In the spring of 2014, the US Defense Department signed an unprecedented contract worth $ 17.6 billion.
Having received a check for a fantastic amount, two of the leading US corporations specializing in the construction of marine technology (Newport News and General Electric Boat) pledged to supply the fleet with ten Virginia-class multipurpose submarines IV, subseries within the next 10 years.
Currently, the US Navy already has ten multipurpose submarines of this type ("Virginia") outdated sub-series I and II, which have been massively commissioned since the beginning of the century. Eight more submarines of this family (sub-series III) are at various stages of construction. Work is in full swing: in July of this year, the date for the commissioning of the first submarine from the third "block" was announced. The sleek, streamlined North Dakota reptile will officially change its index from PCU (Ready-to-Receive Unit) to USS (United States Warship) on November 25, 2014. But not for long. Shortly after commissioning, the boat will return to dock for a months-long PSA (Post-Shakedown Availability) procedure. Elimination of all defects identified during the test operation of the ship.
In total, under the Virginia program, it is planned to build more than 30 multipurpose atomarines, which will form the basis of the submarine component of the US Navy until the middle of this century.
What does this situation mean? What is the reason for the rush with the "super contract"? What is the Virginia boat and what are the differences between its sub-series? What gives reason to call the newest American boats "obsolete units", but at the same time it is fair to fear the appearance of promising Virginia sub-series Block-3, Block-4 and Block-5? This is our next conversation.
Secrets of the supercontract
It is easy to guess that "the most expensive contract" is a funny curiosity. Large defense projects have always cost enormous amounts of money. Suffice it to recall the Virginia's predecessors, the Los Angeles-class submarines. And the cost of this super-squadron of 62 nuclear submarines!
And yet, there is one serious moment in the history of the "contract of the century". Never before have the military issued such a large one-time order for the construction of such complex and expensive ships. The construction program of the same "Los Angeles" stretched over many decades. No more than a couple of ships were ordered each year.
And suddenly - just 10 super-expensive submarines of the 4th generation!
Why are the Yankees in such a hurry? A good answer to this question is given in an article by US Navy Captain K. Hasslinger, which describes the main trends in the development of the submarine component of the American fleet, indicating the main threats and tasks that the Virginia will have to solve.
I will cite brief excerpts from this article.
The disappearance of the USSR Navy as the main rival at sea forced the Pentagon to reconsider all the existing concepts and tactics of using its own Navy. Unlike the Soviet Navy, the new geopolitical and military rival - the naval forces of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA), for a number of objective reasons, do not seek to compete in the open ocean. The Chinese have a different philosophy, relying on the "anti-access / area denial" (A2AD) strategy. Creation of positional areas in the coastal zone, with an emphasis on aerospace reconnaissance, target designation and destruction of sea targets. As an example, the Dongfeng-21D ballistic anti-ship missiles, etc. "miracle weapon" that threatens to become an impregnable barrier in the way of American AUG. According to Chinese legend, A2AD systems will make it impossible for any enemy surface ships to stay in the indicated square. A downpour of fire from heaven will sew through the enemy!
It is difficult to say how cheap and effective this method will be. Nevertheless, the well-known progress in the field of radio electronics and missile weapons, multiplied by the industrial power and advantageous geographical position of China, gives reason to take this statement seriously. There is a possibility that in the near future the Chinese will be able to "close off" a significant part of the Pacific Ocean, making it impossible to safely find the ships of hostile states off the coast of East Asia. The only way to hide from the vigilant "eyes" of space satellites and to dodge missiles flying at hypersonic speed will be the departure of the fleet under water. No further comments are needed here.
North Dakota leaves assembly shop, September 2013
The Chinese strategy of A2AD predetermined the order of work on the new sub-series of American Virginias, in particular the promising Block-5 VPM. But to understand the true meaning of the appearance of these underwater killers, we will have to look into the recent past. When the colossus of the USSR collapsed with a crash, and America, which was in euphoria, learned to live in a new, unipolar world.
Meet the Virgin
The tenth American state and the eponymous series of 4th generation underwater killers with a nuclear power plant and fantastic capabilities. "Virginia" is, in a sense, a compromise. The result of optimization of the cost and combat characteristics of submarines in the absence of a worthy naval enemy. Built in the 1990s, the "Sea Wolf" turned out to be excessively expensive and powerful, while insufficiently prepared for action in the new era. Having barely mastered the construction of three "Sea Wolves" (out of the planned 29!), The Americans radically curtailed the program of building a submarine fleet in favor of simpler and more efficient submarines, more adapted to work in the "fleet against coast" format.
As you know, diesel-electric submarines demonstrate the greatest efficiency in the coastal zone. They are simpler and cheaper, while much more secretive than any nuclear powered ship. In the case of the US Navy, the option with diesel-electric submarines / submarines was obviously impossible. The American navy has a pronounced offensive focus; every time the Yankees have to operate at a distance of thousands of miles from their native shores. An American submarine must have a hot nuclear heart and an icy endurance to carry out any mission.
One building. One reactor. 40 thousand horsepower on the shaft. Eight thousand tons of combat matter that rush across the ocean at a speed of 500 miles per day, while remaining invisible to the enemy. Maximum immersion depth - classified. A vague figure appears in official reports: test depth of 240+ meters.
Four 533 mm torpedo tubes and 27 units of various weapons, including guided Mk.48 torpedoes, SUB-Harpoon anti-ship missiles, Captor smart mines - torpedo traps installed in the water column that are triggered when an enemy submarine passes near them … However, those whoever reproaches the "Virgin" for the weak and small number of weapons is simply not familiar with the full list of her "surprises".
In addition to torpedo armament, 12 launchers for Tomahawk tactical SLCMs are installed in the bow of each submarine. Special features include an airlock for the simultaneous exit of 9 seals from the boat, a place to accommodate a detachment of frogmen, an external mount for a bathyscaphe or Dry Deck Shelter container, as well as a set of unmanned underwater vehicles for making passages in minefields and performance of other deep-sea works.
A very serious machine capable of delivering a lot of "joy" to any enemy.
Strengths of Virginia:
- extremely low level of intrinsic noise. Implementation of a system of insulated decks and active vibration compensators, a jet propulsion unit, perfect hydrodynamics and a new reactor with a significant proportion of natural circulation of the coolant. As a result, the noise background "Virginia" came close to the natural background of the ocean. It is reported that the boat moves so smoothly that its operational speed in the submerged position can reach 20-25 knots (the speed at which the submarine is still able to "hear" the enemy through the hum of its own turbines and the noise of water flowing around the hull);
- a new generation S9G reactor, whose core has a service life commensurate with the service life of the submarine itself (over 30 years). This eliminates the need for a dangerous procedure for recharging the reactor with the loss of the submarine's combat capability for a long time;
- side-scan sonars;
- modular design, various technical innovations. Telescopic masts with digital cameras and thermal imagers instead of the usual periscope. The idea is not bad: now all sailors in the control room can observe the situation on the surface. In various ranges of electromagnetic waves.
Disadvantages. The sounding accusations against Virginias are sometimes far more serious than the rave reviews from the Newport News brochures.
The boat is good in every way, but its price ?! According to the latest data, "Virginias" cost the American state more than $ 2.6 billion per unit (by the way, this is why the aforementioned "super contract" is very far from reality. When the time comes, the cost of building 10 submarines will increase even more). The only excuse for the creators of "Virginia" is that the boats are really being built and massively come into operation. Sometimes ahead of schedule!
And again forgery! Officially, Virginias are being built in record time. Only a couple of years pass from the laying to the moment of commissioning. But American shipbuilders rarely mention that they are "laying" not an empty shell of the hull, but several ready-made sections (modules), the construction of which began several years before the official moment of "laying" the boat. All that remains is to neatly connect them together, which takes two years.
However, even in this mode, the pace of American shipbuilding can cause an unpleasant feeling of envy and anxiety.
Long-lasting reactor! If you do not turn it on at all, it can work forever. The half-life of uranium isotopes is from 8 million to 4.5 billion years. However, sailors have expressed concern that each of the superboats is a "one-time rattle". The declared service life of the reactor core (33 years) is achieved only with its economical operation and a limited number of exits to the sea. Otherwise, you will have to disassemble the boat and cut out the reactor compartment - as on conventional submarines of previous generations. It should be noted that recharging the reactor these days has ceased to be an extraordinary operation: if the appropriate technology is available, this procedure can be performed directly in the database. So was the game worth the candle?
Quite often, the Virginia is criticized for too large a crew. The boat, which claims to be the most modern submarine in the world, requires 120-130 people to fly! Too much for such a small boat. For comparison: a crew of the same size flew a huge two-reactor "Antey" ("aircraft carrier killer" pr. 949A, underwater displacement of 24 thousand tons). So where is the vaunted American automation? The paradox is simply explained: "Virginia" has an order of magnitude more systems, detection equipment and combat posts (+ "ballast" in the form of a special forces group).
Divers overboard the submarine "Hawaii"
It is no longer hidden that the "Virgins" have a chronic problem with the SAC. Despite the constant modernization and endless repairs, the declared characteristics of the BQQ-10 hydroacoustic complex were not achieved. What do modern boats without hydroacoustics mean? That's right - unworkable steel coffins.
And here we come to a new chapter in this story. Virginia modifications!
It is worth paying tribute to the American shipbuilders: even at the design stage, a considerable modernization potential was incorporated into the design of the Virgins. The program for creating a 4th generation submarine was calculated for many decades. Indeed, over time, it will be necessary to reconstruct the platform and introduce new equipment. The main secret of the "Virgin" is its manufacturability and modular design.
By now, it is already known about the five main sub-series "Virginias":
Block 1 - basic modification. It was described in detail above. A total of 4 boats of this modification were built.
Block 2 - similar to the base modification of the boat. The changes affected the hull assembly technology - now the boats are assembled from four large sections instead of 10, which made it possible to cut costs (up to $ 300 million for each hull) and speed up the ship construction process by 20%. In total, 6 nuclear-powered ships of this sub-series were built.
Block-3. Significant design changes. The bow has been completely redesigned. The spherical GAS antenna, traditional for all American boats, has been replaced by an elegant "horseshoe" LAB (Large Aperture Bow Array). The new giant sonar promises to solve all of the Virginia's previous sonar problems, giving boats unprecedented control over their surroundings. The 12 separate Tomahawk launchers have been replaced with two versatile six-shot silos, making it easier to reload and maintain cruise missiles, while increasing the submarine's situational flexibility. If necessary, you can remove the launch cups and use the mines for the target load: diving equipment, unmanned aerial vehicles and other special cargo (this technology has already been "tested" on submarines of the SSGN family). In total, it is planned to build eight "Virginias" of this modification.
Block-4. The main trend of the season is to improve reliability. The boats will be a copy of Block-3 with an extended overhaul period, which will reduce the number of planned overhauls from 4 to 3 over the entire life cycle of the submarines. It is with this sub-series that the history of the "contract of the century" for the construction of 10 super-expensive nuclear-powered combat ships of the 4th generation is connected.
And finally, Block-5, aka "Virginia" -VPM.
The design and characteristics of these submarines will be so different from the "Virginia" of the first sub-series that Block-5 can be safely considered as a separate project of the next generation boat, which threatens to turn all ideas about the modern submarine fleet. The name itself reveals the secrets. VPM - Virginia Payload Module. A special 30-meter weapons bay, cut in the middle of the Virginia hull, which will house four launchers of 7 Tomahawks each. Taking into account the two bow six-charge silos, the total ammunition load of the boat will be 40 sea-launched cruise missiles. A real underwater rocket launcher!
The Nobel Committee emphasized that Barack Obama has fired more cruise missiles than all other Nobel Peace Prize winners combined.
Rocket launcher? Or a carrier of unmanned vehicles? A special ship for secret deep-sea work - searching for and evacuating the wreckage of enemy equipment from the seabed? Covert weapons transport? A combat swimmer base? The VPM concept implies any configuration of the compartment for solving any, sometimes the most complex and unusual tasks.
Compared to bow launchers, the placement of mines in the midsection of the boat will increase their length - it will be possible to place new types of ammunition and equipment on board. Also, the VPM scheme implies the placement of mines inside the strong hull of the boat, which will provide access to equipment and weapons directly from the adjacent compartments of the ship while it is under water.
But good things come at a price. Despite the designers' best efforts to "painless" VPM integration and the submarine's notorious modularity, the addition of a new 30-meter section will change the characteristics and behavior of the Virginia in an unrecognizable way. The area of the wetted surface will increase, which means that the noise level of the submarine will increase. Inertia will increase. New ballasting will be required. Maneuverability will be severely affected, especially when the depth of the boat changes. In general, the known problems that the Yankees have already encountered when creating boats for special operations "Parche" (1973) and "Jimmy Carter" (2003). These nuclear-powered ships were also equipped with additional compartments that were not provided for by the original design. Nevertheless, their worse characteristics and limited maneuverability, in comparison with the boats of the basic design, were completely compensated for by new capabilities. The sailors were pleased: "Parche" served 40 years, transferring its position to the newest "Carter" (like "Sea Wolf").
Something like this awaits "Virginia" -VPM. According to current plans, at least 4 submarine "rocket launchers" will be built. The bookmark of the first Virginia -VPM is scheduled for 2019.
Further plans of the Virginia program include an option to build a couple of dozen more submarines Block-VI, Block-VII, as well as "Improved Virginia", the details of which will become known closer to the middle of this century.
It remains to add that, despite all their numbers and outstanding capabilities, American Virginias have never been sent into combat zones. All the dirty work for them is done by the "old men" - the legendary "Los Angeles" and converted missile carriers "Ohio". To date, the only known fact of the use of "Virginia" in conditions close to combat, was the appearance of a boat of this type in the Barents Sea, near the borders of Russia, which happened on August 7 this year. The anti-submarine forces of the Northern Fleet were able to detect the "invisible" and establish a 27-minute contact with it. Having lost stealth, the foreign submarine, presumably of the Virginia class, was forced to leave its position and go into the open ocean.
The first sailing boat USS Minnesota (SSN-783), 2013
