Hello from across the pond !

[Foxtrot U475]

Hello all,  heard about the new website after receiving my latest copy of the HNSA magazine. My name is John Sutton and  I am the manager of the Foxtrot Submarine B49 ( U475 tactical deception number) .

Great to see so many enthusiasts spreading the word, hopefully soon there will be an international section on the site    our submarine is currently closed to the public whilst we search for a new berth , we have been looking for the past 4 years for somewhere suitable but so far no takers only . Hopefully soon we will find a willing harbour and open up the submarine again to the public.

I  have posted some assorted photos along with more on  Flickr showing amongst other things  our problems with listing which Igor Kolosov form the Foxtrot in Long Beach kindly flew over to help us out with, unfortunately the list has returned so we need to come up with a cunning plan to fix it as the leaks into the ballast tanks are a fair way below the water line. If any of you fancy a bit of R&R climbing through ballast tanks or painting submarines in the UK please let me know as I could do with some willing deckhands.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8535495@N03/sets/72157601382671670/
The Whisky submarine photos are of a boat in Amsterdam that I wet to visit , the forward torpedo compartment was turned into a bar !

I was recently lucky enough to visit Chicago and had a great time looking round the U-505  in the museum of Science and industry , what an absolutely stunning way to exhibit a submarine , I would have preferred not have had the guided tour as it is all to short but you cannot have everything.

Well that's it for now , I look forward to visiting the site on a regular basis to see whats new in the submarine world.

[JTheotonio]

I believe it's John - but never the less - welcome aboard.  Playing "Cat and Mouse" with Russian sub's for a few years it's godd to see a few of them open to the public now.

You need to post some more pictures...love these, but I need to see the forward torpedo room

[Lance Dean]

John, glad to have you here.  Glad you found the place via the new HNSA book that came out recently.  Good to know that someone found us this way. 

[JohnG]

Sweet! More Russian subs! I have got to get inside one of these things and play around.


Welcome to the site!

[Foxtrot U475]

Hello all, here are a couple more photos of the inside of our Sub. Forgot to mention that the submarine is currently moored in the River Medway  at Rochester Kent , UK,  we are about 1 mile up river  from Chatham and the Historic dockyard maritime museum.

Kind regards
JOhn Sutton

[JTheotonio]

Thanks John.  I love the forward torpedo room.  Were the stars on the inner doors done when she was in service?

Great picture of the boat in the fog.  I don't know who took that one but it is a classic shot.

As manager of the B49, what is your background?  Were you in the Navy? Submarines?  You will find here that a lot of the more active guys on some of our museum boats have a wide variety of backgrounds.  And these guys know their boats.  So please join in as much as you can. 

What type torpedos are those in the forward torpedo room picture?

[Paul Farace]

Welcome aboard John!

We had a chance to meet and talk (too briefly) at the HNSA visit to Chatham Naval Dockyards back in 06... what a FANTASTIC visit that was... seeing the rope factory that made the lines for HMS Victory!  Still can't believe I was there.  I remember being so frustrated to only view your Foxtrot from the steamer as we passed by. Thankfully I was able to see a couple of them in California last year, but yours looks like it might have an edge in restoration. 

I am sad to hear you still have not found a dock! Here's hoping your luck changes soon! 

Thanks for posting the pictures and keep visiting!

Paul Farace, USS COD