Marine Technology Reporter Blogs - navy

The Block III Virginia-class Attack Submarines are the most modern subs ever built. They are fast, silent and packed with state of the art technology. The Virginia-class submarines weigh 7,800 tons and are 377 feet long, with a 34-foot beam, they can reach speeds of more than 25 knots submerged. Of the many systems and sensors on board, one of the highlights is the novel Photonics mast system. Electro-optics engineers at Kollmorgen Electro-Optical and its Italian subsidiary, Calzoni have developed the AN/BVS-1 photonics mast system, which is a non-hull penetrating electronic imaging subsystem with visible light camera, infrared camera, and electronic support measures sensors, as well as stealth features that will provide new capabilities for attack submarines.

The U.S. Navy has the world's most comprehensive rescue system for submarines in distress. It is capable of rendering assistance to submarines down to 2000 feet (609.6 meters), anywhere in the world. This system is unique in that it allows the submariners in distress to board a remote controlled rescue diving recompression system in groups of sixteen crewmembers and be brought up to the surface. The U.S. Phoenix International Holdings, Inc. is contracted for the operation and maintenance of the US Navy’s Submarine Rescue Systems, in conjunction with Navy personnel. Phoenix has the responsibility for carrying out any rescue operation, and maintaining a state of readiness for immediate worldwide deployment on a 24/7 basis.

Other than the large CURV-21 ROV, the U.S. Navy owns two other smaller ROVs. The Deep Drone is a 4,100 pound ROV that is designed to meet the Navy's mid-water salvage requirements down to a maximum depth of 8,000 feet seawater. The system consists of the vehicle, umbilical cable, motion-compensated handling system, deck hydraulic power unit, generator, operations van and maintenance van. Navigation is accomplished with an ultra-short baseline acoustic tracking system. Two handling systems are available, Sea Horse I for shallow operations (6,000 feet) and Sea Horse II for deeper operations (8,000 feet). As in the CURV-21, the operator can control the Deep Drone and the Magnum in all six degrees of motion with auto-control functions for depth, altitude, and heading.

ROVs are one of the mainstays of deepwater E&P in the oil and gas industry and extensively used in deepwater scientific research, they are also key equipment in any form of deepwater search & rescue operation, but not many people know the history behind ROV development. In this series we’ll take a look at the historical timeline of ROV development up to the present day and also an outlook to the future. The Cable-controlled Undersea Recovery Vehicle (CURV) was the first operational Work Class ROV, developed in the early 1960's by the former Pasadena Annex of the Naval Ordnance Test Station, one of Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific’s (SSC Pacific) parent laboratories. At the time, the U.S.

After the Kursk exploded and sank in 2000, the Russian Admiralty recognized that they did not have an efficient system for rescuing stranded submariners. Some western submarine specialists went as far as claiming that such a system did not exist because the Russian Navy cared more about saving face than saving any crews that were eventually stranded. It is quite probable that such a system was not developed earlier due to the dire financial situation faced by Russia. The fact is that it has been 13 years since the Kursk tragedy, but Russia will now be able to deploy a modern, safe and efficient saturation diving rescue system, through its agreement with Divex, who have built 100 major saturation diving systems since 1974.

There were a number of different midget submarines employed during World War II with their main objectives being to infiltrate ports and lay explosives on or under enemy ships and coastal reconnaissance and hydrography. One of the most successful midget submarine programs was the X-class developed by the Royal Navy. The X-class was specifically developed to attack and sink Nazi battleships KMS Tripitz, KMS Sharnhorst and pocket battleship Lutzow which were frequently docked in Norwegian ports. The X-Craft was about 51 feet (15.5 m) long, 5.5 feet (1.68 m) in maximum diameter and displaced 27 tons surfaced and 30 tons submerged. Its propulsion system was governed by a 4-cylinder Gardner 42 hp diesel engine…

The Remora is specially designed ultra-deepwater ROV. It was designed and built to explore and undertake specialized work at the seabed up to four miles deep. The builder of the Remora 6000, Phoenix International, is an American marine services company experienced in designing and manufacturing unmanned subsea vehicle and also in conducting complex manned and unmanned underwater operations. Phoenix is also a highly regarded operator, when it comes to wet and dry chamber underwater welding, underwater non-destructive testing, manned diving, side-scan sonar operations, underwater tooling, submarine rescue, and engineering design and integration.

The Brazilian government and Navy are considering an ambitious plan for launching an offshore subsea lab to be located at the limit of the country´s territorial waters and beyond the farthest pre-salt playThe idea is to place an oceanographic lab at Brazil´s most remote maritime frontier, in order to have a continuous presence and dominate as area in which hidden natural riches go beyond the pre-salt layers. At the limit of the continental platform, around 350 nautical miles (648 km) from the coast, the potential for mineral reserves under the seabed is considered to be very high. This is not only a government project but also a military matter, which will involve government agencies, the Brazilian Navy, and Brazilian private companies.

A new partnership between ANP (National Petroleum Agency), Ibama (National Environmental Agency) and the Brazilian Navy, plans to upgrade and expand existing E&P safety measures, in order to prevent major oil spills in Brazil. According to Haroldo Lima, Director of ANP, presently Petrobras elaborates the contingency programs for each platform, but now the Brazilian government will launch a nationwide contingency plan led by the navy and involving the regulatory agency and the environmental agency. Although Lima emphasizes that the current safety systems and regulatory systems in place on offshore platforms in Brazil are among the most advanced in the world, he admits there will certainly be upgrades due to the Deepwater Horizon tragedy at the GOM.

Northrop Grumman delivered PCU New Mexico to the Navy 4 months early.The Navy took delivery of its newest attack submarine, PCU New Mexico (SSN 779), from Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding (NGSB) Dec. 29, four months earlier than its contract delivery date. New Mexico is the sixth Virginia-class submarine and the third delivered by NGSB. USS North Carolina (SSN 777) and USS New Hampshire (SSN 778), the two submarines delivered prior to New Mexico, were completed after 82 and 71 months, respectively. New Mexico completed construction in just 70 months. New Mexico's delivery in 2009 wraps up a successful year for the Virginia-class program.