Megatorpedo Sinks Destroyer in One Hit

[rcecale]

This is a US Navy Spruance-class destroyer sinking in mere minutes after being hit by the latest version of a Mk 48: a heavyweight torpedo which, as you can see in this video, can wipe a whole ship out of the water in a single strike. This version, developed by the US and Australia, has new sonar enhancements that make it an "effective weapon in shallow water and in a countermeasure environment." The footage was taken to demonstrate its capabilities during the Rim of the Pacific 2008 naval exercise. Obviously, with frightening success (at least for someone who is looking to go to NYC in a freighter ship soon.)

Link to video.

Randy

[onewhippedpuppy]

Awesome how the entire ship jumped when it hit. Of course, does anyone else even keep a navy any more? Russia I suppose, anyone else that we don't get along with?

[MT930]

Quite Effective !

[legion]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Awesome how the entire ship jumped when it hit. Of course, does anyone else even keep a navy any more? Russia I suppose, anyone else that we don't get along with?

Yes, but many (most) of the countries we "don't get along with" seem to be dependent on foreign shipments of food.

[Jims5543]

Whoa! That was insane.

It would be great if they would sink decommissioned ships for reefs off of Florida like that. I would pay admission to see that in person.

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Awesome how the entire ship jumped when it hit. Of course, does anyone else even keep a navy any more? Russia I suppose, anyone else that we don't get along with?

The torpedo explodes directly under the keel of a target ship, causing a massive air bubble to lift the vessel out of the water and smash it back down, breaking it's back.

The Chinese have a quite large navy.

[Jeff Higgins]

Ask the British just how effective one French Exocet can be.

[Seahawk]

Very impressive...but it does look like the ship was not set for General Quarters. Admittedly, dogging the water tight doors would have only delayed the inevitable.

I've spent more than a few days flying off that class of ship

[Super_Dave_D]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

Ask the British just how effective one French Exocet can be.

Dont have to - we already know (USS Stark)............anything gets through and is effective when your countermeasures are turned off.

[m21sniper]

Antiship missiles actually suck for sinking ships.

Seahawk the Mk48 breaks a ship's keel by design, so even in full battle readiness it's doubtful that anything could be done to save the vessel. A broken keel is pretty much always fatal isn't it? (I used to post on warships 1 all the time. I find naval vessels fascinating, but i would never want to serve on one.)

[BRPORSCHE]

M21, we are just the opposite.

I'd be in the Navy then the Marines anyday.

Here's my logic. Takes a lot longer for a ship to sink then a bullet to go through my skull.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

Antiship missiles actually suck for sinking ships.

Seahawk the Mk48 breaks a ship's keel by design, so even in full battle readiness it's doubtful that anything could be done to save the vessel. A broken keel is pretty much always fatal isn't it? (I used to post on warships 1 all the time. I find naval vessels fascinating, but i would never want to serve on one.)

You are absolutely right with the old Mk 48...but this one, according to the blurb below the video, is designed to work in shallow water, where the "bubble" may not be effective. There is at least one "Bubble Head" on this forum that can set us straight if we're in error.

In the video it looks like the ship took a hit on steel.

Either way, the ship has issues.

At GQ, all passageways are "dogged" meaning all water tight doors are shut, both fore and aft, top down. This is supposed to limit the flooding caused by a breach in the outer hull.

I was just hoping it would sink slower, allowing me time to get in my swim gear.

Serving on small ships is interesting...I was never more comfortable on one than when I was flying off it.

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by BRPORSCHE

M21, we are just the opposite.

I'd be in the Navy then the Marines anyday.

Here's my logic. Takes a lot longer for a ship to sink then a bullet to go through my skull.

I wouldn't serve in the Marines either. I don't like boats, i don't like old, obsolete equipment, and i surely wouldn't take orders from no sailors.

Thanks for the clarification Seahawk.

[Jeff Higgins]

My older brother, an old bubblehead, used to tell me there were only two kinds of ships in the Navy. Subs and targets.

[Joe Ricard]

Spent nearly my entire 20 years in the Navy riding ships with this hull design.
Don't even have to watch the video to know what happened. The term ADCAP means brings shivers up my spine. Ain't no way around that damn under water bus.

Watched the Cruiser Oklahoma City sink in a similair manner near the marianus trench.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

My older brother, an old bubblehead, used to tell me there were only two kinds of ships in the Navy. Subs and targets.

Your brother is right, with respect to US subs. Nobody does it better

The old Soviet subs, with one exception, sounded like an air raid siren underway...in the right water conditions, you could hear them from over sixty miles away when they were submerged

[crustychief]

I am about to retire from the Navy, I can say that even at GQ most ships report "Zebra Set" ( maximum watertight without affecting ventilation and such) but are no where close to it. I would be afraid of an m-80 on a canoe on my current ship. Unless I could kill it with my Bock-1B CIWS.

[djmcmath]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

You are absolutely right with the old Mk 48...but this one, according to the blurb below the video, is designed to work in shallow water, where the "bubble" may not be effective. There is at least one "Bubble Head" on this forum that can set us straight if we're in error.

I have no intention of setting anyone straight, of course. The new 48's are great fish -- fast, smart, quiet, with more search modes than most guys know what to do with. If there's been a change to the payload, I missed the news, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if they updated the shallow water processing in the latest version.

Fun stuff.

Dan

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Pretty amazing!

[sammyg2]

I've been told off the record that the US has a nuke torpedo that travels underwater at near 700 mph and does not get wet. it travels through a very thin cushion of air that it generates, displacing the water.

The person who told me this has extensive knowledge of government military projects and has spent allot of time aboard a hunter/killer sub even though he is a civilian.