The Virginian-Pilot
©
NORFOLK
A nuclear submarine that was recently overhauled in Newport News for $175 million has been sidelined due to the discovery of two cracks in its hull.
Alan Baribeau, a spokesman for the Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, said crew members of the Toledo, a Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine based in Connecticut, found the cracks Friday.
The Toledo was preparing to go to sea when the cracks were spotted, Baribeau said. Instead, it is staying put at the pier in Groton.
Baribeau said the longer crack, stretching about 21 inches, is on the top of the submarine, in its exterior hull, located behind the sail. Another crack - estimated at about an inch long - was found in the pressure hull, a layer beneath the exterior. The opening in the pressure hull could have allowed water to seep into the submarine when it submerged.
"Due to the interior crack's small size the amount of water that could enter the hull would be seen as minor weepage," Baribeau said in an e-mailed response to questions.
The Toledo, commissioned in 1995, entered the Northrop Grumman shipyard in Newport News in December 2006 for a period of extended maintenance. It rejoined the fleet in February, almost a year after its scheduled return.
Jennifer Dellapenta, a spokeswoman for the shipyard, said she couldn't speculate on what caused the crack. "The quality of our work is something we take very seriously and we are working closely with the Navy on this matter," she said in a statement.
Both the Navy and the shipyard said the Toledo's cracks were unrelated to faulty welding jobs discovered aboard Navy subs and ships that visited the shipyard in the past two years. The Toledo passed inspections for welds during the overhaul.
This isn't the first time the Navy has discovered cracks aboard submarines. In the 1990s, Baribeau said, the Florida, a ballistic missile sub, and the Boise, a fast-attack sub like the Toledo, had cracks appear in hull components known as castings. Both boats had castings replaced, and the cracks didn't reappear.
After the Navy determines the cause of the Toledo's cracks, other submarines will be inspected to check for similar problems, he said. Neither Navy nor shipyard officials could say how long it would take to diagnose and fix the Toledo's problems.
Kate Wiltrout, (757) 446-2629, kate.wiltrout@pilotonline.com
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A 4" crack at test depth...
Is fatal for a modern nuclear submarine. The only holes in the "people" tank should be the engineered holes for masts, other electronics, planned seawater penetratations, the shaft, etc.
As for the shipyard having to ride after an overhaul, in my day (post USS THRESHER / pre USS VIRGINIA) although the welders and other non-exempt personnel did not ride during sea trials, their bosses certainly did, I would like to believe that this still happens today.
"Keep them airtight" should be the new motto for any shipyard performing submarine overhaul.
W/R
Kirk Smith ETC(SS)- USN(R)
Shipyard quality control
When a ship, any ship and especially a submarine which is subjected to extremely high hull pressures, enters a U.S. shipyard it should be getting the very best repair and subsequent quality control testing. Anything less is totally unacceptable. Having been associated with shipyard quality control I can say that there are a lot of overpaid engineers, QC testers and welders who are paid big bucks to get the job right the first time. It should be mandated in every contract that each of the aforementioned workers have to make mandatory sea dives on the submarine they certified.
The Naval Sea Systems Command needs oversight from Congress
There seems to be one after another issues that come up with matters under their purview.
Cracks
Any Crack, no matter how small on a submarine is too big. I am been on more submarine that I want to think about. WE want to be on a safe size and fix any cracks.