Thanks to /Kjell for finding this. Probably the best documentary I've seen on a modern submarine. It was very recently published - February 20, 2020 and has clear English commentary. It is above and at https://youtu.be/CcgDyxADsiM.
The video takes the viewer from German Navy Type 212A U-32's submarine voyage from Germany's Eckernförde Naval Base (which hosts Germany's Submarine Squadron of 6 submarines,
"combat swimmers" (ie. Navy SEALs) and submarine support ships). Then U-32 goes through the difficult-to-navigate Kiel Canal to a naval exercise in and around Plymouth, UK.
Along the way:
- 1 minute, 40 seconds in - some woman in the crew
- 4 min, 9 secs - specs and cut away diagram
- 4:50 diesel engine, fuel cell AIP and battery functioning
- 7:25 critical nature of food/provisions to keep crew sane
- 9:20 including crates of Becks beer
- 10:15 beer literally stored inside the torpedo tubes!
- 11:20 divers check for bombs and damage below the water line
- 12:46 shows submarine planning meetings actually occur onshore. Planning dangerous passage,
surfaced, through the 100km long Kiel Canal (which connects the Baltic Sea with the North
Sea)
- 14:35 Theme music of "Das Boot" "The Boat" as mission begins
- 17:30 radar, sonar, and periscope information is all compared to get out of busy port
- 18:30 crew's "long drawn out intonation of commands" to ensure crew gets the message
- 20:45 how diving works technically
- 21:25 all about periscopes, with thermal imaging and radar etc
22:50 use of sonar, avoiding yachts and fishing boats/nets. Large ships actually easier to avoid as
they travel on predictable courses, with loud easily recognisable propellers.
25:00 (diesel engine) fire drill, very strenuous. If serious injury, helicopter evacuation (in peacetime)
28:20 small room. sub rocking and smell of food can make the cook seasick. Little room for exercise
so cook cannot allow crew to put on too much weight. Crew need to look forward to food to
avoid bad moods. No shift system for only cook aboard.
30:20 surfacing procedure (with intonation)
31:50 restrictive life of a submariner. Crew as a "replacement family". Foot spray for smelly feet.
35:40 rudder failure exercise ie steering cannot can't be controlled in control room. So Helmsman
must go to emergency rudder in stern.
37:30 only now reached Kiel Canal with help of 2 tugboats. Moves through Canal, surfaced of
course. A sub isn't very manoeuvrable while on the surface.
41:45 just 2 toilets "heads" and bathrooms for whole crew of 30. No designated "female only".
44:55 - submarine simulator for helmsmen to learn to steer without crashing. All crew from Cook to
Commander must practice steering in the simulator.
48;00 only 80 active submariners in whole German submarine Corps!
48:10 need to really want to be a submariner.
Pete
At 15:45, a, what I assume is an exchange officer from an Asian country, can be seen in the back row. It doesnt seem to be from RSN, since his rank has curl, and the RSN, as far as I know, doesnt use curls. Any idea where he comes from?
ReplyDelete/CvD
Re Anonymous on German Type 212A crew video.
ReplyDeleteLimiting the choices to customer navies for German designed subs. And of those customer navies those that keep their officer/crew identities confidentional.
Very vague faceshot at back with sunglasses could be an Israeli Navy senior observer of Commander rank:
pin with curl could be variation of http://www.israeli-forces.com/cgi-local/product.pl?unit_id=3&class_id=21&product_id=670&act=show_product
ReplyDeleteBeer in the torpedoes tubes? How very german :p
Doubt its an Israeli officer, haven't seen any Israeli rank with a curl and for some reason, I get an East Asian or maybe SE Asian feeling.
ReplyDeleteI'm starting to think that he might be from the Thai navy. The curl seems to be unusually wide and the Royal Thai navy have curls that are wide. The cap badge reminds me of the emblem of the Thai navy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_ranks_of_the_Thai_armed_forces#Officers_2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Thai_Navy
The Thai navy are buying subs from China, but maybe they prefer that their future submariners are trained in a Western country?
/CvD