 |
| Virginia class submarine |
BACKGROUND
The Virginia class sometimes mentioned as SSN-774 class, may be a class of nuclear-powered fast attack submarines in commission with the us Navy. Virginia class is designed to replace older Los Angeles-class submarines, many of which have already been decommissioned. The Virginia class was intended partially as a less costly alternative to the Seawolf-class submarines whose production run was stopped after just three boats had been completed. The submarines of the Virginia class are designed for a broad spectrum of open-ocean and littoral missions. Their primary purpose is to take out enemy's surface combatants and submarines and the secondary task is to execute land-attack missions. Submarines of this class have a length of 115 m.To give viewers a perspective, the length is slightly greater than that of a gridiron. These submarines displace around 7,900 tons and are acknowledged to be able to move to depths of 240m (800 feet) but allegedly capable of going down to 490 m (1,600 feet). A single S9G reactor that produces around 30 MW powers Virginia class submarines. The S9G reactor is designed to operate for 33 years without refueling. This enables the submarines of this class to have a practically unlimited range, limited by only food supplies, and maintenance requirements. The reactor produces enough power to propel the submarines to over 25 knots that are 46km/hr or 29 mph, though the particular numbers could also be significantly higher. The Virginia class ushered in many technological advances in submarine construction. It is the primary to use photonic sensors rather than a standard periscope. The class is equipped with high-resolution cameras, along with light-intensification and infrared sensors as well as an infrared laser rangefinder. Starting Block IV, the submarines incorporate a Large-Aperture Bow (LAB) water-backed array, which replaces the normal air-backed spherical array. This is main sonar is one of the most powerful sonars mounted in any of the submarines in the world. The Virginia class is built through an industrial arrangement designed to maintain both General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Newport News, the only two U.S. shipyards capable of building nuclear-powered submarines. The facilities alternate work on the reactor plant also because of the final assembly, test, outfit, and delivery.
There are Vertical Tubes to carry Tomahawk Submarine Launched Cruise Missile (SLBM), unmanned undersea vehicles (UUV). These could also potentially carry non-nuclear medium-range ballistic missiles. Four 533 mm torpedo tubes for the Mk-48 torpedo. There is a capacity to carry up to 26 Mk-48 torpedoes in the weapon's chamber. These torpedoes have a range in excess of 50 km or 31 miles and can be used to take out enemy submarines and surface vessels. The boats are able to lay different types of mines including the MK-60 CAPTOR Encapsulated Torpedo mines. An integral lock-out/lock-in chamber is incorporated into the hull for special operations. The chamber can host a mini-submarine, such as Northrop Grumman’s Advanced SEALS delivery system that can be used to transport special warfare forces such as Navy SEAL teams.
Documents indicate that the High Energy Laser (HEL) would be of around 300 kilowatts. They could eventually end up being more powerful, up to 500 kilowatts. It will be powered by the S9G reactor. As per some reports, the initial prototype has already been tested using a towed power generator instead. Though the U.S Navy has been tightlipped regarding this, a laser could have several use-cases. The lasers are often used as a last-ditch defense against drones and anti-submarine helicopters. The current crop of American submarines like most others doesn't have any defense against air attack as they spend very little time on the surface. This is especially true for U.S Navy subs as they are nuclear powered, and don't need access to atmospheric oxygen for population, unlike diesel-electric subs which do so by surfacing or using a snorkel. Modern submarines generally depend on their undersea cover to avoid attack from the air. There are exceptions, for example, Interactive Defence and Attack System for Submarines (IDAS)is a submarine-launched, lightweight, multi-role, fiber-optic guided missile system being developed for the German and other partner navies to take out aerial threats. A system like IDAS is useful when the cover of a submarine is blown. Readers may note that modern anti-submarine aircraft and helicopters have many ways to detect submarines. Laser weapons will have some distinct advantage over a system like IDAS or guns. The speed of sunshine enables them to hit their targets almost instantaneously. Laser weapons also don’t got to carry ammunition like traditional systems and hence they're going to be ready to remove a way larger number of threats constrained only by the power supply limit of the platform. This is pretty significant aa traditional systems can run out of ammunition when encountering an outsized number of incoming threats sort of a drone swarm. Also, a platform firing laser will be much harder to detect than one firing a missile since laser are invisible and there is no blast associated with it when fired. The laser could also be used to take out small missile-firing boat likes of which are possessed by North Korea and Iran, expending torpedoes that are limited in number is not the most effective solution in these scenarios. Laser weapons also could potentially be used to strike high value tactical coastal targets such as radar stations.
0 Comments