Posted on 01/08/2005 3:19:47 AM PST by Jet Jaguar
HONOLULU (AP) - A nuclear submarine ran aground about 350 miles south of Guam, injuring several sailors, one of them critically, the Navy said.
There were no reports of damage to the USS San Francisco's reactor plant, which was operating normally, the Navy said.
Jon Yoshishige, a spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbor, said the Friday afternoon incident is under investigation and the 360-foot submarine was headed back to its home port in Guam.
Details on the sailors' injuries were not immediately available. The sub has a crew of 137, officials said.
Military and Coast Guard aircraft from Guam were en route to monitor the submarine and assist if needed, the Navy said.
Guam is a U.S. territory about 3,700 miles southwest of Hawaii.
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On the Net:
U.S. Pacific Fleet: http://www.cpf.navy.mil
AP-ES-01-08-05 0343EST
Someone just lost their job.
I hope those sailors are all right.
SSN 711
I'll be checking back to see if someone knowledgeable will explain how this might have happened. Bad navigation? Unexpected sandbar? And how does a submarine free itself - can you just put it in reverse?
ping
"Someone just lost their job."
My first thought...
The short answer is yes. The long answer is a lot depends on tides and currents and the structural integrity of the boat. I am sure so ex-dolphins will be by shortly to give you a much better explanation.
Ususally.
If I recall correctly, the Captain of the HOUSTON was allowed to run aground twice in the late eighties before a forced retirement.
The man was a running joke at San Diego.
.
The sub still has sonar, changed seafloor or no.
Wrong ocean.
God bless these guys - and prayers for their full recovery.
ditto
So....you're gonna defend the Captain? This is usually a pretty big no-no for a ship's commander, a career-ender.
One of the times the HOUSTON ran aground was in San Diego Harbor. I found out about it when the Captain's picture made the cover of "Proceedings" and a former crewmwmber of the SALT LAKE CITY was laughing about it.
nature doesn't necessarily color between the lines drawn by man
.
I imagined rocking it back and forth like you do a car stuck in the snow. I imagine the gearshift lever is a little different, though.
USS SAM HOUSTON runs aground in Carr Inlet of the southeast tip of Fox Island in the Puget Sound while operating in shallow water to determine how quiet the vessel is in water. The submarine is freed the next day by four tugs and the USS FLORIKAN (ASR 9) while the submarine's crew remains aboard. The SAM HOUSTON suffers minor damage to exterior hull equipment. Source
I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt
.
A submarine, while trying to remain hidden or following another submarine, will NOT use active sonar.
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