In article ,
wrote:


Yup. And they are also slow and working against the clock

Slow is a relative thing; if one doesn't need to go far, speed is not
a problem. Time is not as much an issue as it once was; modern diesel
boats can stay under for quite a long time. This ain't WWII anymore.

Indeed. But once you go to battery you are working against a finite
limit. In WWII that limit may be been in the 24-36 hour range and by
'62 had progressed to the 96 hour range. I have no idea what it is
today. But that finite limit is still there.

For the AIP subs coming into service now, it's a looong time. See

http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/...propulsion.htm

OTOH, I don't know how noisy they might be.

And therein lay an interesting question. :-)

I have some suspicians, but don't have any insider info.

If you are running on batteries then you are very quiet if you stay
slow. If you go fast you drain your batteries AND you cavitate.
Cavitation gives the hunder a detection opportunity.

Like I say, non-nuke subs are a real and substantial threat. They
are not, however, an ultimate threat.


Not an ultimate threat know...but if you are relying on passive
detection and/or low-power active buoys...you're not likely to hit pay
dirt, and it's time to call the HS folks with their 2000 watts of active
pinging power.


--Mike