Submarine Tidbits From Other English-Speaking Countries
Two pieces of news floating around the 'net about submarines from our neighbors to the north and east, one good and one bad. First the good -- a Canadian submarine, HMCS Corner Brook (SSK 878), recently participated in Operation Nanook 07, which was described as a "Canada Command sovereignty operation taking place in Iqaluit and the Baffin Island Coastal and the Hudson Strait areas". Here's a picture of the former HMS Ursula operating in the Arctic during the exercise:
It's good to see one of the old Upholder-class boats Canada got from the Brits actually going out to sea -- even if it is for a misguided attempt to assert sovereignty over an international strait.For the bad news, it looks like HMS Astute (S 119) had some problems during their pre-commissioning engine room testing:
BARROW’S new £1.2bn submarine Astute has been damaged after a test went badly wrong.For all the nukes out there who ever thought certain pre-underway checks were a waste of time, this provides a reminder on why it's so important that we verified the coastdown pump actually works before we started up the TGLO system.
Two turbo generators ran metal on metal for more than a minute when an oil pump failed.
BAE might now have to cut a hole in the 7,400 tonne sub to fix the problem with the difficult to access turbo generators, which supply all power for on board systems, at the back.
Bearings which encase wide shafts were damaged and an investigation is still taking place to see if the shafts were affected as well...
...A BAE statement on the incident said: “During turbo generator trials on the first-of-class Astute submarine on August 7 a lubrication pump failed to operate during testing.
“Once this failure had been identified (less than one minute) testing was immediately stopped, although both turbo generators sustained damage because oil had ceased to circulate.
posted by Bubblehead at 1:37 PM
7 Comments:
I'm slightly surprised that the Brits didn't decide to use the magnetic bearing system utilized by our Virginia class boats.
As I read along, I could hear the horrific noise in my head. That's a good MM upbringing there!
8/23/2007 3:53 PM
Sea story: Amphib departing for deployment loadout of Marines. #1 main engine steam LO pump OOC. Unguarded switch for #1 ME electric LO pump across the aisle from the gaugeboard, at precisely the height of the Sea Detail throttleman's elbow. Result: replace all four turbine bearings and HP high speed pinion bearings; chrome and grind HP high speed pinion shaft.
8/24/2007 6:26 AM
Another Sea Story: On the USS Seawolf I was standing ERS on the midwatch. Well on the midwatch we would shift lube oil purification from Propulsion lube oil to the TGLO systems. Well, I got the OK to do this from the EOOW so I let the ERLL watch that it needed to be done. This run all the mechanical watchstanders were experienced and were qualified ERS so I just gave the LL watch the go ahead and went on my business...(baby sitting the 12K). A few minutes go by and I hear over the 2MC,"Stbd TG sump Low Level alarm, switching from FPLU to HPLU on Port TG" well I check the LL watch and he forgot to shut a valve and the Lube oil was being transferred from TG sump to the LO settling tank. As you guessed, the EOOW, EWS, the LL watch, and myself have a good conversation (critique) with the old man.
MM2/ss
8/24/2007 8:41 AM
must be the 21 boat, cuz on the 575 version of the Seawolf, we only had an 8K. and those old LO purifiers were a sombich to clean, get back together just right, and back in operation without losing the water seal. do that, and you end up cleaning a lot of oil out of the bilges with the master chief supervising.
8/24/2007 2:05 PM
Ah, the good ol' days of ERLL...on the good ol' San Juan. One of my first watches in ERLL, i wound up draining the STBD TGLO sump. The A-gangers were pissed that they had to become a part of the ENG department for that one...then there was the time I took the STBD TGLO sump solid. If you check the level and the dipstick lets itself out, it's not fun. Not to mention the short-tempered ERS I had getting douched with oil when he checked. It was painful, to say the least, but I found a lot of tools under that sump.
8/25/2007 12:32 PM
It is indeed good to see the Corner Brook out. I was in Victoria this summer and got to visit the HMCS Victoria in drydock, and from what the crew and techs told me, they're pretty capable little subs. Although the Corner Brook is the only one operational right now, the others (minus Chicoutimi) should be up within a few years, and once the rotation is established they should be around for a while. Maybe a few wargaming exercises against your nukes, just for grins? (And bragging rights ;))
I won't comment on the sovereignty issue, as it's way too far above my paygrade and there's really nothing new on that subject since the last time we traded posts over that, bubbleheads. I'll just point out that my government disagrees.
Anyway, glad to see it's not just us few crazy Canucks who actually like subs who are paying attention to what's going on with the Victoria class.
8/30/2007 10:07 AM
The design engineer or probaby the comity who desided to go cheap on thier tglo system needs a Doap Slap. It sounds as if they have one system for both tg's.
9/01/2007 6:47 PM
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