200111 RN Subs 100 pt2 Supplement

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Royal Navy submarines 1901-2001 'aw News

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Y NEWS, SUBMARINE CENTENARY SUPPLEMENT. NOVEMBER 2001

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them; now they could carry the h potential enemy.

Admiral ofthefleet FarlM -.

First Sea Lord between 1955 ant.

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ventional submarines.

of stopap was needed While the Navy was building " IlL I LUIt was tile LtJLIVLLML)li Lii (ii ilUlical -1,tiwCICU Lulimarines " HMS Otus enters Haslar Creek flying her some Tclas.s boats and nearly all the rate of one every fifteen mom Jolly Roger in 1991 and resplendent in camthe A-class to give them a streamthe late 1960% and 197th, its cc ouflage paint, causing speculation about lined form and faster underwater SSK. skilfully bore the brunt of cloak-and-dagger operations in the Gulf. speed. panoply of submarine operatiom She was also paying off after almost 30 This greatly enhanced their perOffensive and defensive anti years service. formance, although it must he said and anti-ship operations, forwa that the development of sensors lance, special forces operation and weapons during this period did surface and air forces, weapon tic not keep pace with advances in and, last but not least, showin were all tasks undertaken with rr design and construction.

However, they did develop over a period of more than thirb skills, and from 1951 for all their cxccll these were put to practical use in familiar northern waters.

Porpoises and Ohcrons.

Yet Rumour has it that a couple replacement Upholder c never overcome the limitations i came hack from patrol with their their slow speed of tieployma cars ringing! allied to the lack of forward sup In order to look at high speed ruled them out from the front Iii options. and following on from the : response in a world scenario experience gained from the captuned U-l4tl7 (FIMS Meteorite). increasingly by brush-lire confroi - the Royal Navy built two unarmed Sadly, as a dividend of peace. ., -- -the conventional submarine ilti submarines fitted with improved wonderful service in the Ri '_high test peroxide engines. IlM5i of drew to a close in 1994, xplorer and Fxe ilihur (eiilloqui Under was on nuclear pos ills known as the exploder class) S no fmuus sent By the time they were conimis signal satmed in lVSS however, the Commanding Officer of USS N January 17. 1955, as she vu Grolon. Connecticut.

- - ._I With h,-rconstruction the given its first true submarine, ' came a revolution in underwater ---' - -.

With almost unlimited endun _____ for the crew being the limiting married the submarine's strengths of stealth and surpr: speed greater than its potential - No longer were they platfoni lion relying on their quarry ft

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imenhing with high test peroxide as a fuel

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" The first Polaris missile to be testfired from a British submarine bursts out of the Atlantic in 1968. HMS Resolution was cruising submerged about 30 miles off Cape Kennedy when the weapon was launched.

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The realities of Britain's economic situaNavy had achieved spectacular su lion meant that the maintenance of a large nuclear power, so the experimel surface force to counter the threat was out continued. of the question, so in 1948 the interception The first new British postwar, and destruction of enemy submarines was diesel-electric boat was the Pcirj and eight were laid down hetwec designated as the 'primary operational function of the British submarine fleet.

This successful class was soo At that moment the Service ceased to he by the Oherons, of which thirteen a 'private navy' within the Royal Navy. but between 1957 and 1962. instead took its place at the forefront of These large patrol submiarit British naval planning, were capable of remaining dived weeks, could operate in any p Clearly a new type of submarine was needed, but until the necessary research world, and were extremely quiet and development required for a new boat which when combined with thei could be completed - which included expersensor fit made them highly Ca

technology.

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As readers may be aware, Commander Richard Compion-Hall Submarine Museum, is unwell and unable to complete the series Services Centenari' Year. I dedicate this final episode to him.

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By CDR JEFF

threat facing the Royal Navy in the the postwar period rapidlyexpanding Soviet submarine 'fleet, built aid of with the 'liberated German

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T of World War 11 cuts in submarine numbers were severe, but not as Acnd drastic as those implemented throughout the rest of the fleet, and by the mid-1950s the submarine force made up a greater percentage of the Royal Navy's order of battle than ever before.

This was just as well, since the main

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FRONT COVER: HMS Dreadnought sits at the top of the world in March 197Lwhen'1 nuclear Fleet submarine popped through thin ice at the North Pole, she became the firthe st British submarine to visit this hostile region. A guard with a rifle kept watch for polar bears as a few hardy sailors ventured out into an Arctic afternoon on which, with wind-chill, ternPictures: Navy News I Royal Navy Submarine Museum, Gosport peratures fell below -10017.

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one of the driving forces behind venture into nuclear power. sceir duction into submarines as e -British sea power was not to witi

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" Another picture taken at the top of the world, this time with nuclear attack submarine HMS Trenchant

meeting up with USS Spadefish in 1992. The ice was too thin on this occasion to allow the traditional games of cricket and baseball. Also in the picture is a Royal Air Force Nimrod maritime reconnaissance aircraft.

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NAVY NEWS. SUBMARINE CENTENARY SUPPLEMENT, NOVEMBER 2001

Rucleap ower' TALL

MBE RN, my predecessor at the Royal Navy be started at the beginning of the Submarine je,ess with at was dis-

HMS Dreadnought was commissioned in April 1963, and the greatest technological step forward in the history of British submarines had been taken since 1901, the year of the Service's birth.

During the Cold War it was against a massive array of powerful threats that our SSNs and SSBNs, and those of our US allies, operated.

Indeed, it could he claimed that it was this underwater battle of wits, fought out of public sight and often out of mind, that proved to he the crucial confrontation; it was, of course. won.

In 1982, during the Falklands Conflict, HMS Conqueror demonstrated the major capability of the submarine in warfare.

Traditionally, submarines were weapons of attrition, but in her action against Belgrano. Conqueror demonstrated that they were capable of having a major influence on the maritime battle.

Swiftsures and ibday. the SSN (our Trafalgars, worthy successors to the brilliant Valiants) remain the most potent force at sea that will assure the supremacy of westem navies. which for maritime nations 'doth the well-being of the state depend'.

In addition to the many roles they inherited from their predecessors. they have increasing importance in the brush-fire operations mentioned earlier, and the additi on of the iiimahawk Land Attack Missile to their armoury makes them a vital and flexible part o[ a'nv cohesive detence strategv for the modern world, 'l'hc arrival of I IMS Astute into the fleet in 2(M)5 will herald another step change in capability.

design of a iose class, 'n 1955-58. n followed i were built set, which for several art of the feature r excellent ptt'le conup its fleet (SSNs) at ills during nsentional Ate global submarine rd surveil. s, training vclopment t he hag, cat success Wars. enee. the and their law, could mposcd by ml which, pcwt bases, ic of rapid dominated Ate era of :r 93 years .yal Navy, er" is the 1w the lat.tilus on iled from wt-rld was nd with it w.trfare. ince (food ftieLor), it traditional ise with a usrry. as of posicome to attic to the iunthattcn, I 1959. was th: Navy's tg is introssential if icr.

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continuing role will he the protection of the National Deterrent. described Ain 1968 by the Doily 1i'legraph as 'the best insurance policy the nation ever had'.

The development of the Polaris missile programme in the USA was horn on January. I, 1957. because it was recognized that the submarine was the ultimate in deterrent platforms since, unlike fixed land installations or aircraft, it was mobile, gave little warning and, providing that it was quiet, was almost invulnerable, The 'Special Projects Office' was established under Rear Admiral William Raborn USN, and the UK watched its progress with interest, though she was intent on basing her own deterrent on the airborne Skybolt carried by a fleet of V-bombers, and the land-based Blue Streak missiles.

When these projects were cancelled or failed, the fact that the Navy was able to suggest a speedy and coherent alternative was once again due to the foresight of Admiral Mounthatlen who, as First Sea Lord, had secured the agreement in 1958 of Admiral Arleigh Burke. the US Chief Of Naval Operations. to allow the appointment of a British Liaison Officer to t-(ahorn 5 team When Skyholt foundered in the US in 1461 President Kennedy met with Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in Nassau On December 20-21 r and acrccd to transfer Polaris teennojoL" to Britain.

The UK would dcvelon and own w:c- manotacture t

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" Diesel-electric 0-boat HMS Ocelot, pictured in the late 1 with her new streamlined sonar dome.

heads, which would be under national control, thus making the deterrent independent.

Four days later, the UK Polaris Executive was established, and the then flag Officer Submarines, Rear Admiral Hugh 'Rufus' Mackenzie DSO' DSC, a distinguished World War II Commanding Officer, was chosen to head it.

With a target date of 1968, the team took on this massive project, which called for much personal sacrifice and incredibly hard work.

The fact that they succeeded, with FIMS Resolution firing the first test missile within milliseconds of the date planned five years earlier, was a stunning accolade to the individuals concerned and to British industry.

The history of Polaris, with 229 unbroken deterrent patrols, was a total success and, with its mid-life update of Chevaline in 1982. it remained a truly credible deterrent until HMS Repulse decommissioned in August 1996.

The reins of the national deterrent. including a sub-strategic role, have now passed to the four mighty Vanguard-class SSIINs, equipped with the Trident D5 missile - despite the growth in asymmetric threats to world peace, their highly relevant story continues. legacy of the pioneers through the century is a record of sacrifice and The achievement of which all British submariners through the ages can be proud.

What is unchanging is the man - as Lt ('1)1 Bradley Gaylord USA,: observed after three days on board IIMS Seraph in 1942: "You realise that here is tine of the essential points about war: there is no substitute for good company.

"The boys in the Submarine Service convey a spirit which explains why they would sooner he in submarines than anywhere else" (The Ship with iivo Captains - TĂŤrence Robertson).

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Jeff Tall. a submariner for almost thirty years and the captain offoar HM submarines, has been the Dirt-c-tar of the Rosa! Navy Submarine Museum since July 1994. Hi.s proudest achievement since moving into the post is getting Holland / back on t!ixptav in May 2(X)! after a six-year conservation and preservation programme. More information on the Museum can be found on its weh.ote www,nsuhmus.c'o.uk Š Royal Navy Submarine Museum

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" T-class submanne HMS Telemachus (left), which saw duty with the Royal Australian Navy for ten years. She arrived back in

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totnebreakers ems within two years. i

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" Above: HMS Conqueror flies the dolly Roger. The submarine had a major role to play in the Falklands Conflict, when she sank the cruiser Belgrano. _

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" Left: Unarmed experimental submarine HMS Explorer, known to some as HMS Exploder. The boat was fuelled by high test peroxide, a potent and ultimately abandoned form of energy which was superseded by nuclear power.

www.navynews.co.uk

NAVY NEWS. SUBMARINE CENTENARY SUPPLEMENT. NOVEMBER 2OO1

'Under wajy>n nuclear power

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• Above: the Tomahawk Land Attack Missile gives modem nuclear attack submarines of the S and T-class additional flexibility in the era of brush-fire confrontations.

• Right: Trident superseded Polaris as the UK's national strategic nuclear deterrent, and with the new missile system came a new class of submarine, the Vanguard -class. Below is the first of the four, HMS Vanguard, on her way to the Clyde Naval Base.

• The paying-off of HMS Opossum in 1993 marked the end of an era for the Royal Navy - the diesel-electric boat was the last of the Oberon-class, and her last run into HMS Dolphin was the final act of 90 years' continuous submarine operations out of Gosport.

This is the last of four supplements this year which build into a history of the Submarine Service. Part 1 appeared in our January edition, Part 2 in May and Part 3 in September. To order a copy of the January, May or September editions, telephone 023 9282 6040.

Royal Navy ships are always in the news - in the year 2000 alone they were engaged in 12 live operations.

Our calendar features some of the busiest units of the Fleet, and looks back through the Navy News files to pick up some past headlines when we

reported on their activities around the world.

A collector's calendar of splendid colour pictures printed on fine grade paper, wire bound at the head and with high quality spot varnish cover.

Size approx: 37cm. x 28.5cm.

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