wave...sent right through the center of the earth.
This is also not what caused this collision.

[edit on 11-1-2007 by orangetom1999]