William L. Stuart

author of The Gemstone Chronicles Series

Submarines

Super Secret Submarines and the Jolly Roger Flag!!

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I recently read a story about the submarine USS Jimmy Carter (SSN 23) returning to its home port in Bremerton, Washington flying the Jolly Roger. Being a former submarine sailor, I took a measure of pride in seeing the picture, and it made me wonder about a couple of things. First, what did the boat do to fly that flag, and, secondly, what happened to its clandestine predecessor USS Parche (SSN 683). Before I go into that, here’s the picture of the Jimmy Carter flying the flag (courtesy of Lt. Cmdr. Michael Smith via DVIDS):

USS Jimmy Carter flying Jolly Roger

USS Jimmy Carter:

What did USS Jimmy Carter do to fly the pirate flag? We probably won’t know for years (if ever). We can speculate based on some of the submarine capabilities. For instance, we know the Seawolf class submarine is incredibly quiet (by some estimates 70 times quieter than the Los Angeles class). We know it has an extra hundred foot section in the hull (called the Multi Mission Platform) and can dive deeper than the Los Angeles or Sturgeon class boats. It can allegedly transport Seal teams and their equipment, tap into underwater communication cables, and much more – none of which can be confirmed.

How does that help us guess at the boat’s mission. Given that the Jimmy Carter is a West Coast submarine, we can speculate that its successful mission involved North Korea.What exactly, we will likely never know as it will be shrouded in secrecy for decades to come. They could have landed SEAL teams for intelligence gathering, retrieved missile fragments from North Korea’s recent launches, or any number of other operations. Whatever they did, in keeping with the submarine force’s legendary silence, we won’t know.

Why the Jolly Roger, though? The practice of flying the pirate flag is a navy tradition signifying a successful mission. According to the Washington Post, the practice began in WWII with the Royal Navy. The article tells us symbols often adorn the flags to reflect what the mission accomplished. Jimmy Carter‘s flag had one or possibly two unidentified symbols on it, which only adds to the mystery. Whatever the mission, Bravo Zulu to the crew for a job well done!

USS Parche:

Now for USS Parche (SSN 683), the super secret Sturgeon class submarine whose mantle USS Jimmy Carter inherited. According to Wikipedia, the Parche is, as of 2007, the most decorated ship in the history of the US Navy. Recipient of 9 Presidential Unit Citations (PUC), 10 Navy Unit Commendations (NUC), and 13 Navy Expeditionary Medals, Parche remains a mystery. Decommissioned in 2004, her sail resides in Bremerton Washington. Note the interesting hull appendage. I wonder what purpose it served…

USS Parche

The Parche‘s preserved sail in Bremerton:

Flag USS Parche sail

Again, according to Wikipedia, Parche recovered Soviet missile fragments and was thought of as a key component of the National Underwater Reconnaissance Office. The book Blind Man’s Bluff claims the submarine tapped into Soviet communications cables during Operation Ivy Bells. Because most of USS Parche‘s missions remain highly classified, these claims remain unsubstantiated. One of my instructors at prototype in Idaho Falls, Idaho, served on Parche. He wore a few of the PUCs and NUCs, but claimed he didn’t know why the boat received the awards.

Based on her decorations alone, Parche deserved to fly the pirate flag, although I don’t know if she did. Regardless, I think it’s only fitting to give USS Parche (SSN 683) a Bravo Zulu as well!

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What do you think earned USS Jimmy Carter (SSN 23) the right to fly the Jolly Roger? Leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts. If you’d rather, drop me an email at bill@williamlstuart.com. Connect with me on social media, too! I’m on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, and Pinterest. Say hi and let’s talk submarines (or books, nuclear power, writing, etc.)! I always enjoy meeting new friends!

Submarines in Idaho!?!?!?!?… Yep, It’s True!!

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Idaho:

When you think of Idaho, what is your first impression? For me, prototype training in Idaho Falls as a US Navy Nuclear Reactor operator is first thought. For others, skiing, hiking, and amazing vistas come to mind. Still others think of potatoes. Many conspiracy theorists believe the US moon landing was actually filmed at Craters of the Moon National Park and we never set foot on the moon. All those things make Idaho uniquely Idaho. Today I want to tell you about a  Navy facility in the Idaho wilderness. At the facility, engineers experiment with the latest in submarine hull design! Yep, submarines in Idaho!

Submarines in Idaho?

What? Submarines in Idaho? Hey, we once trained to run submarine nuclear power plants in Idaho, so why not? And, it makes sense when you think about the facility. Called the Acoustic Research Detachment (ARD) in Bayview, Idaho, the site, located on the southern end of Lake Pend Orielle, performs research, development, test and evaluation of submarine acoustic stealth technology. Cool, you might say, but why Idaho?

According to Wikipedia, the lake, located in the Northern Idaho Panhandle, and fed by the Clark Fork and Pack Rivers is 43 miles long and 1150 feet deep in places (like near the test facility). At depths below 100 feet, the water is a constant 39F. The lake has a flat muddy bottom, and coupled with little boat traffic at night, makes it a perfect acoustic test location.

Why is this important? Well, as a former submarine sailor, I appreciate the need for silence on boats (yes, submarines are boats and surface ships are ships). While surface ships can operate quietly, stealth is especially crucial for submarines. The ARD helps in the mission.

ARD has its own fleet of submarines. An article by the LA Times says the subs are up to 88 feet long (roughly 1/4 size of a real submarine). The latest model, LSV-2 (large scale vehicle), is about 120 feet.  Cutthroat (LSV-2 modeled on the Virginia class), and Kokanee  (LSV-1 modeled on the Seawolf class) comprise part of the fleet. Rumors say at least 5 others call the site home. I read another article that named the boats. In addition to the boats listed above, the Dolly Varden, Pike, Whitefish, and Steelhead round out the fleet.

Submarines Kokanee LSV-1
Kokanee LSV -1

ARD:

Officially, and according to the Naval Sea Systems Command website, the purpose of ARD is as follows.

These state-of-the-art facilities support a wide variety of research and technology development programs ranging from submarine propulsor development to the calibration of full-scale acoustic transducers. Detachment personnel supporting the experiments form a highly capable and versatile workforce providing ARD customers a timely and quality outcome. They work closely with project scientists, engineers and technicians throughout the Carderock Division and other Navy and private organizations, to plan and conduct operations and experiments on the lake.

The results obtained during past experiments have been extremely valuable to the Navy, especially in the area of submarine propulsor design, sonar dome development, submarine construction cost avoidance, and the development of several critical submarine design features. Future plans include critical support of current and future Navy submarine design in the area of structural acoustics, hydroacoustics, propulsor development, target strength reduction, and related experiments using the unique capabilities of the ARD.  The Large Scale Vehicle-2 (LSV-2), a large model of the VIRGINIA Class submarine, is being used extensively in the area of propulsor research. Large scale buoyant submarine models support testing in the area of submarine structural acoustic and hydroacoustic technology.  Target strength testing is conducted using the Intermediate Scale Measurement System (ISMS), which provides a unique acoustic test capability unsurpassed by any other available facility.

Surface Ships:

The ARD also houses a model of the Zumwalt class of destroyers. Officially the Advanced Electric Ship Demonstrator (AESD), they call the ship Sea Jet. As I mentioned before, surface ships like to be quiet, too, and this facility helps make that a reality.  As every submariner knows, there are only 2 types of ships – submarines and targets. If you are a target rider, quiet can help you, too!

Submarines AESD photo
Sea Jet

Idaho and submarines seems an odd combination, until you look at why they exist. Then it makes perfect sense. Although almost 400 miles from the ocean, ARD makes great contributions to the submarine community. The improvements enhance the safety and effectiveness of US Navy boats. For that, and on behalf of submarine sailors former, current and future, thanks ARD!!

Have you been to Idaho? Maybe visited ARD or Lake Pend Orielle? Maybe prototype like me?  Are you a former submarine sailor? Despite the brutal winters, did you enjoy Idaho? Leave me a comment and let me know!

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In Remembrance of USS Thresher (SSN593)

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On April 10, 1963 USS Thresher (SSN593) was conducting sea trials after overhaul in Portsmouth, NH. Due to a series of unfortunate events, all hands were lost when the submarine sank. 129 sailors and shipyard personnel lost their lives that day. The incident led to a new emphasis on submarine safety. In this post, I want to pay tribute to the boat and crew, and the highlight the changes the tragedy brought to the submarine force.

Thresher1-Web

According to the National Geographic, Thresher was at or near test depth when the reactor shut down. Without the power of the reactor to provide propulsion, the boat sank below its crush depth. According to reports from the USS Skylark, a submarine rescue ship accompanying Thresher, sonar operators heard a sound like air rushing into an air tank. Thresher was no more.

The cause of the reactor shutdown has not been determined. The most prevalent theory is that a seawater piping joint in the engine room failed. The water from the failed joint sprayed the electronics and forced the automatic reactor shutdown (reactor scram). According to Wikipedia, the reactor plant operating procedures at the time precluded doing fast recovery startups of the reactor plant after a scram. We practiced that evolution many times during my years aboard USS Sandlance (SSN660). Procedures also did not allow pulling steam from the plant while shutdown to drive the boat to the surface.

Additionally, the other emergency system failure was that of blowing the ballast tanks to cause the boat to surface. Anyone who watched the movie Hunt for Red October will recall the scene where USS Dallas comes flying out of the water after blowing the ballast tanks. Thresher tried to do that, too, but the design of the system failed. Instead of pumping air into the ballast tanks and blowing the water out to provide the necessary buoyancy, the condensation in the blow lines froze and stopped the flow of air. Since the boat had no power and couldn’t blow the water out of the ballast tanks, Thresher was doomed. All US submarines now have measures to prevent condensation and subsequent freezing of the blow lines.

The tragedy, one of two for the US Navy’s nuclear submarine force (the other being USS Scorpion in 1968), led to the SUBSAFE program. Wikipedia tells us that SUBSAFE is the Navy’s quality assurance program designed to maintain the safety of the nuclear submarine fleet. It provides maximum reasonable assurance that the subs hulls remain watertight and can recover from unanticipated flooding. SUBSAFE only refers to the systems exposed to sea pressure or that are critical to flooding recovery. Tight controls manage the systems. SUBSAFE materials are subject to traceability of the source material back to the lots from the mine, the smelting and hardening processes, etc. The traceability ends at the installation in a SUBSAFE system.

Admiral Rickover also changed the reactor plant operating procedures to include a Fast Recovery Startup. This allows immediate restart of the reactor plant (as noted in my comment above). Boats can also withdraw steam to get the ship to the surface in the event of emergency.

The 129 sailors and shipyard personnel who perished live on in the memories of every US Navy submarine sailor. We were and are a better, safer service for their sacrifice and we honor them on this day. RIP USS Thresher. Shipmates, rest your oars. We have the watch.

Thresher2

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Nuclear Powered Aircraft – In Dawsonville, GA!?!?

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Nuclear Powered Aircraft!?

Readers of my blog and The Gemstone Chronicles know that I spent a decade in US Navy riding submarines and recruiting. I was trained as a nuclear reactor operator, and still keep up with some of the news in the nuclear world. My lovely and adorable bride, Lana, introduced me to a very cool website atlasobscura.com. While browsing the site, I came across an article on a government research facility from the 1950’s in Dawsonville, Georgia. What does this have to do with submarines or nuclear power? Well, this research facility was used to test the radiation effects on various materials and the surrounding forest in an effort to build a nuclear powered aircraft! The map below, though kind of hard to read, shows the layout of the site.

Nuclear Powered Aircraft Site Map

According to our friends at Wikipedia, the site was the Georgia Nuclear Aircraft Laboratory (or AFP No. 67) and was run by Lockheed. The purpose was to test various military vehicles and the surrounding forest to assess the effects of nuclear war on the environment and wildlife and the do research on a nuclear powered aircraft. The site was closed in 1971 and sold to Atlanta as a potential site of a second airport. The topography wasn’t suitable for an airport, and nature has reclaimed much of the site. Here is a picture of the hot cell building.

Nuclear Powered Aircraft Hot Cell Bldg

With the secrecy surrounding the site, it comes as no surprise that most of the documents about what was done in the forest remains highly classified. And no nuclear powered aircraft came from the work. It does make me wonder, though, if some of the experiments led to materials used on submarines.

I did further research and found a lot of conspiracy stuff (not surprisingly) about the site. I also found claims of animals with interesting deformities and abnormalities. There are alleged sightings of deer with two racks of antlers, albino black bears, and other such creatures. In the research I did, one of the reactors on site was an open air (or naked) reactor that was hoisted into the air while operational and without shielding, allowing the radiation to blast the surrounding forest. Personnel at the site were in underground shielded areas during the open air testing. The picture below shows the site circa 1960.

Nuclear Powered Aircraft GNAL-Circa-1960-Web

The underground facility was supposedly six or seven levels deep, but who knows for sure. When the site closed, the entrance tunnels were collapsed and sealed. One of the remaining visible buildings is the hot cell, which is also sealed and surrounded by barbed wire fencing. The hot cell is where they placed irradiated materials for further study. The building was deemed to be too hot to demolish until the radiation levels subsided more. That might be another 30-50 years…

The area is now public land managed by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. There are plenty of hiking and biking trails, and you can kayak down the Etowah River that runs through the site.

As you can imagine, I have to take a trip up there to look around. It isn’t very far from where I live, so maybe next weekend might be a good time to go! When I do, I will be sure to post pics and do a follow-up to this post.

Oh, and just in case you were wondering, we never had a nuclear powered aircraft. The USAF did experiment with a reactor in a plane, but that was to test the shielding for the crew. The reactor never actually powered the engines. I do recall when I was in Idaho in the Navy, there was an experiment going on to convert nuclear power for space travel, though, but I don’t know much more than that.

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It looks pretty cool to me, but what do you think? Leave me a comment and let me know. You can connect with me on social media, too. I can be found on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Google+, and Tumblr. You can also send me an email at bill@williamlstuart.com. And, if you don’t want to miss a post (including my follow-up to this one), subscribe to the blog!

 

Suzuki SJ 410 – My Ride in Idaho!!

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In previous posts, I talked about my path to and through Naval Nuclear Power School. I was looking through some old pictures the other day and found some pictures of Idaho Falls, and it sent me down a path of remembrance of my days in Idaho Falls, Idaho at prototype. Remembering those days reminded me of the house I lived in (the Roy House – so named for our landlord Roy), the snow, the lack of sleep, the relief of completing my qualification as a reactor operator, and the vehicle I drove to Idaho – my Suzuki SJ410.

Suzuki

For those who don’t know, the SJ410 was a small 4WD convertible. Many may remember the Suzuki Samurai that came after the SJ410, but this was the predecessor.

When I bought my SJ410, I was in Florida at Nuclear Power School. I saw the small 4WD at the dealership and decided to buy one. If I remember correctly, I paid just over $5000 for it brand spanking new! As you can see from the photos, it was red and black (UGA colors) with a white convertible top. No AC (but who needs one with a convertible), a 59.4 cu in motor (not a typo), and a ton of fun!

After Nuclear Power School, I was assigned to S1W in Idaho Falls, ID. I gathered up my seabag and a few others things, and headed west. I remember arriving in Idaho Falls on February 14th, 1985 to about 3 feet of snow. As I turned to head toward my rental house, there was a Ford F150 stuck in a snow drift. I graciously pulled the F150 from the snow bank and never even locked in 4WD. The F150 driver was grateful- but somewhat embarrassed that my little Suzuki (which he had never seen before) had to pull him out.

Working 12 hour rotating shifts didn’t leave much time for enjoying the Suzuki in the snow and ice, but my roommate had a Mustang that just didn’t fare very well in the weather, so the Suzuki became the workhorse of our house. I took it everywhere and had to park it in the driveway as the Mustang was in the garage. That meant knocking the snow and ice off the convertible top everyday so the weight wouldn’t tear the top. Here is a picture of my SJ410 parked next to a snow drift. And yes, that was the depth of the snow next to the house!

Suzuki SJ410

When summer rolled around, the top came off, and I cruised as often as I could. As the second RO to qualify, I got to change to 8 hour shifts earlier than most, and I rode a lot. Top down and radio blasting, I had a good time in the few hot days of summer. Below is a picture of the Suzuki with the top down!

Suzuki SJ410

Alas, I had to depart Idaho and report to USS Sandlance (SSN660) in Charleston, SC. I remember leaving on August 18th and it was 32 degrees that morning. I was a newly minted Reactor Operator, had a sizable reenlistment bonus, and was headed back south. When I got to Charleston, I bought an Audi 4000S (my favorite car ever). My brother John drove the Suzuki to college and he brought my beloved SJ410 to a tragic end when he totaled it.

Suzuki Wrecked 1

Suzuki Wrecked 2

I left the Navy in 1993, after 10 years of service. I married the love of my life, the lovely and adorable Lana, raised an amazing daughter, Laura, and have been blessed with 2 extraordinary grandchildren, Aidan and Maggie. My post-Navy career is brilliant, I’ve written The Gemstone Chronicles fantasy adventure series, and generally enjoyed life. I occasionally miss portions of my time in the Navy (mostly the people), and will always have a special place in my heart for the first brand new vehicle I ever owned – my Suzuki SJ410!

What was your special vehicle? A sports car? A truck? Leave me a comment and let me know!

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The Battleship USS North Carolina (BB-55)

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I wanted to take a break from my usual posts about The Gemstone Chronicles, books, and marketing, and talk about some US Navy history and the USS North Carolina (BB-55). Lana and I spent a weekend in Wilmington, NC recently (more about Wilmington in an upcoming post) and had the privilege of visiting the World War II era battleship USS North Carolina (BB-55). What an impressive ship it was, too!

USS North Carolina

According to Wikipedia, the North Carolina was the first in her class of battleships. The keel was laid in October 1937 and launched almost 3 years later in 1940. She was assigned to the Pacific Fleet and saw action in most of the major battles in the Pacific during the war. The ship had an impressive battle record and was only damaged once (by a torpedo) during her tour in the war.

USS North Carolina continued to serve through the balance of WWII before being decommissioned in 1947. Stricken from the Navy rolls in 1960, she was transferred to the state of North Carolina in 1961, the result of a campaign by North Carolina school children called “Save our Ship.”

Here are some vital stats for the ship:

  • 728.8 feet long
  • 108.3 foot beam
  • 33 foot draft
  • Ship’s complement 2339 (144 officers, 2195 enlisted)
  • 15 Battle Stars
  • American Defense Service Medal
  • American Campaign Medal
  • WWII Victory Medal

The ship has many more awards and much more history than I can do justice to in this post, so do a little research and discover all about it. But now, I want to talk about my impressions about the ship.

The Guns:

First, let me say that a 16 inch gun is one big pea shooter! I climbed into one of the main battery turrets and was duly impressed. The 5 inch guns seemed adequate to their tasks, and the anti-aircraft guns that lined the perimeter of the deck would have been intimidating the any aircraft that decided to challenge the might of the ship. The picture below is the forward main gun turret with the 16 inch guns.

Uss North Carolina (BB-55)

The picture below shows the 16 inch guns and the 5 inch and AA guns. You can also see the teak decks.

USS North Caolina (BB-55) Forward Armament

Though I didn’t take pictures, the wardroom was large, the officer staterooms were spacious, and the sailor’s racks actually had lockers for storage. I mention all of this because, as a former submarine sailor who didn’t have such spacious accommodations, it seemed luxurious!

There was a group of Air Force JROTC students touring the ship while I was aboard. I imparted a small amount of Navy information to them as we stood outside the Executive Officers office (and liberty chit window). I explained to them what liberty chits were and what liberty was, in general.

Lastly, as I walked the teak decks, looked at the massive armament, the huge anchors, and the launch areas for the seaplanes at the stern of the battleship, the submariner in me came out, and all I could think was what a big, noisy target the USS North Carolina would be!

Hand salute:

I could certainly appreciate the bravery those sailors showed as the confronted the Japanese military during WWII, and it brought me back to my own Navy days. Thanks to all who served aboard USS North Carolina (BB-55) and the current USS North Carolina (SSN-777)! Bravo Zulu!!

USS North Carolina (SSN777)

Have you visited any Navy ship memorials like USS North Carolina? How about USS Nautilus in Groton, CT? What about other military memorials? Leave me a comment and let me know!

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