Posted on 08/05/2015 2:44:42 PM PDT by george76
It's 7,800 tons, 337 feet and $2 billion worth of steel and stealth, with war-fighting controls that look like a big arcade video game.
That new-boat smell may have worn off a bit during sea trials, but the man in charge was pumped with pride as the U.S. Navy's newest submarine joined the fleet in a commissioning ceremony at Norfolk Naval Station on Saturday.
The shiniest and coolest thing I've ever seen in my military career," Cmdr. Daniel Caldwell, a 22-year Navy veteran and the first captain of the USS John Warner, told CNN. "It's going to make whatever I do next anti-climactic."
Remember those old war movies with a captain looking through a periscope and calling out coordinates for a torpedo attack? Well, this ain't that sub.
For one, it doesn't even have a periscope. Instead, the John Warner will go about its business using a photonic mast, a piece of electronic wizardry that includes high-definition and infrared video to enable the Warner, the 12th in the Virginia class of attack submarines, to see and to not been seen like nothing else under the seas.
...
In front of that is where two sailors drive the sub, like a pilot and co-pilot seated before a curved wall of video screens. Driving a sub used to take a crew of four, Caldwell said, but technology has cut that number in half.
The John Warner is armed with 12 Tomahawk cruise missiles that are launched from two huge bays at the front of the boat, sort of like the chambers in a revolver, as well as MK48 torpedoes that are fired from four tubes, two on each side of the ship.
...
The Navy has won praise for keeping the Virginia class on budget while delivering two subs a year.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Has Obamadullah ordered it mothballed yet?
The latest version of the Mk48 is a joint US-Australia development. It adds major improvements to the onboard sonar system and massively improves its shallow water performance against ultra quiet SSK’s.
The F-35 should be a embarrassment for Lockheed. Hook a generator up to Kelly Johnson grave, and it could power everything west of the Mississippi.
My SIL is a peon level engineer on that program.
He’s been a real busy fellow lately.
Lots of travel.
what is the reasoning behind the door opening to the side?
I can only imagine.
Clarence “Kelly” Johnson was an honest to God, god of aerospace engineering and management. On time, under budget, and gave the taxpayers the best damn bang for their buck he, and his people could.
I fear we will never see his like again.
And we will be the poorer for it. We don’t celebrate that kind of excellence anymore.
Thanks, it good to know that they are making improvments
LOL...Jumbo Missile!
I GOT YER JUMBO MISSILE RIGHT HERE!
Seriously, I bet it also serves as a Special Forces lock...
There is also a very large sonar transducer array in the bow that takes up nearly the whole diameter. It can hear a dolphin fart (redacted) miles away.
I believe you are correct...
These Block boats have two Virginia Payload Tubes, each of which holds six Tomahawk missiles (or other devices). You see one of them open there.
They replace what used to be 12 individual VLS tubes, each with its own door, on the initial Virginia class boats and on the 688i, ADDCAP Los Angeles class boats.
Tomahawk missiles launch from there and so they open to the side to allow the missiles to safely launch...and also to the side to pose less resistance to water passing over the hull.
Less resistance will mean less cavitation and less noise.
Thanks.
>> also serves as a Special Forces lock
Thank you
Thank you for the explanations.
Who was John Warner ..??
The name sounds familiar .. but I can’t seem to remember who he is.
Secretary of the Navy. U.S. Senator from Virginia. Husband of Elizabeth Taylor.
The USS John Warner will marry the USS Liz Taylor....
Okay .. now I remember who he was. Thanks.
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