thedrifter
03-15-07, 07:32 AM
Attack sub feared lost, then found
By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Mar 14, 2007 13:15:46 EDT
NORFOLK, Va. — The attack submarine San Juan lost communications with the outside world for several hours late Tuesday night and early Wednesday, prompting a search effort for what the Navy thought was a downed submarine, according to the Naval Submarine Force Command in Norfolk.
At the time of the incident, the Los Angeles-class submarine, based in Groton, Conn., was operating with the Enterprise Carrier Strike Group off the southeastern coast of the United States.
Because the Navy maintained communications with two other subs in the area and observers spotted a red signal flare, commanders believed the San Juan had gone down. They began search-and-rescue missions, alerted the International Submarine Escape and Rescue Liaison Office and notified crew members’ families about the possibility of a lost submarine, officials said.
Fortunately, communication with the ship was later restored.
“We had a false alarm,” said Lt. Cmdr. Chris Loundermon, public affairs officer at submarine force headquarters in Norfolk. “We’re investigating the details of what happened.”
The crew’s families — at first notified that the San Juan was in distress — were told of the false alarm this morning after communication with the sub were restored.
“The families are being briefed right now,” Loundermon said Wednesday morning.
The initial reports also went straight to the top of the chain of command: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Mullen and Defense Secretary Robert Gates were notified.
San Juan belongs to the Groton-based Submarine Development Squadron 12. In addition to its operational duties, development squadron submarines test and develop undersea warfare tactics.
Ellie
By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Mar 14, 2007 13:15:46 EDT
NORFOLK, Va. — The attack submarine San Juan lost communications with the outside world for several hours late Tuesday night and early Wednesday, prompting a search effort for what the Navy thought was a downed submarine, according to the Naval Submarine Force Command in Norfolk.
At the time of the incident, the Los Angeles-class submarine, based in Groton, Conn., was operating with the Enterprise Carrier Strike Group off the southeastern coast of the United States.
Because the Navy maintained communications with two other subs in the area and observers spotted a red signal flare, commanders believed the San Juan had gone down. They began search-and-rescue missions, alerted the International Submarine Escape and Rescue Liaison Office and notified crew members’ families about the possibility of a lost submarine, officials said.
Fortunately, communication with the ship was later restored.
“We had a false alarm,” said Lt. Cmdr. Chris Loundermon, public affairs officer at submarine force headquarters in Norfolk. “We’re investigating the details of what happened.”
The crew’s families — at first notified that the San Juan was in distress — were told of the false alarm this morning after communication with the sub were restored.
“The families are being briefed right now,” Loundermon said Wednesday morning.
The initial reports also went straight to the top of the chain of command: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Mullen and Defense Secretary Robert Gates were notified.
San Juan belongs to the Groton-based Submarine Development Squadron 12. In addition to its operational duties, development squadron submarines test and develop undersea warfare tactics.
Ellie