Submarine

Only the author of The Hunt for Red October could capture the reality of life aboard a nuclear submarine. Only a writer of Clancy s magnitude could obtain security clearance for information, diagrams, and photographs never before available to the public. Now, every civilian can enter this top secret world and experience the drama and excitement of this stunning technological achievement the weapons, the procedures, the people themselves the startling facts behind the fiction that made Tom Clancy a #1 bestseller. Submarine includes:

Exclusive photographs, illustrations, and diagramsMock war scenarios and weapons launch proceduresAn inside look at life on board, from captain to crew, from training exercises to operationsThe fascinating history and evolution of submarines PLUS: Tom Clancy s controversial views on submariner tactics and training methods

"...takes readers deeper than they've ever gone inside a nuclear submarine." —Kirkus Reviews

Auteur

Tom Clancy

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Only the author of The Hunt for Red October could capture the reality of life aboard a nuclear submarine. Only a writer of Clancy's magnitude could obtain security clearance for information, diagrams, and photographs never before available to the public. Now, every civilian can enter this top secret world and experience the drama and excitement of this stunning technological achievement…the weapons, the procedures, the people themselves…the startling facts behind the fiction that made Tom Clancy a #1 bestseller.Submarine includes:Exclusive photographs, illustrations, and diagramsMock war scenarios and weapons launch proceduresAn inside look at life on board, from captain to crew, from training exercises to operationsThe fascinating history and evolution of submarinesPLUS: Tom Clancy's controversial views on submariner tactics and training methods

Résumé
Only the author of The Hunt for Red October could capture the reality of life aboard a nuclear submarine. Only a writer of Clancy’s magnitude could obtain security clearance for information, diagrams, and photographs never before available to the public. Now, every civilian can enter this top secret world and experience the drama and excitement of this stunning technological achievement…the weapons, the procedures, the people themselves…the startling facts behind the fiction that made Tom Clancy a #1 bestseller. Submarine includes:Exclusive photographs, illustrations, and diagramsMock war scenarios and weapons launch proceduresAn inside look at life on board, from captain to crew, from training exercises to operationsThe fascinating history and evolution of submarinesPLUS: Tom Clancy’s controversial views on submariner tactics and training methods

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Chapter One:The Silent ServiceEarly HistoryWhen tracing the roots of the modern submarine, one is usually faced with a number of different places to start. Legend has it that Alexander the Great descended into the ocean in 332 b.c. near the city of Tyre, in a primitive diving bell. The great mind of Leonardo da Vinci is said to have created a primitive submersible boat of wooden frame design covered in goatskins, with oars providing propulsion through waterproof sweeps. A British contribution to early submarine concepts came in the late 1500s from William Bourne, a carpenter and gunmaker. It included the concept of double hull construction, as well as ballast and trim systems. The first concept for a military submarine came from a Dutch physicist, Cornelius van Drebbel. In addition to actually building and demonstrating a primitive submersible, he proposed a design specifically created to destroy other ships.It was the United States (albeit still colonies in rebellion) that created the first workable military submarine design. In 1776, a Yale University student named David Bushnell designed the appropriately named Turtle. The Turtle was an egg-shaped submersible boat that had the ability to sneak up on a ship, submerge under the intended victim, bore a drill bit with a waterproof time bomb attached into the bottom of the hull, and escape before the bomb was detonated by a clockwork fuse. It was propelled by a hand-cranked screw, and had room for one overworked crewman.On the night of September 6, 1776, Sergeant Ezra Lee of the Continental Army took the Turtle to attack HMS Eagle of the British squadron blockading Boston. But when he maneuvered underneath, he was unable to attach his bomb. During his escape, he was followed by British soldiers in a rowboat. Frantic, he released the bomb, which exploded literally in the faces of his pursuers. Though all parties escaped unhurt, it was a promising start to the modern military submarine.A more substantive advance was the Nautilus, designed by the American Robert Fulton, who would go on to design the first steamboat. The Nautilus was a distinct improvement over the Turtle in that it cruised under the intended victim, towing the explosive bomb or torpedo, as it was then called, until the bomb contacted the target and detonated with a contact fuse. The design was an exceptional success, destroying a number of target vessels in test runs. The French, who were sufficiently impressed to award Fulton a contract, actually considered for a time using it in the planned invasion of Britain. By 1804 Fulton was demonstrating the boat to the British, who despised the idea for its underhanded nature and, more importantly, its potential to sweep British ships from coastal zones. In the end, Fulton returned to America to begin work on his steamboats.It remained for the Americans to create a submarine that would actually sink an enemy vessel in wartime. In 1863 a submersible boat was designed by Confederate army officer Horace Hunley. His boat, the CSS H. L. Hunley, was propelled by eight men turning a hand-cranked propeller. For armament, an explosive mine or torpedo was secured to a long spar protruding out in front of the Hunley. The idea was for the Hunley to ram the spar torpedo into the side of a target ship, where it would be detonated.Unfortunately the Hunley was difficult to handle, and several crews, along with her designer, were killed during test dives. Nevertheless on October 17, 1864, the Hunley attacked the Union steam corvette Housatonic in the harbor at Charleston, South Carolina. In the ensuing attack the Hunley sank the Housatonic, although she herself was also sunk. A submarine had finally drawn blood in combat.Over the next four decades a number of different submarine designs evolved in various European countries. In the 1880s a really practical design was built in America by an Irish immigrant, John Holland. Originally backed by the Fenian Society (an early North American free Ireland society), it was designed to allow Irish separatists to attack units of the British fleet. In 1900 Holland won a submarine design competition held by the U.S. Navy. From this contract came the USS Holland (SS-1), the first practical combat submarine. The Holland included such innovative features as self-propelled torpedoes fired from a reloadable tube, a battery-powered electric motor for submerged operations, and an advanced hull shape to allow it to move efficiently through the seas. The design was so successful that the U.S. Navy eventually bought a total of seven Holland-designed boats. Ironically, the British even bought some of the Holland boats for the Royal Navy. Holland’s company, the Electric Boat Company, continues to build submarines as part of General Dynamics Corporation.World War IThe period before World War I saw a number of innovations in military submarines. This included the development of diesel engines, improved periscopes and torpedoes, and the development of wireless technology, which allowed them t…