IDF
30-09-2004, 04:02
I just read the book Blind Man's Bluff. I found the chapter on the tragic loss of the USS Scorpion very interesting. I'm not one who believes much in cover ups, but the Scorpion was an example of the Navy covering up it's own **** up.
For those who are unfamiliar with her, the Scorpion was a Skipjack class SSN that sank in the North Atlantic on May 22, 1968. All 99 crewmen were killed.
There has never been a definitive answer to why she sank, due to cover ups by the Navy.
The Navy report said that one of the Mk 37 torpedoes had a "hot run". that is when the motor inadvertantly starts and the propellor spins arming the warhead while the torp is still onboard. In this case the drill is to make a 180 degree turn with a right full rudder order. This disarms the torpedo. The Navy believes that Scorpion fired the torp and it found the closest target, Scorpion. There is no evidence to back up the theory of an external torpedo hit.
The 2nd theory is that the hot running torpedo went off while inside the sub, there is evidence to support this, but it isn't the most likely scenario.
The 3rd and most likely scenario is that there was a fatal flaw in the Mark 37 torpedo's battery. During a test on the torpedo's reaction to vibrations of those found on a submarine at a lab in Spring 1968, the battery malfunctioned to the point that there was undetected heat forming. The problem was detected when the battery blew up setting the room on fire and injuring 6 scientist and firemen. A warning was set out soon warning they could cause the loss of a submarine as the heat before the explosion occured would be enough to set off the 350 lb torpedo warhead.
Scorpion was heading back to Norfolk after a 2 month long mission. When she arrived, she was to have the defective torpedoes removed. But, on May 22, 1968, she was lost. The Navy board of inquiry ignored the possibity of a torpedo exploding due to the battery. A few months after Scorpion's loss, a sub in the Pacific fleet had an overheating torpedo, they doused it with water until they ejected the fish. It appears that the torpedomen on Scorpion reported a "hot torpedo" to the CO. He quickly interpretted it as "hot running torpedo" (which it wasn't, but you are to assume such things as if you don't make the 180 turn quickly you will die). He ordered the 180 degree turn. When the turn was almost complete, the battery heat caused the warhead to cook off and the Scorpion was lost. 91 seconds after explosion, it passed crush depth, everyone was killed.
The Scorpion was a sub in poor shape and vibrating more than any other sub and much more than in the scientist's test. The explosion wasn't as great as a normal torpedo explosion as it wasn't controled. It was a lesser explosion, but one with enough force to blow open hatches and flood the sub.
Post your thoughts.
It is still a problem on submarines. Maybe not in the US Navy, but in Russia it is. When the Kursk went down in the Barents sea in 2000, it was lost to a hot running torpedo.
For those who are unfamiliar with her, the Scorpion was a Skipjack class SSN that sank in the North Atlantic on May 22, 1968. All 99 crewmen were killed.
There has never been a definitive answer to why she sank, due to cover ups by the Navy.
The Navy report said that one of the Mk 37 torpedoes had a "hot run". that is when the motor inadvertantly starts and the propellor spins arming the warhead while the torp is still onboard. In this case the drill is to make a 180 degree turn with a right full rudder order. This disarms the torpedo. The Navy believes that Scorpion fired the torp and it found the closest target, Scorpion. There is no evidence to back up the theory of an external torpedo hit.
The 2nd theory is that the hot running torpedo went off while inside the sub, there is evidence to support this, but it isn't the most likely scenario.
The 3rd and most likely scenario is that there was a fatal flaw in the Mark 37 torpedo's battery. During a test on the torpedo's reaction to vibrations of those found on a submarine at a lab in Spring 1968, the battery malfunctioned to the point that there was undetected heat forming. The problem was detected when the battery blew up setting the room on fire and injuring 6 scientist and firemen. A warning was set out soon warning they could cause the loss of a submarine as the heat before the explosion occured would be enough to set off the 350 lb torpedo warhead.
Scorpion was heading back to Norfolk after a 2 month long mission. When she arrived, she was to have the defective torpedoes removed. But, on May 22, 1968, she was lost. The Navy board of inquiry ignored the possibity of a torpedo exploding due to the battery. A few months after Scorpion's loss, a sub in the Pacific fleet had an overheating torpedo, they doused it with water until they ejected the fish. It appears that the torpedomen on Scorpion reported a "hot torpedo" to the CO. He quickly interpretted it as "hot running torpedo" (which it wasn't, but you are to assume such things as if you don't make the 180 turn quickly you will die). He ordered the 180 degree turn. When the turn was almost complete, the battery heat caused the warhead to cook off and the Scorpion was lost. 91 seconds after explosion, it passed crush depth, everyone was killed.
The Scorpion was a sub in poor shape and vibrating more than any other sub and much more than in the scientist's test. The explosion wasn't as great as a normal torpedo explosion as it wasn't controled. It was a lesser explosion, but one with enough force to blow open hatches and flood the sub.
Post your thoughts.
It is still a problem on submarines. Maybe not in the US Navy, but in Russia it is. When the Kursk went down in the Barents sea in 2000, it was lost to a hot running torpedo.