With Japanese sub damaged in collision, where does maritime readiness stand?

MELBOURNE, Australia — A Japanese submarine is damaged after colliding with a commercial ship in international waters off Japan on Monday, resulting in slight injuries to three crew members.

According to Japan’s Ministry of Defense, the diesel-electric submarine JS Soryu hit the commercial bulk carrier Ocean Artemis as it was surfacing in waters south of Cape Ashizuri in Kochi prefecture on the Japanese island of Shikoku on Monday morning local time.

The ministry added that the damage sustained by the Soryu was worse than initially thought, with the conning tower warped and the starboard hydroplane — which is used to adjust the submarine’s depth underwater — almost broken off.

The collision also damaged the antenna mast array of the submarine, which includes the periscope and communications antenna, leaving the Soryu unable to report the incident via normal communications channels.

As a result, the submarine, which was on a training sortie when the incident occurred, had to get within mobile phone coverage before being able to contact the Kure naval base to report the incident.

However, the submarine was able to sail under its own power to the nearby port of Kochi, and the three injured crew members were not seriously injured and did not require evacuation to a hospital.

The Soryu’s home port is normally the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s base at Kure. The boat is part of Submarine Squadron Five of the JMSDF’s 1st Submarine Flotilla. The 2,950-ton, 84-meter submarine is the lead boat of a class of 12, and it is widely regarded as one of the best diesel-electric submarine designs in the world.

Taking a closer look

Japan’s Coast Guard said it is investigating the incident and the JMSDF is assessing the damage to the submarine.

Collin Koh, a research fellow at the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, told Defense News that based on photos released by the Japanese Coast Guard, it does not appear that the submarine’s pressure hull was damaged.

He added that while the damage looks like it could be repaired with relative ease, “the boat will still have to undergo post-repairs trials to evaluate its quieting ability — that is, to ensure the boat passes the required standards for acoustic signature while underway in order to be deemed operationally ready and safe to reinstate into service.”

That process could take months, if not a year to complete.

However, Koh does not foresee a submarine gap for the JMSDF due to the Soryu being out of action during repairs. He noted that Japan has a fleet of 22 submarines as well as two training submarines in service.

What might affect the tempo of JMSDF submarine operations in the wake of the collision is the likelihood that there will be a comprehensive review and reassessment of operational safety norms in the wake of this high-profile incident. That could place further strain on a force that has admitted to being under pressure from an expanding set of mission demands.

Mike Yeo is the Asia correspondent for Defense News.

澳大利亚墨尔本——周一，一艘日本潜艇在日本近海国际水域与一艘商船相撞后受损，导致三名船员受轻伤。

据日本防卫省称，当地时间周一上午，日本四国岛高知县足雀岬以南海域，柴电潜艇“苍龙”号撞上了正在浮出水面的商用散货船“海洋阿尔忒弥斯”号。

该部门补充说，苍龙号潜艇遭受的损坏比最初预想的还要严重，指挥塔变形，用于调整潜艇水下深度的右舷水翼几乎断裂。

碰撞还损坏了潜艇的天线桅杆阵列，其中包括潜望镜和通信天线，导致苍龙号无法通过正常的通信渠道报告事故。

因此，事发时正在执行训练任务的潜艇，必须先进入手机信号覆盖范围，才能联系吴海军基地报告事件。

然而，这艘潜艇能够依靠自身动力驶往附近的科钦港，三名受伤的船员伤势并不严重，无需送往医院。

“苍龙”号潜艇的母港通常是日本海上自卫队位于吴港的基地。该艇隶属于日本海上自卫队第一潜艇舰队第五潜艇分队。这艘排水量2950吨、长84米的潜艇是12艘同级潜艇中的首艇，被广泛认为是世界上最好的柴电潜艇设计之一。

仔细观察

日本海上保安厅表示正在调查这起事件，日本海上自卫队正在评估潜艇的受损情况。

新加坡拉惹勒南国际研究院国防与战略研究所的研究员柯林·科赫告诉《防务新闻》，根据日本海上保安厅发布的照片​​，潜艇的耐压壳体似乎没有受损。

他补充说，虽然损坏看起来可以相对容易地修复，但“该船仍需进行修复后的试验，以评估其静音能力——也就是说，要确保该船在航行中通过声学特征的必要标准，才能被认为具备作战能力并可以安全地重新投入使用。”

这个过程可能需要数月甚至一年的时间才能完成。

然而，高先生认为，由于苍龙号潜艇维修停航，日本海上自卫队不会出现潜艇数量短缺的情况。他指出，日本目前拥有22艘潜艇以及两艘训练潜艇在役。

此次碰撞事件后，日本海上自卫队潜艇行动节奏可能会受到影响，因为此次备受瞩目的事故很可能导致对作战安全规范进行全面审查和重新评估。这可能会给这支已经承认因任务需求不断增加而承受巨大压力的部队带来进一步的压力。

Mike Yeo 是《防务新闻》的亚洲通讯员。