Okay, I used to know what this was called. But it’s not coming to mind right now.
What is the device called that makes the woot…woot… WOOT! sound that I associate with a destroyer’s collision alarm? I generally think of the sound a klaxon makes as ‘bong… bong… bong’. This is more like a turbine-generated sound. I think The Addams Family might have used the sound when the mail came.
And is it available as a ringtone? 
I think it’s called a “hooter”.
In other news, “Klaxon” is actually the name of the company that manufactures such devices. Never knew that until I Googled it. Thanks, Johnny L.A., for learning me something new today. 
I’m not sure how to spell it but, in airplanes it’s (TCAS) Terrain Collision Avoidance System
OK, I looked it up.
Klaxons are AOOO-GAH that submarines use as a diving alarm.
Do submarines really have those? It seems funny that a ship built around stealth, when entering what you could call it’s primary stealth mode, would sound a very large, very recognizable alarm for anyone nearby to hear just before it went into hiding.
Kinda like “HAHA NOW YOU CAN’T SEE ME!” 
I don’t know if they still use them, but watch any WWII submarine movie (I suggest Run Silent, Run Deep) and you will see them A-OOO-GING their way into the deep.
We have some bubble heads on the board, perhaps they will stop by and fill us in.
Running on diesel power on the surface isn’t exactly stealthy. If the enemy is close enough to hear the alarm, you have more serious problems.
See AUTHENTIC NAVY ALARM SOUNDS for a large collection of recordings of actual Navy hardware.
British Royal nNavy Submarines didn’t have the AOOOO-GAH when I was on them. It was the single biggest disapointment I had when I first went out. Left me feeling cheated, I really wanted my AOOOO-GAH.
I recently took a tour of a 688 (Los Angeles-class) attack submarine, and the officer giving the tour indicated that lights, and not noisemakers, were used to indicate most of the various conditions on the boat. There was a noisemaker used for one really important thing, because it was intended to wake everyone who was sleeping, but I don’t remember what that really important thing was. :smack:
The Old Style General Alarm is the one I associate with the Klaxon (probably from seeing a close-up of the device as the sound is heard, while watching old B&W war films).
I didn’t find the sound I’m looking for on that site.
If a sub is running on surface, there’s a good chance various crew members would be out on deck, hence the need for an audible alarm if an unanticipated dive were to occur.
Still looking for the the woot…woot… WOOT! device.
I think you’re looking for a WWII-era steam siren, generally used as an emergency signal when enemy aircraft were spotted. Not sure where to find a recording.
Aha! Do you know if it has a name? Or is it just called ‘steam siren’?
I think they were just known as steam sirens, although there apparently was a manufacturer named Foster. Here are some pictures. They had a couple of rotating discs with holes in them that were spun by the steam. The pitch rises as successive blasts spin the discs faster and faster.
To answer the question definitively, yes, U.S. submarines still use the old-fashioned type of diving alarm. It’s a very loud, distinctive AH-OOGAH type of alarm. (Actually, I’ll note that my knowledge goes back 10 years ago to the improved Los Angeles-class submarine I was on.)
The standard order I used to give when standing watch as Diving Officer of the Watch (DOOW) was, “Chief of the Watch, sound two blasts of the diving alarm. Announce, “Dive, dive!” Sound two blasts of the diving alarm.” The next order was, “Chief of the Watch, open all main ballast tank vents.”
(Later, as a qualified Officer of the Deck (OOD), I simply gave the order, “Diving Officer of the Watch, dive the ship. Make your depth 150 feet.”)
Anyway, a loud distinctive alarm is no big deal, because a 6,000 ton submarine on the surface is not exactly stealthy. Also, you don’t want it to be a surprise, if, God forbid, a hatch was still open–very unlikely, since this would be clearly evident on the dive board indicators in the control room.
In addition, there’s a big difference between “air noises” and “hull noises.” You can scream as loud as you want on a sub, and there are many loud alarms and announcing systems on a sub. None of these “air noises” are a particular concern during normal “patrol quiet” conditions. Dropping a wrench into the bilge (where it directly hits the hull) is a very different matter. This noise could travel for miles.
(However, during “ultra quiet” conditions, we did in fact secure all unnecessary noises, including the announcing systems. A person in all spaces was required to be on the sound-powered phone system. It was mostly psychological, to prevent personnel from doing things that might transmit noise through the hull.)
I just listened to the AOOO-GAH sound in Rick’s post. Actually, the one on my sub was a bit more electronic-sounding.
I just listened to some of the sounds in mks57’s link. Looks like my recollection of the orders and alarms was close, but a little off (e.g. the order was in fact “submerge the ship” instead of “dive the ship”). Those are some great, authentic recordings on that site.