Navy photos of Submarine USS San Francisco in Dry Dock (you won't believe the extent of damage!)

U.S. Navy ^

[Boot Hill]

The amount of damage is simply staggering!

That this boat ever made it back to port is a tribute to its designers, builders, and especially to the crew and captain. How does America keep finding men like these?

High resolution version here

High resolution version here

[Boot Hill]

"The pressure hull looks to be in fair shape."

Just curious, how can you tell?

--Boot Hill

[IMRight]

Just because the reactor "stuff" is in the back, does not mean that there was no damage. A lot of thought and examination will have to be done before this baby can be considered salvageable.

That's basically it. I haven't done any DC work (other than the basic training everyone gets), but sometimes you'd be surprised at how a problem that LOOKS big turns out to be something you can work with and how sometimes problems you'd hardly notice turn out to be irreparable.

No question though that there's a lot of expensive "stuff" forward of that "total loss" line (much of it sitting under that blue roofers tarp).

[IGOTMINE]

Better call Geico!

[Selkie]

That is jaw-droppingly stunning.

Thanks for posting those.

[AFreeBird]

Also, if you load the high res version (pic 1); if you look back towards the middle (maybe a little aft of the middle) of the sail just under the walkway, you'll see what appears to be a slight bulge there too.

[WildTurkey]

Not to mention the electrical and electronic components - particularly the reactor safety systems.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

See #139 for even worse damage....totally opened up...

[Red6]

I'm thinking the same.

Under water mountain ramming is not a MILSPEC I imagine. The fact this thing survived is a testament to its construction.

How deep was it when this happened?

Red6

[MissAmericanPie]

It got a few dimples.

[Big Mack]

They find men like this in the red states.

[ProudVet77]

Sadly, this boat is pretty much toast.
Every weld on a sub is X-Rayed, every plate magnafluxed for minor cracks. The attention to detail is incredible, as can be attested to by it's survival. To make sure she is seaworthy and safe to submerge, they'd have to take her completely apart and check every weld and every bulkhead and every rib and every plate.
My guess is they will use her for salvage. Get what parts out of her they can, then turn her over to the engineers to study.

[Red6]

lol

Red6

[WildTurkey]

agreed it's amazing it made it home but I was under the impression subs are designed to "compartmentalize" in sections to ward of damage and water taking the whole thing down.

You are correct and in this case the "pressure compartments" were not breached. However, the compartmentalization was never perfect and has gotten worse with newer designs. Even in the old 637 class, a certain amount of flooding aft would result in such a trim level (nose up) that the ballast tank effectiveness was severely diminished.

[judicial meanz]

I can't see enough of the hull to be able to get really precise, but the sonar dome and its systems are toast, and it appears a few frames are buckled forward of the sail.

The main ballast tanks are effectively gone, and I would bet the torpedo tubes and their outer doors ( which are not very visible) are severely damaged.

The sound mounts and piping systems are bound to be in bad shape from the crash, and there were reports of various systems leaks in the earlier articles. I would bet the diesel is probably suffering too, because it is located aft of the torpedo room and in the impact area.

Probably a lot of hull stress over the entire boat, and that affects the hull integrity of the entire ship.

Its most likely a write off.

[Blueflag]

Ernest --

Um ... that's a Soviet boat in #139, not ours. Ours wasn't opened up.

[WildTurkey]

See #139 for even worse damage....totally opened up...

#139 is the Russian sub.

[miele man]

I thought the same as you re: hit at an angle. This makes me wonder if it really hit a geologic formation of some type. It suggests the possibility of another sub. I doubt we'll ever know. If she hit an undersea mountain, then I think she hit at 55-70 degree angle. How?

[Bahbah]

We take VERY strictly the resposibilities and accountability of a sub skipper. Seldom, if ever, is slack granted.

Thanks for that information, Long Cut. I am reminded of the skipper who took some folks out for a bit of a joy ride and ended up sinking a civilian boat in a rapid rise to the surface. I believe he was out pretty quickly.

[IMRight]

If he was on the transit course (position and speed) per orders, he has no fault.

Well... I've been one of the ones defending that removal isn't automatic.

BUT... there are a lot of big "IFs" in there. And I've read that he's already been removed from command, so it would seem there aren't enough ifs lining up his way.

The Navy is "personal responsibility" in SPADES, man.