One reason to slam a ship into reverse is that the *San Jacinto * has variable pitch screws and this means that all you do is speed up the engine and reverse the blades, that’s always going to be the fastest option to stop.You’d be surprised at just how quickly you can scrub of speed.
As for trying to steer around, it takes time for the rudder to swing over and it might also depend upon the waters around her at the time, if she was in a channel, or perhaps other vessels in the vicinity. Also, you have to know which way the sub was moving and predict the avoiding action it might take - no point in both of you trying to steer clear to the same patch of sea.
I don’t know if I’d count that first one. That was caused by the US sub tailing a Russian sub, and the Russian sub pulled a “crazy Ivan”, a technique made famous in the movie The Hunt for Red October. It’s specifically done for the Russian sub to look for US subs that are tailing it in the wash zone so they can’t be detected by sonar.
But the other three are fuck ups by the sub operators.
I think that was the USS Greeneville collision that Elendil’s Heir linked. A string of bad judgment all around in that event. Too many civilians in the way, a down sonar monitor in the bridge, a captain rushed for schedule violating standing procedures and rushing, the sonar operator having to prioritize tasks and assuming things.
Yeah. For example I read of one guy called… Chesty Dimbitz? Hector Wimbitz??? Something like that. Well he parked his destroyer on a sandbar. Always wondered what happened to him.
More to the point.
