American submarine crews have the same basic organization as most other US ships (ie 4 departments: Weapons, Engineering, Operations/Navigation, and Supply), but because of the unique environment we are in the way we organize our daily routine and duties is wildly different.
Aside from those departments, there are essentially three watch sections while underway. Almost everyone on board stands a watch. For example, a sonar broadband operator stands watch for 6 hours and then has 12 hours off to do system maintenance, study, clean and sleep while the other two sections are on watch. Regular maintenance work is assigned over and above that watch; a watchstander's job is to monitor systems and ensure the safety of the ship, not to fix equipment.
Some senior watchstations (DOOW, COW, Sonar Sup) go 4 or even 6 section instead of 3, but they are the exception. Also, the galley staff maintains a completely different schedule of 12 hour days (12 on, 12 off).
I don't know how other countries do things.
I can't speak for other boats, but our manning requirement is a function of the number of watchstanders required in each section multiplied by three, or the number of people required to maintain the rquipment, whichever is greater.
Forward watches on my 688i while on mission (I can't speak for all the nuc watches, it's been a few years):
Officer of the Deck
Junior Officer of the Deck
Junior Officer of the Watch
Diving Officer of the Watch
Chief of the Watch
Quartermaster
Radioman of the Watch
Sonar Supervisor and at least 4 other sonarmen
2 Fire Control Technitians of the Watch (basically TMA/weapons operator)
2 plotting assistants who assist the JOOD and FTOW in tracking contacts (usually nucs, not always stationed)
Torpedoman Room Watch
Auxilliary Electritian forward
Auxilliaryman of the Watch
Machinery Room Watch
at least 3, sometimes as many as 5 helmsmen/planesmen/messengers (they rotate)
The engineering guys back aft have several watches in addition to that. There are 4 watchstanders in Maneuvering alone. Add the Supply and Executive department guys who don't stand watch and you end up with a sizeable crew requirement. Somehow it never seems like enough people though.
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