IKL/HDW Type 2000 Submarine

It appears that the "Type 2000" submarine was first proposed to the USN during the Ford Administration when there was a degree of interest in conventionally powered patrol subs for the mid-Atlantic ASW mission.  Nearly a decade later, the design was offered to Australia, where it was apparently the preferred bid, losing only to a far less developed Kockums proposal.  Most recently, in 2001, the design was apparently offered to Taiwan.

Here is a diagram:

Picture

Virginia-class submarine New Mexico nearing delivery

Sea trials are underway for the Newport News-built New Mexico submarine, a boat Northrop Grumman Corp. hopes to deliver to the Navy by the end of the month.

The fast-attack sub is the sixth Virginia-class submarine that Northrop and construction partner General Dynamics Electric Boat will deliver to the Navy.

On Nov. 26, the New Mexico completed its first set of sea trials, a days-long period at sea in which engineers put the sub through a series of performance exercises. The ship's crew, working with Northrop workers, test all systems, components and compartments on the sub, including submerging for the first time and conducting high-speed runs.

Northrop said the first round of tests "went extremely well."

"New Mexico's sea trial raised the bar to a new level of performance," said Jennifer Dellapenta, a spokeswoman.

Once the ship returns from its second round of trials, it will undergo a brief work period at the shipyard to address any potential issues. From there, the Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey will take the New Mexico on a final trial.

The sub was supposed to be commissioned in November, but Northrop found that some of its Newport News workers incorrectly installed bolts and fasteners that hold together tracks on which weapons are moved inside its torpedo compartment.

Improper installation of these pieces could result in a misalignment of the equipment, preventing the movement of weapon cradles, an issue that could have essentially disabled the sub's ability to launch attacks or defend itself.

After the problems were found, Northrop and the Navy agreed to push back the delivery of the New Mexico until early 2010. But company officials in recent weeks have signalled a desire to get the sub out the door by the end of the year.

The bolt and fastener problems were found in August on four submarines: the North Carolina, New Mexico, Missouri and California. None of the four boats were underway.

Only the North Carolina is commissioned, but it was in a maintenance period. The Missouri and California remain in various stages of construction in Newport News and Groton, Conn.

Matt Mulherin, the Newport News shipyard's general manager, told the Daily Press in October that the problems were found throughout the forward portions of each of the subs, leading the company to expand its investigation to include all areas where similar equipment was installed on Newport News-built vessels.

The issue, Mulherin said, was not the equipment, rather "it had to do with the process of installing those types of fasteners."

Although the probe expanded, Mulherin said the most crucial areas where the errors have been found remain in the weapons-handling room.

"We're making progress and fixing the things we've found, and we keep pushing" to expedite its completion, he said in October.

The shipyard expects to have all fastener-related problems fixed by the second quarter of 2010.

Despite the problems, the Virginia-class submarine is often touted as one of the Navy's most successful shipbuilding programs. The shipbuilders have driven down costs and improved quality on each successive ship.

Northrop and Electric Boat are under contract with the Navy to build 12 more Virginia-class submarines.

Current Navy plans call for 30 of the nuclear-powered boats.(Original News)

Mission: Move a 65 ton submarine section

With the help of a local house mover, an historic piece of a nuclear submarine is expected to be rolled to a new home on the Mare Island waterfront by week's end.Phil Joy of Benicia has volunteered to rig together a series of dollies with a total of 32 wheels, and move the 65-ton structure less than a block away to the island's Building Waterways 2. The sloping cement waterways ramp leads into the Mare Island Strait and is adjacent to historic Dry Dock 1.
The antique tower is a piece of the USS Mariano G. Vallejo submarine, painted black with the number 658 in white. The structure has been preserved on Mare Island since 1996, when it was salvaged from the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and displayed between Dry Docks 1 and 2.
"It (weighs) a little bit more than a house," Joy said of the 40-foot submarine conning tower and sail. "It's really
top-heavy ... I'm kind of building a thing underneath it that's really wide."
Joy expects to get the structure rolling by Saturday.
"Some guys were going to donate moving it by water, and move it to where ships are launched," Joy said. "They can't bring a barge in there, (though)."
The move will present some challenges for the house mover, however, as the cement blocks beneath the tower have been "squished to the ground," he said.
"I might as well (donate my services) -- nobody's got any money anyway, and it's a piece of history," Joy said.
The Mare Island Historic Park Foundation, which oversees the submarine remains, was given a Dec. 11 deadline to relocate the tower so the city and property developer Lennar Mare Island could complete environmental cleanup on the land "Phil Joy is being great about this project," foundation Board President Ken Zadwick said. "Based on my conversations with the city, that could be or should be the permanent home."
Zadwick said the tower will be enclosed behind a chain link fence, to protect the structure from anyone climbing on it and being injured (Original News).

SSBN Arihant to be commissioned in 2 years: Navy chief

The Indian Navy will commission its first nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine, the INS Arihant in two years.

"Work is going on apace. We will put it through sea trials. The timeframes will be done and closely monitored," said navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma on Wednesday. He said the submarine would come equipped with its complement of ballistic missiles.

The Arihant was launched at the Shipbuilding Centre in Visakhapatnam on July 26 this year. The chief hoped that the government would not let the huge investments in nuclear submarine building wither away after the submarines were commissioned.

Admiral Verma refused to comment on the Nerpa, the Akula-2 class nuclear powered submarine which is being acquired from Russia on a ten year lease. The Nerpa, which is to be renamed the Chakra, is currently on its final leg of sea trials off Vladivostok and has a small complement of naval officials embarked on board. Naval officials said that the submarine would be ready for commissioning early next year.(Original News)

Key Data:

Crew

95

Dimensions:

Length

110m

Beam

11m

Draught

9m

Performance:

Maximum Surface Speed

15kt

Maximum Dived Speed

24kt

Diving Depth

300m

Systems:

K-15 Missiles

12

Torpedoes

6 × 21in torpedo tubes

Sonar

Ushus and Panchendriya

Propulsion:

Type

Nuclear, pressurised water reactor

Steam Turbine

1 × 47,000hp

Single Propeller

Seven-bladed high-skew propeller

Delay in building Scorpene range submarines at MDL

As per contract signed with Mazagaon Docks Limited (MDL), first Scorpene submarine is scheduled to be delivered in December 2012 and thereafter, one each every year till December 2017. On account of some teething problems, time taken in absorption of technology and delays in augmentation of industrial infrastructure and procurement of MDL purchased materials (MPM), slippage in the delivery schedule is expected. Delay in scheduled delivery of submarines is likely to have an impact on the envisaged submarine force levels. Loss on account of the delayed delivery is difficult to quantify at this stage.

This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in a written reply to Shri Prabhat Jha and Shri Prakash Javadekar in Rajya Sabha today.Original News

South Korea‘s Third KSS-II Submarine Begins Operations

The South Korean Navy begins operations on its third KSS-II submarine today, following an 18-month sea trial period.

The 1,800t Type-214 diesel-electric submarine is equipped with state-of-the-art torpedoes and submarine-to-surface missiles. It can perform underwater operations for as long as two weeks submerged at depths of up to 400m.

 The 65.3m-long submarine can accommodate a crew of 40 and has a maximum submerged speed of 20kt. It is equipped with air independent propulsion (AIP), which provides stealth capability and improves its underwater performance.

The submersible warship features ISUS-90 integrated sensor submarine system with which the operators can handle variable information and detect up to 300 targets simultaneously.

Built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in collaboration with Germany's Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW), the submarine costs around $1bn to produce.

The third Type-214 submarine was named after a Korean independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun.

South Korean Navy says it will launch six more Type-214 submarines, create a submarine command by 2018 and build indigenous 3,000t submarines after 2018.

Original News

Several firsts at Lima this year

LANGKAWI: It’s all systems go for the latest edition of the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (Lima) Exhibition 2009 with military aircraft and warships on showcase from today till Saturday.

The world-class platform for the aerospace and maritime industries is recording several firsts.

Swing-wing jet: An F-111 of the Royal Australian Air Force rehearsing 

for the air show in Langkawi yesterday. — Bernama

The Royal Malaysian Navy’s first submarine KD Tunku Abdul Rahman will make its maiden appearance at the maritime segment show at Awana Porto Malai.

The Scorpene-class diesel-electric submarine is expected to be the main draw of the maritime show.

The exhibition has also recorded the largest number of ships anchored off Porto Malai – a total of 99 warships and vessels of all kinds.

Another first is the first appearance by the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) with its AH-64D Longbow Apache helicopter and F-16 Fighting Falcon jets, which are expected to carry out aerial displays to thrill the visitors.

Another debut is the huge B-52 bomber of the United States Air Force, which is expected to make a low-level fly-past routine.

Underwater defender: Malaysia’s first submarine, the ‘KD Tunku Abdul Rahman’

being moored at the Awana Porto Malai jetty yesterday. — Bernama

 

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who made final checks on preparations for the show yesterday, said this year’s event would see the maritime and aerospace exhibition being merged under one roof at the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre (MIEC).

Zahid said 10 memorandums of understanding on the de- fence and aerospace industries would be signed between Malaysia and participating countries.

Also for the first time, the 96th Armed Forces Hospital will provide medical treatment for participants and visitors to the exhibition venue.

A temporary army hospital with 50 beds, an operating theatre and a medical laboratory has been set up at the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre parking area.

Tickets to the event cost RM10, while children below 12 are allowed free entrance.

The air show will only be opened to the public on Saturday.

A total of 325 exhibitors from 25 countries are participating in Lima this year.

Orginal news

PANAH dan LUMBA-LUMBA Senjata Baru Israel

Dengan mengandalkan sistem anti-misil “Arrow” dan dua kapal selam terbaru yang bisa mengusung senjata nuklir, Israel sedang mempersiapkan sistem persenjataan generasi baru yang didesain untuk mempertahankan negaranya dari kemungkinan serangan Iran.

Israel berupaya mengembangkan teknologi sistem pertahanan tercanggih. Sistem ini bisa melepaskan “awan metalik” untuk menghancurkan serangan rudal dan roket di udara. Sistem ini sudah berhasil diuji-coba dan akan segera diterapkan pada tahun depan. Angkatan Perang Israel mengembangkan generasi baru dari sistem pertahanan Arrow untuk menembak jatuh misil jarak jauh sejenis Shihab milik Iran, langsung di luar atmosfer Bumi.
Sistem pertahanan ini akan melibatkan lima kapal selam kelas Dolphin buatan Jerman. Armada kapal selam ini dilaporkan bisa dilengkapi dengan senjata nuklir yang akan berpatroli dan melakukan stasioner di perbatasan perairan Israel.
Israel agaknya sudah belajar banyak dari pengalaman pahit serangan roket-roket Hamas (2008) dan Hisbullah (2006), sehingga mereka kini memusatkan perhatian pada sistem pertahanan anti rudal, roket, dan rudal. Israel yakin Iran berada di balik serangan kedua kelompok militan bersenjata tersebut. Selain itu Israel juga mewaspadai perkembangan proyek nuklir Iran dan mulai mengantsipasinya sejak dini. * (AP/Yahoo/BS)

Engineer guided the creation of submarine-launched missiles

Robert A. Fuhrman, 84, a pioneering Lockheed engineer who played a central role in the creation of the Polaris and Poseidon submarine-launched missiles before rising to the top of the aeronautics and aerospace giant, died Nov. 21 in Pebble Beach, Calif. He had blood clots in his lungs.

During more than three decades at Lockheed, Mr. Fuhrman served as president of three of its companies: Lockheed-Georgia, Lockheed-California and Lockheed Missiles & Space. He became president and chief operating officer of the corporation in 1986 and vice chairman in 1988 before retiring in 1990.

"He was one of the leading aerospace engineers of the 20th century," said Sherman N. Mullin, former president of Lockheed's Skunk Works, the division that produces top-secret military aircraft. "But he was also very effective at building motivating teams and getting things done."

Remarking on the former Lockheed chief's accomplishments in military and commercial aircraft, missiles, satellites and defense, Mullin said Mr. Fuhrman had "this breadth of experience that was pretty much unmatched."

Mr. Fuhrman was born in Detroit on Feb. 23, 1925. He received a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Michigan in 1945 and a master's degree in fluid mechanics and dynamics from the University of Maryland in 1952.

He later completed an executive management program at Stanford University.

He was a flight test engineer at the Naval Air Station at Patuxent River and chief of technical engineering for Ryan Aerospace Co. in San Diego before joining Lockheed in 1958 as manager of the Polaris program, which produced the first U.S. submarine-launched ballistic missile. After his successes with Polaris, he became chief engineer of Lockheed's missile-systems division in Sunnyvale, Calif., which produced the Poseidon and Trident sub-launched missiles.

At Lockheed-California, Mr. Fuhrman resuscitated the L-1011 TriStar program, which had been crippled by the bankruptcy of Rolls-Royce, the engine manufacturer for the wide-body commercial transport plane.

He also led major studies on defense and industrial technology and space launch strategy as a member of the Defense Department's science board.

A past president and honorary fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Mr. Fuhrman served as a senior adviser for Lockheed until his death.

His first wife, Nan McCormick Fuhrman, died in 1988.

Survivors include his wife, Nancy Richards Fuhrman; three children; seven grandchildren; and a sister (@washingtonpost).

Israeli confronts new military threats with submarines and cutting-edge anti-missile systems

With cutting-edge anti-missile systems and two new submarines that can carry nuclear weapons, Israel is readying a new generation of armaments designed to defend itself against distant Iran as well as Tehran's proxy armies on its borders.

Having failed to crush Hamas' firepower in its Gaza offensive last winter, or Hezbollah's in its 2006 war in Lebanon, Israel is turning to an increasingly sophisticated mix of defensive technology.

A system that can unleash a metallic cloud to shoot down incoming rockets in the skies over Gaza or Lebanon has already been successfully tested, according to its maker, and is expected to be deployed next year. The army is developing a new generation of its Arrow defense system designed to shoot down Iran's long-range Shihab missiles outside the Earth's atmosphere.

It has three German-made Dolphin submarines and is buying two more. They can be equipped with nuclear-tipped missiles which analysts say could be stationed off the coast of Iran. Israel says Iran, despite its denials, is trying to acquire atomic weapons. It has never confirmed its Dolphin fleet has nuclear capabilities, but senior officials acknowledge that commanders are fast at work devising a strike plan in case diplomacy fails.

The missile projects have their critics in Israel, who question their effectiveness and say they are too costly. And many Israelis would probably agree with U.S. former President Bill Clinton's recent warning to an Israeli audience that the country could achieve true security only by making peace with its enemies, who he said would always be able to improve their ability to attack.

"The trajectory of technology is not your friend," he said. "You need to get this done."

Under their overarching fear of nuclear annihilation by Iran, whose regime has repeatedly called for Israel's extinction, the more immediate threat is seen as coming from Iranian-backed Hezbollah and Hamas.

Israel's military believes Hezbollah has tripled its prewar arsenal to more than 40,000 rockets, some of which can strike virtually anywhere in Israel — a dramatic improvement over the short-range missiles fired in 2006.

Hamas has also increased its rocket arsenal since last winter's fighting, said a senior military official who spoke on condition of anonymity in accordance with army regulations. Hamas recently test-fired a rocket that can travel up to 60 kilometers (40 miles), putting the Tel Aviv area within range for the first time, according to Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin, Israel's military intelligence chief.

Israel's defense industry says it is close to deploying Iron Dome, a system that will use cameras and radar to track incoming rockets and shoot them down within seconds of their launch. The system is so sophisticated that it can almost instantly predict where a rocket will land, changing its calculations to account for wind, sun and other conditions in fractions of a second.

Shooting down a missile is a bit like stopping a bullet with a bullet. But Eyal Ron, one of Iron Dome's developers, said his system will fire an interceptor that explodes into a cloud of small pieces which make it unnecessary to score a direct hit.

"It's a great advantage because to bring an interceptor to a target flying at incredible speed to an exact point is very hard," said Ron, a specialist at mPrest Systems Ltd., an Israeli software firm developing the system along with local arms giant Rafael.

He said recent tests in Israel's southern desert were successful, and a final dress rehearsal is expected in December before the system goes live next year.

While Israelis who have endured years of rocket fire from Gaza are sure to welcome Iron Dome, the system does not have wall-to-wall support.

"Maybe it will be good during times like this when you have 10 rockets, but not for a war. If you invest in such a system, I think you're going to go bankrupt," said Gabriel Saboni, the head of the military research program at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies.

Iron Dome is one part of a larger strategy that includes more tanks and dozens of new armored personnel carriers equipped with technology to repel anti-tank missiles.

The ultimate trump card is a nuclear arsenal Israel refuses to acknowledge but which no one doubts exists.

The strategy that became obvious in the Lebanon and Gaza wars was simply one of overwhelming force to deter further attack.

This policy appears to have bought Israel a fragile calm on both its northern and southern borders, but it has come at a heavy price.

The military brass are deeply concerned that international criticism of Israel's conduct of the Gaza war, including allegations of war crimes contained in a high-profile U.N. report, will tie their hands in the future.

Military officials speaking on condition of anonymity said large resources are going into developing increasingly accurate weapons, such as bombs that cause damage over a smaller area and noisemaking explosions that scare away civilians before real bombs are dropped.

Few expect the current quiet to last indefinitely, and muscle-flexing on all sides attests to the elusiveness of a peaceful Middle East.

Iran is conducting large-scale air defense war games this week designed to protect its nuclear facilities from attack. Israel recently moved warships through the Red Sea toward Iran, and three weeks ago the Israeli navy captured a ship, the Francop, that it said was carrying a huge cache of Iranian weapons bound for Hezbollah.

Last week Netanyahu boarded a Dolphin submarine and then the missile ship that led the capture of the Francop. He thanked crew members for seizing the haul and told them that Israel is Iran's first target, "but not the last" — reflecting his contention that Iranian ambitions are not just an Israeli problem. (@dailypress)

Navy Swapping 1 Of 3 Guam-based Submarines

The Navy is moving one of its three Guam-based submarines to Hawaii and plans to replace it with another submarine currently based in Virginia.

The U.S. Pacific Fleet submarine force said Tuesday that the USS City of Corpus Christi is to be moved from Guam to Pearl Harbor. The Norfolk, Va.-based USS Oklahoma City is due to replace the Corpus Christi.

The swap is expected between next fall and spring of 2011.

The Navy says the moves keep its most technologically advanced submarines in Guam, allowing the U.S. to maintain its military dominance at sea in the region.

The Navy says the changes won't result in any long-term increase in the number of submarines assigned to Guam, though there may be a short-term increase during the changeover.original news

LaBarge to provide military wiring harness technology for U.S. Navy torpedoes

Torpedo designers at the Raytheon Co. Integrated Defense Systems segment headquartered in Tewksbury, MA, needed wiring harnesses for the company's MK 48 submarine-launched torpedoes and MK 54 surface ship- and aircraft-launched torpedoes. They found their solution from electronics contract manufacturer LaBarge Inc. in St. Louis.

Raytheon awarded a $2.6 million contract to LaBarge to provide wiring harnesses for the MK 48 and MK 54 torpedoes -- the first time LaBarge has supplied parts for the two torpedo programs.

Primarily launched from submarines, the MK 48 is a heavyweight torpedo for anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare in shallow- and deep-water environments. The MK 54 is a lightweight torpedo that can be launched from surface ships, helicopters, or fixed-wing airplanes to track, classify, and destroy submarines in deep and shallow waters.

LaBarge will make the wiring harnesses at the company's Berryville, AK plant, and should be finished in December 2011. Raytheon makes torpedoes at the company's Torpedo and Readiness Center, co-located with the U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division in Keyport, WA, as well as at the Raytheon Seapower Capability Center in Portsmouth, RI.

On the Web: YouTube video of MK 48 torpedo hitting decomissioned U.S. Navy destroyer
Original News

China's Subs Getting Quieter

But Still Louder Than Older Russian Submarines
30 November 2009

The Chinese Navy appears to be stressing quality over quantity as it modernizes its submarine force, according to a U.S. Navy intelligence report. But China still has a way to go on quality. Some of its newest submarines are as noisy as subs built decades ago.

Nuclear-powered Jin-class ballistic missile submarines are designed to give China's naval force, known as the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), "a credible second-strike capability," the U.S. Navy said in an August intelligence report that surfaced briefly on the Office of Naval Intelligence Web site, then vanished. The report was captured and published by the Federation of American Scientists.

The Jins - there are two in service - are more advanced than China's first-generation Xia ballistic missile submarines, but they're not exactly stealth machines.

According to a chart in the U.S. Navy report, Jins are louder than Soviet Delta III submarines built 30 years ago.

That raises questions about just how useful the submarines might be as a deterrent, said Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists.

Second-strike capability is intended to cause adversaries to refrain from attacking because whoever has second-strike capability can counterattack. But putting ballistic missiles on noisy submarines might not be an effective second-strike strategy.

"If these are clunkers that you can hear all the way to Hawaii," they are likely to be quickly found and sunk in any conflict with the U.S. or Russian navies, Kristensen said. "With this noise level, they're very detectable."

A new Chinese nuclear attack submarine called a Type 095 rates better on the U.S. Navy's noise scale, but it is still louder than a 20-year-old Soviet-designed Akula attack sub, according to the Navy chart. The 095 submarines are expected to begin entering the Chinese fleet in 2015.

Even if they are noisy, they are not as noisy as the Han- and Shang-class nuclear attack submarines that came before them, the intelligence chart shows.

This is apparently the first time a U.S. Navy description of the noise levels of modern Chinese and Russian nuclear submarines has been made public, Kristensen said. The report is titled "The People's Liberation Army Navy: A Modern Navy With Chinese Characteristics."

Threat or Not?

There are two ways to interpret the U.S. Navy's data, a U.S. government naval expert said. One is that China's noisy submarines are inferior to any in the U.S. fleet, and therefore not much of a threat. The other is that the new subs demonstrate that Chinese submarine technology is getting better, and loud though they might be, Chinese submarines are getting quieter.

And real performance in the ocean is "not quite as one-dimensional as the Navy's chart depicts," he said. China's submarines can be quieter under certain operating conditions.

On the whole, however, the new Chinese submarines are "not anything at this point that we should panic over in terms of detecting and tracking them," he said.

According to the U.S. Navy, China currently has three nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, six nuclear-powered attack submarines and 53 diesel-electric attack submarines.

This 62-sub fleet is expected to grow to about 75 by 2020 or 2025 as new submarines, including non-nuclear air independent propulsion vessels, are added to the fleet.

The intelligence report also predicts that all of China's new attack submarines will probably be armed with advanced cruise missiles. Today's attack submarines are armed with anti-ship cruise missiles, wake-homing torpedoes and mines, according to a Nov. 23 report by the Congressional Research Service.

China's Jins are designed to carry 12 JL-2 nuclear-armed ballistic missiles with a range of 3,888 nautical miles, according to the U.S. Defense Department's annual Chinese Military Power report.

The Naval Intelligence report said that with Jin-class submarines and JL-2 ballistic missiles, "China is developing a near-continuous at-sea strategic deterrent." The missiles are "capable of reaching the continental United States from Chinese littorals," giving the PLAN "its first credible second-strike nuclear capability."

Kristensen said he's not convinced.
Citing other Defense Department numbers, he said missiles fired from Jin-class submarines in Chinese waters "would fall into the sea about 800 kilometers [about 500 miles] from Seattle."

"With the range this system has, it is not a system that can target the United States unless they sail well into the Pacific," Kristensen said. "I'm very puzzled about why the Chinese would be putting their crown jewels - JL-2 missiles - on submarines that are that vulnerable."

Using Jin submarines only makes sense as a deterrent "if they survive. And a blunt claim would be that they would not survive in a war with the United States," he said.

The Jin and its missiles appear to be "a regional weapon," that could threaten Japan or U.S. military assets on Guam, he said.

Perhaps the Jins are not intended to be a deterrent against the United States. Their missiles might be intended to deter Russia, which has a history of border tensions with China, Kristensen said.

India also may be a target for Chinese deterrence. India has nuclear weapons, but as yet, none that can strike as far as China, he said.

Or perhaps the submarines and their missiles are intended as a display of national pride, he said. When nations become military powers, one of the things they do is build ballistic missile submarines, Kristensen said.

Lt. Cmdr. Billy Ray Davis, a U.S. Navy spokesman, said no one was available to answer questions about the report.
Original News

3rd 1,800-Ton Submarine to Begin Service Tuesday

The Navy will begin to operate its third 1,800-ton KSS-II submarine Tuesday after 18 months of sea trials.

The commissioning ceremony will be held at the Naval Operations Command in Busan, it said in a news release.

The third Type-214 submarine was named after Ahn Jung-geun, a Korean independence fighter who assassinated Japan's first resident general, Hirobumi Ito, in 1909 in retaliation for Japan's annexation of Korea.

The diesel-electric submarine, built by Hyundai Heavy Industries under technical cooperation with Germany's Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW), is expected to play a key role in sea denial to North Korean and other hostile forces, and anti-submarine warfare, Navy officials said.

The submarine is equipped with state-of-the-art torpedoes and submarine-to-surface missiles.

It has a maximum submerged speed of 20 knots and a crew of 40. One submarine costs around $1 billion to produce.

The 65.3-meter-long submarine is equipped with Air Independent Propulsion (AIP), which improves its underwater performance and gives it stealth capability.

It can submerge to depths of up to 400 meters and carry out underwater operations for as long as two weeks.
Its operational radius reaches Guam.

The ISUS-90 integrated sensor submarine system enables operators to deal with variable information and detect up to 300 targets simultaneously.

The Navy plans to create a submarine command by 2018. To that end, the Navy will launch six more Type-214 submarines by 2018 and build indigenous 3,000-ton submarines after 2018 (@koreanTimes).

Russian-American nuclear weapons negotiations have reached decisive phase

Russian-American negotiations on a new agreement to reduce strategic offensive arsenals have reached the decisive phase. The conclusion of such an agreement would be a key link in the "reset" of relations between Moscow and Washington.

Since the end of the Cold War, US and Russian leaders have twice announced a strategic partnership – in the early 1990s and after September 11, 2001. But both times those hopes turned to mutual disappointment. The reason for this was Washington’s unwillingness to recognise Moscow as an equal partner or to consider Russian interests in the international arena. Will this current effort be more successful?

There are grounds for hope. My recent conversations with leading political experts, members of the National Security Council, State Department and Pentagon, as well as US congressmen, suggest that the American elite has no illusions concerning "a single superpower in a unipolar world". The Obama administration understands that America will have to adjust to a polycentric system of international relations. Washington needs allies and partners in order to extricate itself from the current systemic crisis, and that will require not unilateral actions, but multilateral coalitional diplomacy.

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Q+A-Russia delays test of troubled Bulava missile

Russia on Tuesday delayed the latest test launch of its troubled new submarine-launched Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile, the state RIA news agency reported.

RIA said the launch -- which was first scheduled for late October -- should have taken place on Tuesday but had been delayed again.

"In connection with the need to agree a host of questions, including technical ones... the latest launch of the Bulava should take place before the end of the year," RIA quoted an unidentified source in the Russian defence sector as saying.

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