Modular system of rescue of crews of submarines can solve the old problem of the fleet
The absence of a series of rescue vessels (SS) of submarines (PL) based on the project 21300 with a deep-sea diving complex (GVK) indicates not so much the organizational, technical and financial difficulties of creating a domestic GVK even for work at depths up to 300 meters, but the need to clarify the conceptual directions of development of such vessels.
The chosen path of development
Immediate measures after the death of the nuclear submarine "Kursk" began developing requirements for a new rescue vessel (SS) PL, purchase and equip in 2001-2003, available imported SS appliances – remote controlled unmanned underwater vehicles (TNLA), deep-sea normobaric suits, diving equipment. The implementation of the measures of the "Comprehensive Program for the Restoration and maintenance of the readiness of search and rescue Support Forces and Facilities (PSO) Navy for 2000-2003", approved even before the death of the Kursk . The priority direction of development of the system of rescue of submarines was the creation of SS submarines of project 21300. When justifying the requirements for the vessel, it was taken into account that the main means of rescuing the crews of emergency submarines lying on the ground is a deep-sea rescue vehicle (SGA), which can accommodate 18-20 submariners rescued by the so-called dry method from the maximum depths of the submarine in one dive of the device. On the SS shall be provided to GVK rescue divers and the wet method, in which divers must wear safety equipment and by divers using aquatic environments in groups of two or three people go in a diving bell (VC). The maximum depth for this method of rescue does not exceed 200 meters and is limited by the capabilities of both rescue equipment and human physiology. The creation of GVK for diving operations at depths of up to 450 meters was due to the need to implement domestic diving technologies in marine conditions, including in the development of the continental shelf, since there have never been ship GVK up to 450 meters in the country. In addition, the SS provides means of maintaining the life of submariners-hoses for ventilation of emergency submarine compartments, deep-water pencil cases for transferring everything necessary to submariners through lock devices, as well as working and survey TNPA to ensure their delivery to the emergency submarine.
Adopted in 2014 the Concept of development of system of PSO Navy for the period until 2025, in addition to upgrading to 2015 existing SS and SGA, the construction of the head of the SS project 21300, provides in 2016-2020 the completion of a series of six SS project 21300 and creation in the 2021-2025 years airmobile system rescue divers, including for use with non-specialized vessels-carriers.
It is obvious that the presence by 2025 of the modernized existing SS, six SS of the project 21300 and the airmobile rescue system for submariners, to a certain extent duplicating each other, contradicts the principle of balance of the Navy's PSO system declared in the same concept. It is worth remembering that the SS projects 527m, 530, 532, 537 (SS "Elbrus") created in the 60-70s of the last century, the rescue submarines of Project 940 in the 90s were written off not only because of the moral and physical deterioration of some of them, but also because of the lack of material and technical resources for their operation.
20 years after the "Kursk»
"Dozens of modern vessels have been built for the auxiliary fleet, which should be considered as platforms for the placement of MSSE submarines in the event of accidents with submarines ”
Today only have four specialized rescue vessel, originally designed for rescue crews of emergency SUBMARINES: the "Commune" (in service 1915) with SGA and without GVK, the project 527м (1959) without the SGA, but with the rescue bell (provides rescue "dry" method eight divers from depths up to 500 m) and GVK to 200 meters, the project is 537 (1989) with SGA and GVK to 250 meters, the project 21300 (2015) with SGA and imported SWC, 450 metres. Dynamic positioning systems are available only on SS Project 21300 and Project 537. In addition, there are five SS on the basis of non-specialized carrier ships with and without GAC: two SS of Project 05360 (in service since 1979), two SS of Project 05361 (1982) on the basis of retrofitted timber carriers and one SS on the basis of the keelector of Project 141 (1988). All these sss do not have decompression chambers for rescued submariners and dynamic positioning systems. Measures for the modernization of non-specialized vessels-carriers of the SGA in terms of installing a GVK, decompression pressure chambers and a more advanced descent device for the SGA were not implemented. The ability of ships to rescue personnel of emergency submarines has increased somewhat due to imported and domestic search and rescue equipment. However, the lack of dynamic positioning systems on the SS reduces the effectiveness of the TNPA installed on them and the upgraded SGA of Project 1855. New vessels for the rescue of submariners in the Northern Fleet have not appeared since 2000. As a result, we have one SS 21300 SUBMARINE project is created according to the requirements of 20 years ago, three obsolete specialized SS PL as well as five obsolete non-SS PL, have not undergone modernization over 20 years ago.
Trend mismatch
Production of the SS 21300 SUBMARINE project with GVK-450, envisaged in the concept, was implemented long time, that speaks not so much about organizational, technical and financial difficulties of creating a domestic GVK even at depths of up to 300 meters as the need to clarify the conceptual directions of development SS PL. The fact is that the course of development of the rescue system of emergency submarines chosen at the 1st and 2nd stages of the concept does not correspond to the current trend in the development of such systems in the world. It consists in the creation of mobile modular systems that are quickly placed on non-specialized vessels that have acceptable characteristics (availability of free deck space, launching devices, dynamic positioning systems, etc.). The composition of these systems consists of SGA (Autonomous or tethered types), decompression chamber, as well as technical regulations or normobaric suits. In general, modern support vessels perform the role of universal marine platforms capable of taking on board rescue equipment. More than 300 civil and military vessels are included in the constantly updated information base for such systems. The rejection of specialized SS PL allows you to have a much more balanced PSO system with this approach. Exercises are regularly conducted, including international ones, to deploy such systems on non-specialized vessels.
the development of the ship's personnel of the navy rescue service and rescue services of other departments shows that the change of generations of ships occurs approximately every 20 years and the creation of multifunctional sss has become a key role in the last 10 years. that is why, to a certain extent, not only the main ss of the project 21300, the technical specification for which was approved in november 2000, but also its proposed serial versions, has become obsolete. similar sss were created at the end of the xx century, as, for example, the ss belos, introduced into the swedish navy in 1992, with a displacement of about 5600 tons with a cga urf up to 460 meters, a gvk up to 500 meters and a tnpa of various classes.
yesterday's technologies
numerous judgments that the gvk-450 as part of the ss project 21300 is the most important complex for rescuing submariners are erroneous, since its effectiveness in rescuing submariners is about an order of magnitude less than the effectiveness of the sga. Deep-sea diving complexes can provide descents of divers both by the method of short-term dives (CP) up to 200 meters (decompression after each descent) or by the method of long-term stay (DP) of divers under increased gas pressure in pressure chambers (up to 2-3 weeks) with daily descent to the VC to work at depths up to 500 meters and decompression after completion of work. the principles of diving dives by the dp method, implemented in the gvk-450 – are technologies of the 70s, originally designed for long-term work on the installation and inspection of underwater oil and gas equipment. rescue operations on an emergency submarine are limited to a few days. in the 80s, the ministry of gas industry of the ussr conducted about 60 descents from imported vessels with gvk-300 at depths of up to 305 meters. In the future, labor-intensive deep-sea diving technologies in the development of oil fields on the shelf were replaced by technologies using the new TNPA. Today, Gazprom PJSC has a maximum depth of 45 meters for conducting underwater technical work on inspection and repair of damage to underwater structures using divers. Multifunctional modern specialized SS FGBU "Morspassluzhba" have diving complexes KP up to 100 meters and TNPA of various classes for performing underwater technical work at depths up to 3000 meters.
What should divers do to rescue submariners:
- inspect the hull of the emergency submarine and remove foreign objects from the coaming area;
- establish communication with personnel in the emergency submarine compartments;
- transfer to submariners means of life extension and missing rescue equipment;
- connecting sleeve for ventilation of the compartments of the emergency PL;
- to ensure the rescue of submariners in the wet way.
most of these operations can now be performed by tnpa at all submerged depths of the submarine. The rapid development of underwater robotics over the past 10-15 years has made it possible to successfully perform many rescue operations without divers, such as the rescue of the AC-28 crew in 2005. Even with a unique ascent in 1981, the S-80 submarine from a depth of 200 meters, the SS GVK of Project 530 "Karpaty"was used at depths of up to 30-40 meters, and the PK-680 working camera and the NK-300 observation camera were used deeper. the technologies of diving dives by the dp method have not developed in the last 20 years, in contrast to the kp technologies.
restore what you've lost
when rescuing submariners in a wet way at depths of up to 200 meters, you can not do without deep-sea divers. Deep-sea diving operations in the Navy are necessary not only for the rescue of submariners, but also for other tasks. at the same time, the baltic and northern fleets of the ss with gvk have been absent since the late 90s. One of the possible ways to solve the problem of ensuring the conduct of deep-sea diving operations in the Navy may be the creation by the domestic industry of transportable modular GVK for diving by the KP method up to 160-200 meters. In the Navy in the 70s of the last century, in the presence of SS with GVK DP (projects 537, 940), working diving descents were carried out, as a rule, by the KP method because of a simpler technology. Here it is impossible not to say that for more than two years there is no information about the diving descents of the KP or DP on the SS of the project 21300 after setting the diving record in 2018 at 416 meters. The existing capabilities of the domestic industry allow the creation of a domestic GVK for short-term dives to depths of up to 160-200 meters. The composition of the GVK should include pressure chambers, VC, descent device, gas supply systems, control panel. Such a GVK has a mass of up to 25-30 tons and covers an area of up to 30-35 square meters. The weight and size characteristics of the GVK-160 KP and its cost are ten times less than the cost of the GVK-450 SS project 21300. the use of gvk-160 kp is possible in modern rescue tugboats of the search and rescue service (spasr) Navy projects 745mbs, 22870, 02980, built in the last 10 years. The availability of modular GVK KP for the above courts, as well as existing SS project 05360, 05361, 141 – carriers SGA will more quickly and at lower cost to address the issue of deep-sea diving works at fleet. By the way, a fairly large number of tugboats have been built for the Ministry of Defense. 90600, 20180, 22030,16609, 02790, 23470, 04690, on which, if necessary, it is possible to place transported modular gvk for diving by the kp method up to 160-200 meters.
Better late than never
Of course, it should be considered a step forward in 2018, although with a delay of 20 years, the decision to create a modular crew rescue system (MSE) of emergency submarines lying on the ground for the SS of Project 141 and other non-specialized SS. But as they say, better late than never. The development of the MSSE of submarines lying on the ground (ROC "Luchina") assumes the presence of a new generation of pressure chambers in its composition to accommodate submariners rescued with the help of SGA, a docking module with SGA, modules for maintaining the life of submariners in emergency submarine compartments, as well as the possibility of using TNPA. However, both the SS of Project 141c and the existing SS of projects 05360, 05361 with the ICSE PL installed on them will be saved with some restrictions due to the modernization of these vessels that has not been carried out in two decades. In this case, we have a contradiction between the new MSSE PL and obsolete media for it.
Nevertheless, this system, after its tests in 2021 on the SS of Project 141c and the implementation of work on its use from other non-specialized SS carriers of the SGA, will certainly increase the efficiency of such vessels in the rescue of submariners. So far, only the first step has been taken in the direction of compliance with modern trends in the development of domestic submarine rescue systems.
There is an interesting opinion that the cost of developing the MSSE PL, equal to 221 million rubles, corresponds to the principle of "cheap and angry". Of course, if we compare only in terms of costs (this approach was quite common in some circles), then the SS of the project 21300 worth 10 billion rubles will be out of competition. Given the minor role of GVK-450 in the rescue of submariners and other factors, according to generally accepted criterion of cost-effectiveness with high probability we can expect the efficiency of the IDN PL is not less than the efficiency of the SS project 21300.
"Kindling" – brighter
The lack of financial resources and the real capabilities of the defense industry dictate the strategy of choosing new technical solutions and technologies. The greater the shortage of funds, the more breakthrough technologies should be. In this case, it is necessary to eliminate the contradiction between the MSSE PL and obsolete SS carriers, and also clarify the requirements for the MSSE PL itself. to a greater extent, the current trend in the development of rescue systems for submariners will correspond to the msse pl for non-specialized vessels with a free deck area, descent-lifting devices for sga, a dynamic positioning system for reliably holding the vessel over an emergency object, equipment and equipment for operational placement of the msse pl, etc.
In rescue operation trainings of the Navy such vessels there. But for the auxiliary fleet of the Navy, other departments of the defense Ministry fsbi "Marsaskala", PJSC "Gazprom", JSC "Sovcomflot" and other organizations since 2000 built dozens of modern support vessels with more sophisticated dynamic positioning systems than the SS project 21300, with powerful cranes, c a sufficiently large free space of the upper deck, with the highest ice classes that can and should be considered as possible platforms for operational placement IDN PL in the event of accidents with SUBMARINES. For example, it is advisable to carry out studies on the placement of MSSE PL on support vessels of projects 23120, 20180, 21180, 21180M, 23700, 20180TV, etc. The result of these studies should be requirements for equipment and tooling for operational placement IDN emergency PL and SGA in the event of PL accidents, as well as clarifying requirements for IDN PL. these requirements should also be taken into account when building dozens of similar vessels for these organizations in the near future. according to preliminary estimates, there are about 60-70 modern vessels suitable for the installation of msse pl in all fleets, which is more than enough.
the regulatory basis for this approach is the decree of the government of the russian federation no. 794 of december 30, 2003 "on the unified state system of emergency prevention and response". This is confirmed by the experience of most rescue operations, in which vessels were involved regardless of their departmental and state affiliation.
the use of existing modern non-specialized vessels of the navy and other departments as carriers of mobile modular rescue systems for emergency submarine crews and transported modular gvk kp will allow for the rescue of submarine crews lying on the ground, without the construction of the ss series based on the project 21300 with gvk-300.
viktor ilyukhin, doctor of technical sciences, professor, retired captain of the 1st rank
The newspaper "Military-Industrial Courier", published in issue # 48 (861) for December 15, 2020