NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: conning tower with a memorable number
From: Frank Reed
Date: 2009 Nov 10, 17:29 -0800
From: Frank Reed
Date: 2009 Nov 10, 17:29 -0800
Lu, you wrote: "I've seen photos where it looks very much like there are windows in the sail." You'll find these on older US subs, too. The open cockpit at the top of the sail is used for coastal piloting. Somebody has to stand up there. There was often a plastic windscreen. Since it might be miserable weather, designers sometimes provided a protected station, with windows, inside the sail. Only fish look through those windows when the ship is submerged. The sail floods. You can see windows at the top of the sail on USS Growler here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:USS_Growler_SSG-557_.jpg Growler was launched in 1958. There's no conning tower inside the sail. More windows on USS Requin: http://www.hnsa.org/ships/requin.htm Requin was a typical WWII fleet sub, launched in 1945 and modified to "fleet snorkel" configuration with a nearly square "North Atlantic sail" in 1959. There is a conning tower inside occupying about half the length of the lower third of the sail. That does not flood (normally) when the sub is submerged. The only US Navy sub that I am aware of that has "windows" below the waterline is the exotic nuclear mini-sub NR-1 (it has wheels, too). It's also quite possible that one or more of the "spy" subs (Halibut, Parche, Jimmy Carter) had or have some underwater viewing portholes. -FER --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ NavList message boards: www.fer3.com/arc Or post by email to: NavList@fer3.com To , email NavList+@fer3.com -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
