When the U.S. Navy deploys a battle fleet on exercises, it takes the security of its aircraft carriers very seriously indeed. At least a dozen warships provide a physical guard while the technical wizardry of the world’s only military superpower offers an invisible shield to detect and deter any intruders. That is the theory. Or, rather, was the theory.
Uninvited guest: A Chinese Song Class submarine, like the one that surfaced by the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk
American military chiefs have been left dumbstruck by an undetected Chinese submarine popping up at the heart of a recent Pacific exercise and close to the vast U.S.S. Kitty Hawk – a 1,000ft supercarrier with 4,500 personnel on board. By the time it surfaced the 160ft Song Class diesel-electric attack submarine is understood to have sailed within viable range for launching torpedoes or missiles at the carrier.
Several thoughts occur to the Chief, as an old Destroyer sailor:
Firstly, the Chief can full well imagine the “Holy sh_t” reaction of the carrier group at the appearance of the Chicom’s “People’s Liberation Army Navy” under the reported circumstances.
It is admittedly not a trivial task to detect a quiet submarine. Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), certainly uses a lot of science in its efforts, but given the variables of sea conditions, temperature layers, currents, etc., success at times is as much a matter of successful art as it is of successful science.
Having said that, the Chief hopes that the Admirals allegedly leading the fleet these days get ulcers to help them realize the fecklessness of their policies that draw down the fleet while the Chicoms build up towards their planned Reaganesque 600 ship Navy. (How’s THAT: the Communists copy the Gipper’s policy, while we move ever more firmly into the realm of Chamberlain’s appeasement.)
The Chief fears that the position of the Carrier these days is starting to look like that of the Battleships in 1914. Nothing more powerful afloat, but such a major investment, that fear of losses dominated their use, or non-use.
The result of the first Naval arms race with the Brits and Kaiser Bill’s Kriegsmarine was the interesting but less than decisive Battle of Jutland. The ChiComs are making the point to us, that if we bring in the flat-tops to…let us imagine…defend Taiwan against forcible reunification with the mainland…that these marvels of naval technology, each with 4500-5500 US sailors aboard could be subject to destruction by a modern version of WW-II German technology in the form of the diesel-electric U-boat. (And wouldn’t THAT be grist for the political mills inside the beltway, to say nothing of the popular reaction.)
What makes things even worse, and the fecklessness of the Admirals even more evident (as if it were possible) is their penchant for inviting their ChiCom counterparts to come visit and learn how we operate, and see our strategy, tactics, and weapons at work (in exercise mode), all of which would certainly be of help to them in a possible (or probable?) future war.
The whole mess just leaves the Chief with a sick sensation in the pit of the stomach. God help the USA – ’cause our so-called leaders are badly botching their responsabilities.
The navy is a bureaucracy within a bureaucracy. During WW2 the black shoe battleship officers were still yearing for surface engagements, still arguing that the battleship was the queen of the line. The navy continues with this line of thinking with the super carriers. It’s time to go back to flattops the size of the Essex Class so that if you lose one you don’t lose all your marbles at one time. Letting potential enemies observe fleet exercises is insane. We produce a lot of stupid leaders.
makes you wonder what other technology did the Clintons give the chinese