Power Play

CHAPTER 7 USS MICHIGAN

“Two nautical miles to the mark,” the Quartermaster reported.

Now that Michigan had exited from under the polar ice cap and left the Marginal Ice Zone behind, Wilson had resumed the submarine’s normal underway watch stations. Lieutenant Bradley, on watch as Officer of the Deck, ordered Michigan to slow.

“Helm, ahead one-third.”

Michigan slowed to five knots and Bradley joined Captain Wilson at the navigation plot, watching the white dot representing their ship march south toward the red X, which annotated the position of the Russian torpedo. However, its location was only approximate, reconstructed from USS Pittsburgh’s encounter with the two Russian submarines. The course, speed, and range of each Russian submarine were only estimates, as was the location where the torpedo impacted Alexander’s hull. To find the torpedo on the bottom of the Barents Sea, they needed a more precise location.

Wilson waited patiently while Sonar searched for the torpedo’s end-of-run pinger, a high-frequency emission that sounded like a bird chirp. The end-of-run battery contained limited power, so the frequency was high, making the detection range short. Fortunately, Michigan’s crew knew where to look.

“Conn, Sonar. Detecting torpedo end-of-run pinger, bearing one-seven-seven.”

Bradley acknowledged, then ordered, “Helm, come left to course one-seven-seven.”

The Helm complied and Michigan altered course three degrees to port. They now knew in what direction the torpedo lay, but not how far. Michigan, like the other Ohio class submarines, had no active sonar system, but not even the most sophisticated system aboard the newest fast attacks could discern a torpedo on the bottom. They’d have to get close, then rely on the SEAL’s MK 1, MOD 0 eyeballs.

Michigan steadied on course one-seven-seven at five knots, with Sonar reporting the bearing to the torpedo every ten seconds until it suddenly vanished.

“Conn, Sonar. Passing over the Russian torpedo.”

Michigan’s spherical array sonar, mounted in the bow, could no longer hear the torpedo’s end-of-run pinger. The transmissions were now blocked by Michigan’s long steel hull.

“Helm, all stop,” Bradley ordered. “Back full. Dive, prepare to hover at one-five-zero feet.”

The Quartermaster marked the spot they’d lost the pinger as the Helm rung up the backing bell. Once initial conditions were established, the Diving Officer ordered the Chief of the Watch to engage hovering.

Michigan continued to slow, and when it approached zero knots, Bradley ordered, “Helm, all stop.”

Michigan coasted to a halt, hovering at one-five-zero feet.

Wilson left the Control Room, entering the Battle Management Center, where Commander McNeil was present along with several SEALs and Navy divers manning the consoles. Two additional SEALs were standing by — one officer and one enlisted — wearing black dive suits. The officer, Lieutenant Jake Harrison, was one of the two platoon Officers-in-Charge. Unlike most lieutenants, who were in their twenties, Harrison was in his forties. The prior enlisted SEAL had reached the rank of chief before receiving his commission as an officer.

Wilson addressed McNeil. “We’ve located the Russian torpedo. It’s about a hundred yards behind us. We’re ready to deploy when you are.”

McNeil acknowledged and gave the order, and Navy divers and the two SEALs began preparing for the launch.

Lieutenant Harrison and Petty Officer First Class Sam Carver entered the Missile Compartment, stopping by tube One, the first tube on the starboard side. Carver opened the circular hatch and the two men stepped inside the seven-foot-diameter tube. Harrison climbed a steel ladder up two levels as Carver followed, entering the Dry Deck Shelter, bathed in diffuse red light.

The shelter was a conglomeration of three separate chambers: a spherical hyperbaric chamber at the forward end to treat injured divers, a spherical transfer trunk in the middle, which Harrison and Carver had entered, and a long cylindrical hangar section containing the SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV), a black mini-sub resembling a fat torpedo — twenty-two feet long by six feet in diameter. The hangar was divided into two sections by a Plexiglas shield dropping halfway down from the top, with the SDV on one side and controls for operating the hangar on the other side.

Harrison stepped into the hangar, which was manned by five Navy divers: one on the forward side of the Plexiglas shield to operate the controls, and the other four in scuba gear on the other side. Carver sealed the hatch behind him, then the two SEALs ducked under the Plexiglas shield, stopping at the forward end of the SDV, which was loaded nose first into the Dry Deck Shelter. The SDV had two seating areas, one in front of the other, each capable of carrying two persons. Instead of two SEALs in the backseat, it was packed with flotation devices they planned to attach to the Russian torpedo, plus two dive lights.

Carver placed one of the dive lights in the front seat of the SDV, then helped Harrison into a rebreather, a closed-circuit breathing apparatus required due to the depth of the dive. Harrison returned the favor. After donning their fins, the two men climbed into the front seat of the SDV. Harrison manipulated the controls and the Barents Sea appeared on the navigation display.

Harrison put his facemask on, as did Carver, then rendered the okay hand signal to the diver on the other side of the Plexiglas shield. Dark water surged into the hangar, gushing up from vents beneath them. The hangar was quickly flooded except for a pocket of air on the other side of the Plexiglas shield, where the Navy diver operated the Dry Deck Shelter. There was a faint rumbling as the circular hatch at the end of the shelter opened, and two divers on each side of the SDV glided toward the chamber opening with a kick of their fins.

The divers pulled rails out onto the submarine’s missile deck, and the SDV was extracted from the hangar. Harrison manipulated the controls and the SDV’s propeller started spinning, and the submersible lifted off its rails. It rose slowly, then moved forward, passing above the Dry Deck Shelter and along the starboard side of Michigan’s sail, cruising over the submarine’s bow into the dark water ahead.

Now that they had exited the steel Dry Deck Shelter, Harrison’s SDV picked up the high-frequency pings from the Russian torpedo. It was behind them; Michigan had passed over it before stopping, so Harrison turned the SDV around as it descended toward the bottom.