Foreign Submarine Articles
Here are some recent articles from the international press about submarines:
1) An interesting article on the Israeli submarine force.
2) A discussion on the future of the Australian submarine force, along with a report of some problems with their existing boats.
3) Another submarine shipyard fire, this time in Russia.
4) The 70th anniversary of one of the great British submarine exploits during WWII.
Who are your favorite foreign Submariners?
Update 1802 26 Sep: Once again, I completely forgot about my blogiversary. TTSBP started 9 years ago this month with this post. Thanks to all the commenters for making this community what it is. Hopefully I won't forget my 10th next year.
Update 1903 29 Sep: In U.S. submarine news, CDR Richard N. Massie, Commanding Officer, USS Maine (SSBN 741)(Gold) was named the PACFLT winner of the 2013 Stockdale Award.
posted by Bubblehead at 3:35 PM
25 Comments:
50th anniversary of the POLARIS Sales Agreement, too.
9/26/2013 4:16 PM
By far the brits are my favorite! Their sub are not commanded by Nucs! Just hired killers for the Gov!
9/26/2013 4:56 PM
The only two foreign submarine navies I ever dealt with directly were unfriendly or hostile towards the U.S.
One of them was the French. But I would not hesitate to grant their wives 'most-favored submarine power' status. Hand salute.
9/26/2013 5:47 PM
Happy Blogiversary Joel.
I kinda like all foreign submariners - even the Russians. They are just as dumb as we are, and they are just as smart as we are. The Brits are a little more touched, though.
9/27/2013 5:13 AM
When did US SSN’s go from an O-4 command to an O-5 command?
Who commands in other countries?
9/27/2013 9:59 AM
They went to O-5 command when they added a nuclear reactor to submarines in 1954...
US Diesel-electric submarines have always been an O-4 command, except for the USS Dolphin (US research SSK)
Nuclear SSN were always an O-5 (and occasionally an O-6 when the serving O-5 got in trouble). SSBN were an O-6 command until about 1997-1998 timeframe, when they switched to O-5.
9/27/2013 10:24 AM
SSGNs today are a post served CO O-6 command as well.
9/27/2013 10:56 AM
I came across this film from 1967 and the CO of the Shark SSN 571 is an O-4 hence the question.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdSIxsJfTec
9/27/2013 1:04 PM
More than that...SSGNs count as a major command tour (akin to a Commodore).
9/27/2013 1:05 PM
“akin to a Commodore”??
Major command is command of a major ship. In the submarine world that ship would be a SSGN or an AS. In the skimmer world that would be a cruiser, CVN, etc.
Major ship command is an O-6 command not a Commodore command even though Commodores are also generally O-6.
9/27/2013 4:07 PM
I understand the Japanese Submariners are very good.
Modern Navy not Imperial Navy...
9/27/2013 4:46 PM
In the 1120 world, Squadron Command is major command. Check out the Major Command screen list and guess which jobs the superstars get: Squadron Commodore.
9/27/2013 7:46 PM
(clarification to post above)
I may have misread the 4:07 anonymous post - of course an SSGN CO is still just a Captain and not a Commodore. As far as I know Commodore is purely an unofficial honorific, reserved for Squadron Commanders as far as I'm concerned. But beyond SSGNs and ASs, major submarine commands also include the squadrons as well as several vital shore commands.
I know the NSSC Groton CO did try to pass himself off as a Commodore (even forcing his staff to go along with the charade) even though that act diminished respect for what would otherwise be respected as a very challenging and respectable major command tour. Hopefully SSGN COs aren't trying to do the same. Major Command is a huge career achievement as it is and no one gets there without seeing most of his peers fail to screen for one milestone or another along the way.
9/27/2013 7:58 PM
Major command is command of a major ship. In the submarine world that ship would be a SSGN or an AS.
Or Commodore. There are only 4 SSGNs, so if those are the only 1120 MC billets then there'd be a huge bottleneck.
http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/officer/Detailing/submarinenuclear/career/Documents/PCC-MC%20Detailing/PCC-MC%20Detailing.pdf
9/27/2013 8:23 PM
Jesus tap dancing christ!
Commodore is nothing more than an honorific given to a naval officer who is in command of more than one ship and is not an admiral. One stars used to be called Commodore.
9/27/2013 9:07 PM
OK, so back to O-4's as SSN CO's.
Obviously there was a point when that was the case as seen in the film.
9/27/2013 9:23 PM
anon @1304:
Thanks for the pointer, learn somethign new every day. I thought SSN was always an O-5 (or O-6) command.
But LCDR "Jack" Fagan was the commissioning CO of the USS Shark, including two years post-commissioning special ops (presumably he made O-5 somewhere in this time period).
http://www.btrosper.com/allshark/sharkmem/MEM_JFagan.html
Must be back in the days when raw ability meant more then time in service.
I wonder how many other O-4's commanded SSNs?
9/28/2013 2:42 PM
Quite a few O-4s:
USS Sargo: LCDR J.H. Nicholson
USS SEADRAGON: LCDR George P. Steele
USS HALIBUT: LCDR W. Dedrick, LCDR J. F. Mangold
USS Permit: LCDR Robert H. Bount
USS Thresher: LCDR John Wesley Harvey
Maybe the USS Thresher disaster provoked the shift to O-5 commanding officers? I didn't find any O-4 commanding officers after 1963.
9/28/2013 3:06 PM
More about the Shark puzzle; names changed for the film?
http://www.btrosper.com/ALLSHARK/Submariners67P0.html
9/28/2013 3:13 PM
Hey what about Admiral Giardina, playing poker or something..... Anyone got the story????
9/28/2013 4:09 PM
Breaking news...from 3 weeks ago?
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57605132/no-2-u.s-nuke-commander-suspended-amid-probe/
9/28/2013 4:26 PM
David Dales, special agent of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), said the probe into Giardina had begun in June after DCI agents detected the use of counterfeit gambling chips at the casino. Dales said the activity under investigation involved “a significant monetary amount” of chips, but declined to offer specifics as to Giardina’s role in their use. Stratcom was notified of the situation on July 16, which prompted Kehler to ask the Naval Criminal Investigation Service to open its own investigation.
9/28/2013 9:59 PM
So, the "Head Boomer Fag" got busted..Uhhmm "Investigated"...?
Personally don't know him, but all of us have a vice or three.... but trying to rip off a casino?
Those pretty lights aren't there because they're a charity!!
9/29/2013 6:44 PM
"In the 1120 world, Squadron Command is major command. Check out the Major Command screen list and guess which jobs the superstars get: Squadron Commodore."
Well, in the 1120 world, squadron commodore = c*cksucker trying vainly to get a star.....
10/02/2013 6:17 PM
Concerning the Australian Submarine force, as the US Exchange guy I've been dealing with them for several years now. They do have many issues since they basically took a good design and made tons of changes to them, increasing the risk of these issues. But that being said they are a pretty good boat. Cameron Stewart (Author of the aricles) is extremely critical of the military as a whole and at times seems to have some kind of vendetta towards them.
10/21/2013 8:43 PM
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