Not so SUBmarine
As Spain seeks to rein in ballooning deficits, it has discovered some of its bloat surfacing from an unexpected place: under the sea. According to “El Pais,” the S-81 Isaac Peral — the first of four state-of-the-art new submarines commissioned for the Spanish Navy — is 75 to 100 tons overweight. That may not seem like a lot, considering the submarine’s full weight when submerged is 2,430 tons, but according to engineers at Navantia, that excess bulk is enough to prevent the Isaac Peral from successfully resurfacing once submerged. The descent has been precipitous for the S-80 subs, which some had hailed as the most modern non-nuclear submarines in the world. The S-80’s advancements is a diesel-electric propulsion engine that, ironically, promises to be 20% lighter than comparable systems while delivering 50% more power. If Spain hopes to salvage its submarines, it must either find some weight that can be trimmed from the current design or lengthen the ship. The Isaac Peral is named for the Spanish inventor said to have built the first functional modern submarine. Spain hoped the S-80 class would be a new homegrown breakthrough achieved without foreign help. Now that Navantia is considering bringing in an American contractor to help with the redesign, that dream seems dead in the water.
An attempt to deploy a new submarine for Spain’s navy has run aground again, after the S-80 boat was redesigned at great expense it was lengthened to correct the buoyancy issue. Spanish newspaper “El País” now reports, the docks at Cartagena can no longer fit the vessel. As a result, the base at Cartagena will have to be dredged and reshaped to accommodate the now-floating, but longer vessel. Spain’s Defense Minister Margarita Robles, speaking on Spanish radio, admitted that “there have been deficiencies in the project.” She insisted that “they are already corrected and that the project is absolutely viable.” Today that ship is floating, sailing on its own and even coming back up after a dive. Muy Bueno!
/i
Under water humor
Working on the computer is like driving a submarine.
Once you open windows, the problems begin.
How do you sink a submarine full of blondes?
You knock on the door.
I used to work for a submarine manufacturing company.
Unfortunately, it went under.
Submarine ride to visit the wreck of the Titanic, $250,000.
Permanently join the wreck of the Titanic, priceless!
December 20th Birthdays
1992 – Isabel Durant, 1992 – Jillian Rose Reed, 1982 – Melanie Scrofano, 1991 – India Reynolds
1984 – Bob Morely, 1946 – Dick Wolf, 1983 – Jonah Hill, 1982 – David Wright