Argentine navy loses contact with submarine

[Ooh-Rah]

No bueno.

Argentine navy loses contact with sub

The Argentine navy is searching the South Atlantic for a submarine that has not made contact for 48 hours.
The vessel with its 44 crew was last located more than 400km (250 miles) off the coast of Patagonia, the navy said.
There is no sign yet that the problem is anything worse than a communications failure, a spokesman said.

It is believed that the ARA San Juan, a German-built TR-1700 type submarine, suffered an electric malfunction, Argentina's La Nacion reports.
Navy spokesman Enrique Balbi told the newspaper the submarine had been on its way from the Ushuaia naval base to the Mar del Plata base, its usual station, when "at some moment communication stopped".

 

[Devildoc]

Man, that stinks.

 

[Gunz]

48 hours is not a good sign.

 

[Red Flag 1]

[QUO

 

[DA SWO]

Electrical failure on a Diesel-Electric sub is bad, worse when you are under water.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

Search has been stepped up.

Search stepped up for missing submarine

The Argentine navy is stepping up its search in the South Atlantic for a 44-crew submarine that has been out of radio contact for three days.
President Mauricio Macri said all national and international resources were being deployed to help find the San Juan as quickly as possible.

A NASA research plane has joined the search for the vessel.
Britain and countries in the region have offered help after it disappeared 430km (267 miles) off the coast.
"We have not been able to find, or have visual or radar communication with the submarine," navy spokesman Enrique Balbi told a news conference.

 

[Kraut783]

Hoping for the best, but....right now I hope they just locate it.

 

[AWP]

SOSUS would pick it up if it imploded. Wherever it is, the hull must be intact.

 

[AWP]

If they were still around on Sat. morning then there's a chance at least.

(CNN)The crew of a missing Argentine military submarine tried contacting naval bases seven times, Argentina's Defense Ministry said.
The calls were made on Saturday to different bases between 10:52 a.m. and 3:42 p.m. and ranged from four to 36 seconds long, the ministry said in a statement to CNN en Español. No communication connection was made.

Argentina missing navy sub tried contacting base - CNN

 

[Red Flag 1]

I

 

[RackMaster]

Read earlier that the underwater rescue ROV's are on the way.

 

[CQB]

Seven days of emergency oxygen, now at day five. The Collins Class sub has emergency compartments so there’s a chance. The six metre swell will prove challenging to say the least.

 

[Red Flag 1]

[QU

 

[AWP]

I saw an article where the SPAG was called in. What's a SPAG? Exactly, never heard of the guys. It sounds like a great capability though.

Elite Navy rescue team always on call to help submariners

The Royal Navy’s Submarine Parachute Assistance Group (SPAG) is a specialist emergency rescue team on constant standby to travel to stricken submarines.
The highly-trained group was formed in the 1960s when Naval commanders decided they needed to be able to get experts to the site of a submarine emergency as quickly as possible.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

Still searching....

I've seen a few of the tabloid sites claim they found 'something', but none of the more legit sites that I follow have gone that far.

New clue found in the hunt for Argentine submarine running out of oxygen

Search and rescue teams hunting for a missing Argentinian submarine will return to a previously searched area after officials said a noise made in the South Atlantic a week ago could offer a clue to the vessel's location.

Dozens of planes and ships were searching for the ARA San Juan, with the search entering a "critical phase" as the 44 crew on board could be running low on oxygen, an Argentine navy spokesman said.

Captain Enrique Balbi later said an unusual noise was detected near where the submarine reported its last position, but he declined to say if the sound indicated an explosion or emergency on the vessel.

The "hydro-acoustic anomaly" originated around 30 miles north of the submarine's last registered position, he said, adding: "It's a noise. We don't want to speculate" what caused it.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

Roh roh.

US Navy plane 'spots object' where submarine went missing | Daily Mail Online

Desperate family members of sailors aboard a missing Argentine submarine have attacked the navy after it confirmed today there was an explosion near the vessel hours after it vanished a week ago.

One relative is reported to have left a navy news conference after screaming: 'They killed my brother, you sons of b*****s'.

Argentina's navy announced at the conference that a sound detected during the search for the ARA San Juan apparently came from an explosion - an ominous development that prompted family of the 44 crew members to burst into tears.

 

[Red Flag 1]

Rest In God's Own Peace, Submariners. Prayers out.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

What a tragedy. On so many fronts.

Lost souls of the San Juan: Pictures emerge of sub crew | Daily Mail Online

 

[AWP]

Knowing that WWII subs could be lost via saltwater flooding the battery compartment, I decided to do some digging:

Possible Argentina submarine explosion: 7 questions about the ARA San Juan tragedy

A former submarine commander told AFP a problem with batteries could cause an explosion.

"A severe problem with batteries might generate hydrogen. Hydrogen above a certain percentage is explosive," said the commander, who requested anonymity.

"It explodes by itself. Should they have had an explosion, then what? Everything was lost."

An electrical issue could lead to anything, but batteries have always stood out to me...right or wrong.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

Navy releases new timeline of hours before Argentine sub went missing

The Argentine military Tuesday released its most detailed timeline yet in this month's disappearance of a naval submarine, saying that the vessel first reported a battery short-circuit roughly 10 hours before an explosion-like sound was detected near the sub's last known location.