Update for June 2, 2008

[Lance Dean]

MEDIA ADVISORY

June 2, 2008

Military Training Mission Begins on Sunken Russian Submarine

PROVIDENCE, RI: U. S. Navy salvage divers from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit TWO in Norfolk, VA. began arriving this week to prepare for training salvage operations on the sunken Russian submarine K-77, also known as Juliett 484. U. S. Army divers and Naval reserve units will also participate in the mission.

Last summer, Army and Navy divers conducted underwater surveys to determine how to safely recover K-77 from the Providence River.  The former Soviet cruise missile submarine sank at its mooring here during a heavy storm on April 17, 2007.

The Department of Defense divers, augmented by the crew of a Navy Landing Craft (Utility), known as an LCU, will participate in the project as part of the DoD’s Innovative Readiness Training program.  Through IRT, military divers and the LCU crew receive training by taking part in real-world, community-based projects.  IRT and civil-military projects improve military readiness and help rebuild America.  These programs leverage training opportunities and save taxpayer dollars.

Although the site is secured, media will be offered scheduled opportunities to cover the project; talk to Army and Navy participants; and interview representatives from the Russian Sub Museum.  More information will be provided separately regarding media access.

For information on the IRT or the Department of Defense involvement in this project, contact:

      CDR Dan Shultz

      (757) 644-8782

      daniel.shultz@navy.mil

For information on the Russian Sub Museum/ Juliett 484 submarine, contact:

      Frank Lennon, President

      (401) 831-8696

      Frankl69@aol.com

[Darrin]

Stolen I mean copied from RONTINI's BBS:

Quote Ken Johnson
Report Post   Quote  Reply  Topic: K-77 Salvage Status
Posted: Yesterday at 20:07
According to the original schedule, today was to have been the day the Russian sub K-77 was brought to the surface. That has now slipped to Thursday, July 17th.



(I have been waiting for the Navy to release a photo like this that I use.) This is still what you see with most activity going on below the surface, attachment of flotation bags. This photo was taken very close to low tide. The orange bags you see in the photo are connected to limber holes on the port side for list stabilization and will not be used to lift the sub. The float in the left foreground holds the four, 4" discharge hoses for the salvage pumps located within the sub at the low points of compartments 1-4.  These pumps are hydraulically powered and a similar setup is at the rear of the sub for compartments 5-8. The device attached to the forward preiscope holds electronic transmitters for list and trim of the sub with readouts on the pier accurate to .1 degree.

You can see in the photo that a piece of the tracking antenna fairing is missing. This fell off a day or two after the sub was righted to its present 4.9 degree port list. This was a piece of fairing installed at some time during the sub's operating life to enclose a small radar antenna and we speculate that it may have been removed in Halifax to accommodate the large fiberglass sail extension designed to make the sub look like a Hotel class sub which the actual K-19 was. It was probably reinstalled after filming was complete without much attention to how durable its fasteners were.

Eventually I hope to publish a detailed account of the salvage operation from beginning to end with many of my own photographs, but at this time I am limiting my publishing of photos to those provided and released by the Navy photographers who are documenting the operation.
 
The buck stops here.
Harry Truman 
 

Quote Darrin
Edit Post   Quote  Reply  Posted: Yesterday at 20:42
Thanks Ken for the update, she honestly doesn't look that bad after being underwater for a year and change. A good shipyard period she will be like new... hell a good pressure washing inside and out she will look nearly presentable once more, although I think that the smell inside the pressure hull wouldn't be very nice..
 
 

Quote Ric613
Report Post   Quote  Reply  Posted: Today at 01:06
You have to realize that the sail is covered in 2" of Rubber and the brown color is dried sea growths. When she comes up she will be all green in color the turn brown like this. 
Ric

PigBoats.COM
"Tenacity Dick, stay with the bastard till he's on the bottom.” -- Mush Morton to Dick O'Kane 
 


Quote Ken Johnson
Report Post   Quote  Reply  Posted: Today at 05:04
The exposed top of the sail actually looks like it has been painted Army camoflage. A good pressure washing would probably work wonders for its appearance. From diver reports the inside atmosphere where air pockets exist is really foul with hydrogen sulfide smell. I have been helping one of the MDSU team to work out a ventilation plan to make it safe to enter eventually without an OBA.

You also need to realize that on Russian boats there is a lot of wood paneling, mainly officer accommodations. I expect this will probably be a total loss and require much work and expense to replace.

As for what hoops we are going to have to jump through once it is on the surface, let me just repeat something I have said before. You do NOT want the Coast Guard to get involved with your museum boat if you can help it. (I will not say any more on that subject at this time.)