View Full Version : Silent speed for an SSN
What are the silent speeds for ssn's in the game and in real life?(Silent speed being the maximum speed where you are undetectable)
compressioncut
06-12-06, 06:32 PM
Undetectable by what? IUSS can detect a sub at much lower radiated noise levels than a tactical array, and active sonar doesn't need any radiated noise at all.
Besides which you will never ever ever find out any platform's real life radiated noise levels outside of speculation. It's very secret information.
In game I can get detections with the LA on Typhoons at 20+ miles while they are moving at 2 kts, so there is probably no "undetectable" speed for nucs.
By IUSS do you mean sosus?what is the fastest speed that produces the smallest signature for an ssn?
what is the fastest speed that produces the smallest signature for an ssn?
No one will tell you that. There are a lot of geed reasons not to, one of them being the lives of about 120 men.
Kazuaki Shimazaki II
06-13-06, 12:11 AM
What are the silent speeds for ssn's in the game and in real life?(Silent speed being the maximum speed where you are undetectable)
There is no such thing as "Undetectable", either in real life or the game. You just make less noise as you slow, more as you go fast.
In real life, as mentioned, the true speed is classified. However, rumors say it is 20 knots for a Seawolf.
As for the game, silent speed isn't even the half-concept it is in real life. In real life, there are certain speeds above which the noise level will jump. For example, above a certain speed the fast coolant pumps have to go on. Or the hydrodynamic flow around the hull goes turbulent. You can then use these points and say you are still relatively quiet under said speed.
The game however uses a logarithmic noise line with no jumps, so you are about 20 SLs louder (40dB) at flank than when you are stopped. So as long as you don't incur the +10 jump by cavitating, in a sense you are "silent".
Sub Sailor
06-13-06, 09:25 AM
Gentleman;
I have spent many years on subs and believe me, they have improved tremendously. There is no sub that cannot be picked up by sonar. I don't know anything about AIP, but boats like Kilos come about as close as you can come to undetectable, but when they move you can here them.
My friend Sonar 732 can answer this a lot better than me. I know in my years on the boats detection constantly improved, just as quieting improved. Still you can be heard.
Blending in, staying quiet as you can, going slow, limiting any type of transients if there is any chance a bad guy is about. Sonarmen used to, probably still do, listen for the hole in the sea, where there is no noise, that is probably a sub. It scared off aquatic life or is blocking sound.
Look at the Seawolf class, probably the quietest sub ever built, but at a cost so high we got three, changed to the Virginia class, more like an improved 688i, ROUGHLY speaking. But at a price we can afford, well some anyway. Now don't climb all over me for the statement "like and improved 688i", I am using an analogy. It is a step back form Seawolf in many areas and improvement in many areas over the 688i.
But on any sub when you crank on speed and start angles and dangles you will make noise, but speed is the edge and often all you need.
Another sub is your biggest threat, then aircraft, sub have an advantage over surface craft, the exception is the new stuff that can sit and listen and the bingo crank on knots, but just going along they make a lot of noise. You can get out of their way.
Respectfully,
Ron Banks MMCM(SS), USN(Ret)
How can there be a "hole in the sea" with no sound or even less sound?since the hydrophones are not pointed at a certian singe line or a depth line how can they be blocked by sub not making noise?
the hight of a sub compared to the hight of water above and below it is almost negligible in most situations so how can it block all the sound waves or mask most of them from its direction?
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