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Krupp Plans New Torpedo Tubes
In connection with the completion of its 100th submarine torpedo tubes set (for a Brazilian submarine) in August, Germany s Krupp announced two new developments: a water-impulse tube and a kit by means of which Krupp's existing swim-out tubes can be modified for air ejection. Krupp tubes are fitted in the German-built, diesel-electric submarines that have captured much of the Western export market. In the past, such submarines generally have used swim-out tubes. Their designer, Dr. Ulrich Gabler, argues that such tubes used very little energy and imposed little on the structure of the submarine. Hence, submarines equipped with them could be heavily armed for their size, a battery of eight being typical.
The United States,
Britain, France, and other countries use impulse tubes, which can fire such unpowered objects as encapsulated missiles and mines. German firms have tried two means of launching such objects: self-propulsion (small electric motors) and saddle carriers, which use gravity to drop objects. The Krupp announcement suggests that neither alternative is altogether satisfactory. It also suggests that the numerous submarines exported by Germany can, in the future, be modified to fire such encapsulated weapons as the Sub-Harpoon and Sub-Exocet, and to lay large, torpedo-sized mines.
The water-pressure ejection system can be used at any depth, but it is probably very large, and thus requires considerable energy. Presumably, it is comparable to U. S. and British hydraulic torpedo tube systems. Air ejection, which was the standard means of torpedo firing in the past, has two inherent disadvantages: It is limited in depth because water pressure from outside the submarine compresses the air bubble behind the torpedo, and it may leave a noticeable bubble on the surface. Both led to its abandonment by the major Western navies. Nevertheless, it is simple and light. Combined with swim-out torpedo operation, it may well suffice for a small submarine.
■ the
And more often than not, world shipping will find itself mnsj()erable In such cases, the flags of the great powers can provide a co^ ^ (he measure of protection. For example, Kuwait had to negotia ^ose to United States to reflag its tankers. However, it unilatera y cQuntries reflag others under the British flag. Moreover, several NA ^ ships have dispatched their own minesweepers to the Gulf to P c0Sts, under their flags. Flags of convenience, adopted to reduce 1
do not provide such protection.
.mbigf
Those familiar with maritime history may also recognize t ^jiile
ties of the Gulf War: nations attempting to protect their Waf
selling the means—e.g., mines—to attack that shipping- Iff eotec»on is not unique, this situation and the associated task of shippmS The may
, become standard operating procedure rather than an a United States may find its position much like that of Britain
century: protecting shipping lanes against Third
anomaly1
i the
19*
ot tsruam ‘" - tics.
World uncertain ^
;weepers
One major shipping nation has refused to contribute mines*'-^ ^ the Gulf: Japan. The Japanese Government has always ar^jewever. in antiwar clause in its constitution prohibits such assistance. yasuh>r° this case, while pledging not to send sweepers, Prime Mimsteu„det Nakasone publicly stated that such an effort would be legitmt ^ jj the constitution, because the sweepers would not be carry1unjonS aggressive mission. In August, Japanese merchant ma^ ^jp was
stopped operations in the Gulf for two days after £ Japanese damaged.
Deere Develops Military Wankel
Inc..
The Air Force let a contract to John Deere Technologies’ \ .3ti
60/l2°itwillbC
August for development of a rotary engine-powered,
Gulf War: Old Problems
Recent events in the Persian Gulf recall a fundamental, though often forgotten, fact of maritime power. Navies originally existed largely to safeguard their associated merchant marines in an uncertain world filled with pirates and what would now be called low intensity conflicts. Merchants, in turn, chose to sail under certain flags with the expectation of protection. That is why Alfred Thayer Mahan associated a strong merchant marine with a strong navy. In this century, such ideas have been largely forgotten because merchant shipping has been endangered almost exclusively in times of major war. In such cases, the great Western sea powers have protected all friendly and semifriendly shipping, regardless of flag. Thus, one might associate the rise of flags of convenience, which so vexes the United States, not only with the rise of the maritime unions (and hence with the rise of direct costs), but also with the Pax Americana so evident since 1945.
The Gulf War shows that older problems persist, and that the balance of deterrence between East and West may fail to protect shipping in many parts of the world. In fact, well-armed Third World countries may act with increasing independence, probably most often against each other.
152
generator. If, as seems likely, the generator enters production. ^ the first military application of a rotary engine, which °fKnversion promoted as the natural successor to piston engines. An earlierva)ent toa this Wankel engine powers some Mazda sports cars. It is equi <jCCIre conventional gasoline engine, using carbureted fuel. The Deu^l (stratified charge omnivorous rotary engine) is equivalent to a diesel, and is being developed for diesel applications. It is about one-quarter to one-third the size of an equivalent diesel, has much the same fuel economy, and should be considerably quieter—it fires on each revolution, whereas a diesel fires much more intermittently. The advantage of a rotary engine is that, like a turbine, it does not expend energy accelerating
and decelerating pistons. Because the only moving partT"the■_ turns relatively smoothly in the same direction, vibration is wj”c|iief Unlike a gas turbine, it is efficient and uses relatively little air.
problem in rotary engine development has been the seal and what amounts to a cylinder wall.
between r°
ihaP5,
The rotor of such an engine is an irregular (roughly triangular)
thro1
the recesses in which form the combustion spaces. Each cycles ^ series of spaces on the stationary outer portion of the engine, an can be arranged in series to increase power. Deere currently exp _f0tor horsepower per rotor in its largest engine and claims that a s ^ fee engine with additional turbocharging and intercooling will eventu ^ jt able to develop 4,500 brake horsepower. The company also clain11’ can stack as many as eight rotors in series. It is not clear what t
Proceedings / Noverober
.tors
llrJohnf D°Wer Per r°t0r may be'
diesel en !be W0ldds largest producer of farm equipment and a which hadh °U'*der’ bought the Curtiss-Wright Rotary Engine Division, February 195^1" deve'°P'nS the Wankel engine in the United States, in earlv t' when the stratified-charge (diesel-like) version was in the
!n addfc °f devel°Pment-
750-hOrse10n t0 tbe ^'r ^orcegenerator, the company is developing a Phibious vPr en®'ne f°r tbe U. S. Marine Corps, as a potential am- ®enerator Th'C'e PowerP'ant- as weH as a 2,500-kilowatt ship service tors (2S_ l ^ comPany expects to market small Score electrical genera-
Shouid th kilowatts)next year-
variety of ■ £ ^core fantily of engines prove successful, they may have a sive and lmerest'n8 naval applications. Current diesels tend to be mas- Dcitic suj^.0lsy• Powerful small-craft diesels such as the British Napier bines tequ'^H ^r0nl v'brat*on’ complexity, and a short lifetime; gas tur- C0lnbatants t0° mucb a*r 'n hot or dusty environments. In large surface rale soundS' blese* ProPulsion has produced unacceptable noise; elabo- herent no' mount'n8s have sometimes been required. Similarly, the in- the detoJSf a <^esel >s a major (though by far not the only) factor in ^'ability of a snorkeling diesel submarine.
Aquanautics to Build Artificial ‘Gill’
of qcUanautics
S*ST; £
rr*j °epan-
b«la ">
ciai .artlfi-
chemicai 8d"~a to ' 1 device
0C7free
wategrnProm **
“nman„ °r, an
the
free.ntraUon of
a tfevipSS0'Ved* oxygen in seawater is limited, it seems unlikely that such
sized
ee could be applied to a large or powerful vehicle, such as a full
energy j marine. However, because chemical fuel has a much higher trtUch ensity tban a battery, a small gilled vehicle probably would have P°WerJ,reater endurance, particularly at low speed, than a battery- Vehicles equ'va*ent- Other applications could include small swimmer
s°lVed ^reatbe hy passing seawater through their gills, extracting dis-
xygen. This process
not related to the electrolysis (chemical
os'tlon) of seawater by means of which some submarines extract
SXygg-f -------------- --------------- —
bly m t0r tbe'r crews- Electrolysis requires considerable energy, proba- Oxy 0re than can be provided by any chemical reaction to which the PaSsjva obtained can contribute. In contrast, a gill would be relatively retlu‘r'ng little energy input.
Aq„, °as'c technology was invented by Duke University and sold to
duties in IQS?
Isfael Kills Lavi Fighter
%htC 'Srae*t cabinet finally canceled development of the new Lavi jet < °n 30 August, despite the job losses it would entail. It is not clear tlaval 6r Punds released by this action will be spent on a much-needed tinesm°dernization, which would include new corvettes and subma- si0l) ' *srael is likely to buy F-16 fighters and a projected advanced ver- c0ri(.Of the F-16, the Agile Falcon, to replace the Lavi. It is also likely to torn Ue ds program of modernizing existing F-4 Phantoms. The Phan- the ^*00 modernization package probably is marketable abroad given
Ijj-nUrilber of Phantoms in service worldwide. Defense funds will be tei)ed despite the Lavi cancellation; in September, Chief of Staff Lieu- lie atlt General Dan Shomron warned that the Israeli Army would have to Cut back. That, in turn, may be justified on the grounds that Israel is
at peace with Egypt, that the Iran-Iraq war has reduced the threat from Iraq, and that Syria is politically isolated at present.
The Israeli Government may also hope to reduce the threat it faces by deploying long-range ballistic missiles. It has been rumored that Israel has a Jericho-11 missile capable of carrying a small nuclear weapon about 800 miles. Israeli policy has been neither to confirm nor to deny such rumors, presumably because they tend to deter likely enemies. When the rumor first surfaced, the Soviet Union indirectly warned Israel against threats; the missile would be able to reach such southern Soviet cities as Baku.
On the other hand, peace with Israel has not made Egypt prosperous, and for some months there have been indications of popular unrest. Presumably, the Israelis also fear a resolution of the Gulf War. If Iraq wins, it may well turn its firepower westward. If Iran wins, it is pledged to help wipe out Israel, and it may gain the resources of the smaller Gulf states. It is, therefore, not clear that reductions in the Israeli Army will be possible. Further cuts, or at least suspension of modernization plans, seem likely for the navy.
In a related development, the United States has pressed Japan to develop its next-generation fighter in conjunction with, rather than in competition with, the United States. There have also been reports that the two European fighter projects, the French Rafale and the four-nation European Fighter Aircraft (EFA), may be running into fiscal problems, and may have to be cancelled in favor of a U. S. aircraft or a joint transAtlantic development project.
Royal Navy Announces Upgrades
The Controller of the Royal Navy, Vice Admiral Sir Derek Reffell, announced plans in September to buy about 20 Type-23 antisubmarine warfare (ASW) frigates; four are ordered. As many as 12 of the initial Batch-1 version are to be built, followed by a Batch-2 version with new weapons and sonars. Previous announcements have called for 8—12 Type-23s. Presumably, they will replace surviving Leander-class frigates, completed from the mid-1960s through 1973, thus reaching the end of 20-year lives, as well as Type-2 Is completed 1974-78. There are also 14 Type-22s being built or building. The admiral’s statement did not indicate the projected total size of the British frigate force.
Later in the 1990s, the Royal Navy hopes to begin replacing its 12 Type-42 area air defense destroyers, preferably with a version of the NATO frigate now being designed. As an alternative, studies of an allBritish destroyer are going ahead. Admiral Reffell also announced that two new ASW missiles were under consideration: an Ikara replacement (presumably the Super Ikara), for use by surface ships, and a Sea Lance equivalent (submarine-launched).
The Royal Navy plans to build six Fort Victoria-class underway replenishment ships (AORs). Admiral Reffell announced that Britain is considering a supplementary series of less expensive vessels, perhaps with less self-defensive firepower. It was also announced that about 12 single-role, Sundown-class minehunters will be built. The possibility of building a helicopter support ship for the Royal Marines remains open, and design studies for replacements for the existing pair of amphibious transport docks are in progress.
These announcements preceded the opening of the Royal Naval Equipment Exhibition, an annual showcase for British naval technology. It is not British practice to publish documents like the U. S. Five-Year Defense Plan or to discuss expected or desired naval force levels. Typically, the British have set force-level objectives, such as “about 50 frigates and destroyers,” without further public discussion. There has been some speculation that, given the high cost of the Trident missile submarine program and limited overall economic growth, the British Government would be forced to retrench, probably including major naval cuts. Admiral Reffell’s statement suggests otherwise, although it makes no mention of either submarines or advance thinking on a class of carriers to replace the three Invincibles. Moreover, the active frigate-destroyer force is being allowed to fall below 50 in number as Leanders and Rothesays are retired.
Meanwhile, it has been announced that the minesweeper support ship Abdiel, currently in the Persian Gulf with four British minesweepers, is to be decommissioned at the end of March 1988. In the future, such craft will be supported either by the Royal Navy’s one general-purpose repair ship or by airlifted vans. The Abdiel has also been used as a practice minelayer; this capability is not being replaced.
Vdin
gs / November 1987
155