Posted on 10/05/2004 9:35:29 AM PDT by LesbianThespianGymnasticMidget
A major rescue effort has been launched off Ireland after a Canadian submarine asked for assistance. The Canadian Defence Force said HMCS Chicoutimi had suffered a mechanical failure and its crew were all safe.
A Royal Air Force Nimrod has been diverted to the area and a search and rescue helicopter from the Royal Navy base in Ayrshire is on its way.
The submarine, which was bought from Britain, is not nuclear-powered or carrying nuclear warheads.
The request for assistance came from the vessel some 100 miles north west of Ireland.
Neil Smith, a spokesman for the Faslane submarine base on the Clyde, said that Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Wave Knight had been turned round and was on its way to the scene.
A Type 23 frigate, HMS Montrose, is being sent from Faslane, accompanied by tug boat support.
"At this moment in time we don't have the exact details," said Mr Smith.
"We are in communication with the people on board.
"We are doing everything we can to assist them, and at this moment in time my colleagues are working hard to make sure that happens as quickly as possible."
Only nukes in the UK inventory are with the Royal Navy Trident SLBM fleet. The RAF did away with all nukes back in 1998. The last aircraft to be assigned this role was the Tornado.
Best one yet.
Sad state of affairs for a once-mighty nation. (Now-a-days, they're just really, really, tough...)
Currently without power in heavy seas and surface help is still 12-14 hours away. They are not out of the woods yet and the situation is very unfunny.
Purchased for ASW practice, whats surprising is that the first mission was a success.
The Upholders are not exactly old in military jargon-all are under 15 ,but they did have lots of structural & technical problems when they served in the RN itself.
Well the Upholders were designed by the Brits to carry Harpoon missiles & Tigerfish torps(18 weapons in total)-it was pretty hyped up by all,including folks like Tom Clancy,though it had structural & systems integration problems from the start.The Indian navy was interested in this project in the early 80s for a brief period (To license manufacture these subs),but thankfully the Indian Navy bigwigs had the common sense to opt for the Russian Kilos & German Type-209,both of which have given more than satisfactory results to the IN.
The Nimrod is a British built Anti Sub aircraft based on the (U.K.) De Havilland Comet airliner of the 50’s which was the world’s first “jet” airliner
This is similar to the U.S. P3 Anti Sub aircraft in that the P3 is also based on a airliner of the 50’s the Lockheed Electra (A turboprop)
I stand corrected.
The Canadian navy submarine HMCS Chicoutimi is named after a community in Quebec ... not sure where in Canuckistan the crew hails from, probably all over.
When I was in the Nav. (in the 80's) I met a Spanish national who joined the U.S. Navy in Madrid who had previously served in the Spanish Navy. I asked him why he joined the U.S. Navy and he said, "If I wanted to die for Spain I would have stayed in the Spanish navy, but I can better defend Spain in the U.S. Navy."
From the looks of the Nimrod, she must have a long and fabled history in exterminating spiders and assorted other life threatening pests.
He is still having trouble with port. (stubborn cork!)
One of the Canadian submariners has now died of his injuries.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.