There was news a couple of weeks ago that a U.S. Navy cruiser—the Lake Champlain— collided with a South Korean fishing boat in the Sea of Japan. I remembered reading a few years ago that one our Navy destroyers had collided with a Japanese oil tanker—in 2012, in the Strait of Hormuz. Two collisions in five years isn’t really headline news, but I began to wonder how often our ships bump into things. Just curiosity. I stumbled onto something worrying—an accident-prone submarine fleet.
In broad terms, American submarines have a very impressive safety record: Since the Second World War, the U.S. has lost just four submarines, and none since the spring of 1968. By comparison, since the end of WW2, the Russians have lost 17 subs—one of which sank, was raised, and then sank again two years later. No doubt people remember the Kursk disaster from 2000, in which 118 Russian sailors were killed. The most recent Russian sub lost was in 2003; nine men died aboard the K-159, which was on its way to a dismantling yard.
So: American subs are much, much safer than their Russian death-trap counterparts. That’s not surprising; our high-tech equipment has always been much more reliable—and much better maintained—than the Russians’. And the United States invented the submarine. And the nuclear submarine. Facts which make it all the more surprising that our submarines keep crashing into things.
Obviously, there’s only so much information about military accidents that makes it to press; nonetheless, the public record shows that since the Kursk sank, 10 American Nuclear subs have had collisions—with other boats, undersea mountains, the island of Sardinia, etc.
In February 2001, the USS Greenville surfaced into a Japanese fisherman-training ship, which sank, killing 9 of 35 aboard, including 4 high school students. The Greenville’s rudder and hull were damaged; repairs cost 2 million dollars.
In November 2002, the USS Oklahoma City collided with a natural gas tanker in the Strait of Gibraltar. No one was hurt, but the the sub was damaged and had to put into port for repairs. No word on how much they cost.
In October 2003, the USS Hartford ran aground on Sardinia. The Hartford was damaged to the tune of 9 million dollars and 7 months repairs.
In January 2005, the USS San Francisco crashed into an undersea mountain near Guam, traveling at its maximum speed, which is rumored to be about 40 mph. The nose of the submarine crumpled and the forward ballast tanks ruptured; 98 crewmen were injured and one was killed. The sub reportedly came close to sinking, but with the inner hull and nuclear reactor still intact, she managed to surface and make harbor at Guam. Her entire bow section had to be replaced, at a cost of about 80 million dollars.
In September 2005, the USS Philadelphia collided with a Turkish merchant ship in the Persian Gulf. Neither ship suffered major damage. Egos were severely bruised.
In January 2007, the USS Newport News crashed into a Japanese tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, doing serious enough damage to the sub that it was compelled to travel to port on the surface, under escort from our Destroyer USS Benfold. The tanker’s hull and propellers were damaged.
In March of 2009, the USS Hartford, back on duty following its collision with Sardinia, crashed into an American amphibious transport ship, the USS New Orleans. Fifteen sailors were injured, and one of the New Orleans’s fuel tanks ruptured, leaking 25,000 gallons of diesel into the sea. This time repairs cost 120 million dollars and two years to complete.
In October 2012 the USS Montpelier collided with the destroyer USS San Jacinto. No one was injured; repairs cost a piddling 70,000 dollars.
In January 2013, the USS Jacksonville collided with a fishing boat in the Persian Gulf, tearing off its main periscope. This was the fourth time the Jacksonville had collided with something, but the other three crashes happened between ’82 and ’96, so they escape inclusion in this list.
In November 2015, the USS Georgia crashed into a buoy and then ran aground while in harbor, in Georgia. Repairs cost about 1 million dollars.
In August 2016, the USS Louisiana collided with the a Navy support Vessel USNS Eagleview in the Strait of Juan De Fuca. The only report I can find on the damage is that, according to the Navy Times, there was “impact damage on the aft port hull of the USNS Eagleview and the forward starboard hull of the USS Louisiana. Both ships returned safely to port under their own power.”
That makes 11 nuclear sub collisions since 2000, featuring 10 different subs. By my count, since 2000, the US has had a total of 81 nuclear subs in active service, meaning one in 8 of our subs over that span had a crash.
I can’t offer much insight into these accidents; my knowledge of subs is dilettante-level at best. (Though, if anyone in the Navy is reading this, I would eagerly accept a commission as a sub officer. I’m 26 and I don’t mind confined spaces; I can start next week.) That said, I can’t help but wonder how it could be that the highest-tech fighting machines in the history of the world have such serious accidents so routinely. Granted, they don’t have windows. On May 3, Senator Elizabeth Warren said that “our military force’s diversity is its greatest strength.” Maybe that’s because we don’t spend enough on navigational equipment and sonar.
