Comments on: Why Hartford Hit New Orleans

By: $tan

$tan — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 19:02:05 +0000

As you all surely understand, there are factors surrounding the New Orleand/Hartford incident. For example a much older ship with screw damage making ALOT more noise than the N.O. following her closely through the straits (for protection in a potentially hostile environment) would mask the noise produced by the N.O. causing obvious confusion as to the placement of the ship on the surface.

By: Paramesh

Paramesh — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 18:10:02 +0000

Good morning. Write a wise saying and your name will live forever.
I am from Syria and too bad know English, give true I wrote the following sentence: “Reynard finished cart in 1994 and immediately second relatively named lola from the weekend, bom mastercard mosaik.“
With best wishes :p, Paramesh.

By: Mrs_Squid

Mrs_Squid — Fri, 08 May 2009 15:59:15 +0000

If people like strikeforce would spend as much time researching the safety procedures on submarines as they did complaining about “nuclear contamination” they’d realize that the risks of nuclear exposure are ridiculously small. Furthermore, the USS Hartford sustained most damage on its sail…there isn’t any nuclear material located there.
We have friends on that boat, we’ve spoken with them, they’re all fine. Some bumps, a few bruises, and of course the guys were shooken up, but everyone is fine. Radiation levels are strictly monitored using TLD devices, all the time, even on boats in dock. Anyone, even civilians, who are entering back aft on a submarine, have to wear one and have their levels monitored.
Ignorance breeds fear. It needs to stop. The navy takes extensive efforts to monitor its nuclear activities, whether there is an accident or not. Chill out.
As for the damage being “more extensive than the Navy suggested”. Yeah, it sort of was, the sail is pretty much destroyed, but they did extensive work on the boat to figure out if they needed to be towed or could still move under their own power, which it was determined they could. (Whether they do that or not is a security issue, an will NOT be leaked over the internet, just as no submarines travel should be.)

By: daniel kirkland

daniel kirkland — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 20:02:08 +0000

strike force news as a submariner I am telling you that you need to calm down. first of all you have no idea what you are talking about and if yu think that your letter is going to get you all the classified information you are asking for you are on crack and by the way the nuclear reactor is its own compatment that is sealed from everything so if there is a leak it is not going anywhere because it is contained. also you need to lay off the crew because they have fish which makes them better than you.

By: Joe Buff

Joe Buff — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 16:02:50 +0000

The answers to Mr. Strike Force News’s 3 kewschins re damage to the ships would be HIGHLY CLASSIFIED. Re tailing diesel boats on batteries, i claim journalistic priviledge to not reveal moi’s sources, but suffice it to say that continuing the myth that said boats r so invisible to USN SSNs is a double edge saw:
1. it lulls our adversaries into overconfidence re how stealthy their SSKs & SSIs really are compared to how good our SSNs really are at detecting/tracking them, in operational/tactical situations/theaters where USN needs to project seapower influence.… This is good.
2. it feeds the everpresent Western nuke-o-phobiacs with one more rhetoric point to urge the strangling of America’s nuclear submarine fleet. I.e. “diesels boats beat nuc boats anyway”.… This is bad.
And so the anti-submarine war of words rages on.
2.

By: gsak

gsak — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:52:24 +0000

Russell, you believe in the possibility of tailing boats that are on the battery? I’d like to, as well.

By: gsak

gsak — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:35:44 +0000

Submarines routinely discharge radioactive waste into the ocean (Actually, I’m surprised that this guy doesn’t know that). Technically, primary coolant isn’t dangerously radioactive. Additionally, the reactor compartment is sealed with a locked vault door; piping leaks are not a problem, since the water would never reach the crew compartments. Thanks for writing all those formal letters and looking like a jackass.

By: Strike Force News

Strike Force News — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 22:57:34 +0000

My Concern, as shared in my letter to Fifth Fleet Command shared below is the news that there are Radiation leaks. As to security concerns…nothing you people have said can’t be found on the web, and more…as example, searching for stuff today on this accident came across the entire invite list for a BIG WASHINGTON party…complete with the names and addresses of a fist full of Admirals and their wives…shaking head…that’s our Military.
Dear Stephen James:
I am writing as a citizen of the United States of America who believes transparency, honesty even when it hurts is the best policy. As the husband of a wife who was diagnosed with Breast Cancer which I attribute to our close proximity to the problem plagued Military/Commercial Indian Point reactors owned by Entergy, it is my belief that citizens have the right to FULL DISCLOURE of all radiation leaks, even when those leaks run contrary to our Military’s Operational Security…I do not believe in acceptable collateral damage in the name of nuclear convenience or National Military Superiority when the killer is invisible, and affects people years after the event that contaminated the person or area has left the scene, cannot be held accountable. Having a great familiarity with the Gaseous Diffusions Plants, being involved in the Anti Nuclear Movement now for decades, am to familiar with the means used by our government, the DOE, and DOD to do anything within their power to distance death away from the nuclear contaminants that caused it.
I provide this explanation as a means of setting the stage for the questions I am about to put forth on the USS Hartford Collision with the USS New Orleans that resulted in a 18 foot diameter hole being torn/ripped, smashed or punched into the Hull, doing significant damage to the ship, and contaminating the potable water of the world with the significant spill of some 25,000 gallons of water into the Straight of Hormuz.
For those of us that do a lot of Googling, the Storyline being put out by the NAVY’s Press/Propaganda machine is not adding up. The visible damage we have been shown, the additional details slowly getting out paint a picture of a near catastrophic accident between these two vessels. The Press Releases (IMO) are meant to deceive, meant to distract people and the press away from the truth. Some has very carefully stated to the media that there is no harm to the USS Hartford’s Nuclear Propulsion System. That is like me driving a Chevy Vega into a brick wall and announcing to the world the tires are in perfect working order. The question, or one of them is, and should be , “is it true that cracks were discovered in the reactor cooling pipes? Checking with some friends of mine, including someone that used to do underwater welding, and has extensive knowledge in the nuclear industry have come to the conclusion that the USS Hartford cannot have been involved in the collision that it had with the USS New Orleans without doing significant, even fatal damage to the piping system that provides reactor cooling.
Those suspicions on my part were/are born out by reports coming from local sources in Bahrain that the Navy has been presented with requests for water sampling from underneath the Nuclear Submarine too ascertain the severity of radioactive leaks.
1. Did the collision between USS Hartford and the USS New Orleans (this includes all events leading up too, during and after [after to be construed as ongoing until the vessels have been repaired and returned to active service] result in the release (in any fashion or by any means) of any radioactive materials (solid, liquid, gas,particle or other means of distribution) into the environment, including within the confines of the submarine, or into the totality of the environment outside of the Submarine.
2. Were any members of the crew, other members of the military (both domestic and foreign) or civilians exposed (in any fashion, and to any limits no matter how small) to radioactive exposures of any type or kind? Please identify by number how many people were exposed, means of exposure and/or ingestion, and the amounts of exposure.
3. Are there on going and/or continuing releases of radiation contamination, and further, what tests are being conducted to test the structural stability of each and every connection, weld joint and pipe within the Cooling System.
A careful review of the photographs so far released to the public show damage to the plane, sail and other exterior structures of the UUS Hartford, including but not limited to some serious damage and buckling of plating. Collisions of this nature have obvious damages, and invisible damages that are not discernible to the hidden eye, sometimes weakened welds that cannot be seen even by the most practiced professionals and engineers. In the name of CREW SAFETY, what steps are being taken during the course of investigation and repair to locate, identify and repair these hidden damages that exist on both Naval Vessels? Some additional questions:
1. How thick was the Armor Plate on the USS New Orleans at the point of impact? Further, how far into the USS New Orleans did forward progress carry the USS Hartford. Does the diameter of the point of entry, coupled with the depth of travel/interior damage coincide with the 7 knots/20 knots speed reports that are now out in the public domain?
2. Were any structural beams and/or interior support systems damaged in either or both of these vessels, and if yes, please specifically identify these damages.
3. The sail on the USS Hartford appears to have not only been bent, but actually torn from the hull of the submarine. This indicates numerous problems including a bent periscope(s) as well as the possible damage of the door that would open into the control room. Please describe the damages with specificity.
Early rumors and articles that have appeared on the Internet make it clear that the accident was/is far more significant than the Navy has admitted to the American Populace, admitted to the families of those serving on these vessels. One has to wonder if the USS Hartford can ever be made safe enough to sail again, can be made safe enough even too sail back to America…simply stated, there are too many unanswered questions, and it would be unconscionable to risk the lives of our American Sailors, asking them too board a sub that is not RIGHT, asking them to risk their lives, risk exposure to cancer causing radioactive contaminants just to limp home a critically injured, perhaps all but dead submarine.
Figures being tossed around have a low ball estimate for repair sitting at around $25 Million, and going North from there. The Fifth Fleet flew and emergency damage assessment/repair crew out of Hawaii to the tune (as we understand it) of 17 Engineers and other staff, with supposedly 24 more following them later this week. That is a MASSIVE team for TEMPORARY repairs. When you realize the hole in the USS New Orleans is almost half the size of the one terrorist blew into the side of the USS Cole, and you realize just how serious this accident is, and have to question the ability of either vessel to safely make it home under their own power. What if any steps are being considered right now to use other alternative means to return these ships to their home ports for repair and/or retirement from the fleet?
Lastly, I point out that I made a formal Allegation on 3/23/2009 that was summarily dismissed, not because it lacked merit, but because it was inconvenient to Operation Security, or more appropriately, it asked questions that the NAVY does not want out into the open arena as it would hurt the image of the Nuclear Navy, hurt the image of the nuclear industry. My question…it is SOP to dismiss the legitimate and well founded complaints of American Citizens when they follow the proper protocol, bring their concerns to the Navy’s Office of Inspector General?

By: Russell

Russell — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 21:09:51 +0000

Could the New Orleans have been shadowing or exposing an Iranian sub?

By: Byron Skinner

Byron Skinner — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:53:35 +0000

Good Morning Folks,
Just a follow up on the damage to the SSN Hartford and the USS New Orleans.
The SSN Hartford sustained damage to it’s coning tower, periscope and a dive plane. During the collision the SSN Hartford listed 85 deg.
The USS New Orleans damage report is only preliminary because they don’t have a large enough dry dock in the area, but divers found a 16.18 foot gash in the hull that breached the hull, a major fracture of a fuel tank that spilled 25K gallons of diesel into the gulf and damage to ballast tanks.
It would appear that a broad in inquiry that goes beyond blame here and gets into the design, construction and program management of this class of Ships. The level of damage to a combat vessel by a rather straight forward low speed collision should be cause for concern with the designer/ship builder (Ship Yard) who build the USS New Orleans.
ALLONS,
Byron Skinner