Text Fwd: UK Trident accident

* Text Fwd by Stephen Kobasa and Frank Cordaro on April 3, 2011

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/trident-sub-crippled-in-accident-1.1094250


Trident sub crippled in accident
EXCLUSIVE BY ROB EDWARDS ENVIRONMENT EDITOR
3 Apr 2011

ONE of Britain's flagship Trident submarines is limping back to its home port on the Clyde this weekend after suffering an embarrassing accident at sea.

The Sunday Herald can reveal that HMS Vengeance has had to cut short a training exercise in the North Atlantic because its propeller became blocked by debris during bad weather late on Thursday evening.

The vessel - which is powered by a nuclear reactor and can carry up to 48 Trident nuclear warheads as well as conventional Spearfish torpedoes - is returning to the Faslane naval base on Gareloch to have the problem checked.

The Royal Navy accepted that the incident was unfortunate but stressed that there had been no injuries and that there were no implications for nuclear safety. It was a "mechanical issue", a naval spokesman said.

Sources told the Sunday Herald late on Friday that there had been an incident involving a Trident submarine. This was later confirmed by the Royal Navy's spokesman.

He said: "HMS Vengeance was on a training exercise in the northern exercise area when she suffered a reduction in her propulsion. There was a blockage in the propulsor and it was found to have been fouled by an object as a result of which there was a reduction in propulsion. It slowed her down."

HMS Vengeance, like the other three Vanguard-class nuclear subs, is usually driven by a propulsor, a large encased propeller at the rear. It also has two auxiliary retractable propulsion motors, sometimes known as "egg whisks". Experts say the boat will probably now be powered by the auxiliary motors to avoid further damage to the
propulsor.

The navy spokesman added: "She is returning to Faslane on the surface under her own power. Investigations will take place Š It is not foreseen that it will have any impact on her programme, at this stage anyway."

The navy rarely admits precisely where submarines are at sea, and would not say exactly when HMS Vengeance was expected back at Faslane, or when she was due out again. Some evidence suggests, however, that she was meant to go out on patrol next week.

John Large, a consultant on nuclear safety, said the incident would have been "a scary moment for the crew".

He added: "There will be red faces in the navy about this. One of our top-secret stealth submarines was suddenly crippled at sea, making her a lame sitting duck on the surface."

The propulsor could have been fouled by some discarded fishing gear, or perhaps a steel hawser, he suggested. "It would have to be something quite heavy, and it could cause serious damage."

John Ainslie, co-ordinator of the Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, said: "The loss of power on HMS Vengeance could have left the vessel at the mercy of the wind and the tide Š it is a frightening prospect."

Another Trident submarine, HMS Vanguard, collided with a French nuclear sub in the North Atlantic in February 2009. Last October, Britain's newest nuclear sub, HMS Astute, ran aground near Skye during trials.