Shipbucket

In recent days, I've been researching the existence of so-called "Narco-Submarines", a relatively new weapon used by drug cartels for smuggling their illicit booty into the US, Mexico, and other places. I also read that a Sri Lankan seperatist cell also was discovered to have at least one.

Now, here's what I've learned. Some of these "Narco Submarines" are actually either Semi-Submersible (Variable draught/freeboard for low-observability) or "Low Profile Vessels", essentially boats with a fixed draught and really low freeboard, sometimes even with decks partially awash. However, at least one complete, fully functional Submarine was seized in Ecuador in 2010, and several others have been found in Columbia in varying degrees of construction. These boats ain't rickety little home builts, these are as the Navy might say, "High speed sh*&*" showing advanced knowledge.

The idea has been floated amongst Law Enforcement circles that former soviet designers may have a hand in designing these. One of the boats, discovered in Columbia, would have had a true Submarine double-hull, Diesel-Electric Propulsion, ballast tanks, and a shrouded propulsor. Like I said, definately not a rickety back-yard rig.

So, here's my theory, and Anyone is welcome to jump in and help develope this:

Hostile, non-state actors, intrigued by the use of the "Narco Submarines" by Central and South American cartels contract for the purchase of several of the boats. Some of these would be relatively cheap Semi-Subs or LPVs, others full submarines. Fitted for use either as mobile weapons platforms (Using torpedoes or as suicide boats) or for use in allowing insertion of terrorist cells and their equipment into "enemy territory", a-la SEAL Delivery Vehicle. I, personally, am terrified by this thought, especially as these things have been around long enough that I'm probably not breaking new ground with this train of thought, but I want to see where we take this, what we, both the Laymen and the Engineers among us can come up with for both offense (Bad Guys) and defense (Good Guys.)

-Gary AKA Navybrat85

*NOTICE: This is intended as a thought experiment, to be included in works of fiction.*

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World's Best Okayest Author and Artist

Also found this, which may be useful.

http://www.justice.gov/dea/images_major ... s.html#sub

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World's Best Okayest Author and Artist

I wouldn't be overly concerned.
Semi-submersibles are hardly a new idea and they're inevitably hampered by their short range. Additionally, they're easy to spot from patrol planes.
As unpleasant as it is to think about, if you were hit by a terrorist bomb it's much more likely that that bomb was made by a domestic terrorist.

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“Close” only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nuclear weapons.
That which does not kill me has made a grave tactical error

Worklist

Source Materiel is always welcome.

Fair points, Thiel

Some of these boats can dive fairly deep (a couple hundred feet) and have ranges over 1,000 miles, but those are fairly rare. What I'm kinda thinking is a semi-sub slips into the shipping lane and saddles up next to a frieghter and...Boom. I mean, not every merchant ship has patrol aircraft, right?

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World's Best Okayest Author and Artist

Or they can use a speed boat, divers, an ultra light, hide it in the cargo, subvert some of the crew, mine the approaches to a harbour, etc etc.
Semi-subs are a threat, but they are far far down on the list.
It's also worth considering that you need specialists workers, tools and materiel to build these boats. That means infrastructure which is traceable and a level of planning and coordination that'll stand out like bull on a bowling lane.
And I really doubt if the Cartels would be interested in selling their boats. Leaving aside the fact that they need them themselves, they're not interested in destabilizing their biggest market and they certainly don't want the kind of attention they'd get from the US if it became known that they'd been providing the boats.

And lastly, cheap is a relative term. Certainly, they're a lot cheaper than a modern submarine, but then they aren't modern submarines either.

_________________
“Close” only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nuclear weapons.
That which does not kill me has made a grave tactical error

Worklist

Source Materiel is always welcome.

Outsourcing writing talent is the last thing you want to do unless you're just giving up and that desperate, and if you're just trying to write up a Shipbucket/NationStates AU, if you can still type you're automatically disqualified from such desperate measures.

Anyway in practice it actually isn't a bad idea - except like Thiel said, to get the type of submarine you need that is fast and stealthy enough to work, it gets expensive. The best way to attack shipping is to do exactly what the Somali pirates do - get them at a chokepoint and just board them. It's pointless to try to blow up a freighter when it's much, much easier to just board it, especially when you've got a bunch of guys doing it all the time to lend an example.