When submarines do not return to the surface: the Indonesian KRI Nanggala-402 and other cases in the world

KRI Nanggala-402 is running out of oxygen. With 53 crew members on board, the submarine Indonesian cries out for help as a major rescue operation unfolds near the island of Bali.

There are only a few hours to find him before he runs out of air.

In the midst of the situation, we remember similar cases that attracted the world’s gaze and concern.

The Argentine submarine ARA San Juan, missing for a year, was found on November 17, 2018 at the bottom of the Atlantic, at a depth of 907 meters. Photo: EFE

ARA SAN JUAN

After a year and a day, in 2018, an American company found the Ara San Juan, an Argentine submarine that was lost in the Atlantic Ocean.

Inside it, 44 people died.

Manufactured in Germany and acquired by Argentina in 1985, contact with the submarine was lost on November 15, 2017.

According to the El Periódico portal, the vehicle was 430 kilometers from the closest point on the coast and that the commander had reported “a start of fire in a battery compartment due to the ingress of water”.

But that the problem was solved.

When the submarine was found, the images allowed to put forward the first hypotheses. The BBC notes that there was talk of implosion, which would have happened when it reached a certain depth where the pressure betrayed them.

The controversy flared last year, when one of those accused of being responsible for the sinking said that the government of Mauricio Macri “knew in what position the ship was”20 days after his disappearance.

KURSK

Last year marked two decades since the collapse of the K-141 Kursk, Russian submarine that was in the Barents Sea participating in military exercises.

It was a blow to Russian power, while the Kursk was considered unsinkable and a symbol of the new Russian power.

At 9 a.m. on August 12, 2000, the Kursk fired two torpedoes.

“What I did not know [el comandante] the thing is [ello] would trigger a series of unfortunate events that would leave 118 dead Russian sailors, an international scandal and the baptism of fire of a newly promoted Vladimir Putin to power in Russia”Writes the BBC.

Because the Kremlin decided to hide information about the case. First, he said that several of the crew had died from “two explosions that caused the drowningI lie”.

But it was not like that. Later it would be known that 23 of them had managed to survive.

The Kursk was one of the first submarines built after the fall of the Soviet Union. (Getty Images).

What had happened? “A hydrogen peroxide leak from a faulty missile caused a fire in the torpedo room, which later caused two explosions”Recalls the BBC.

With the first explosion, the submarine began to sink. The second destroyed the “housing”.

Almost all of the crew died, except 23, who waited 23 hours to be rescued. The Kremlin, however, decided to report that there were no survivors and did not react.

How was the lie discovered? In a subsequent investigation, a note was found in the pocket of one of them, confirming that they were alive.

USS GREENEVILLE

“The sonar of the submarine that rammed and sank a Japanese ship off the coast of Hawaii […] detected the presence of a ship in the vicinity before the accident”.

This was reported by El Mundo, on February 21, 2001, the collision between the USS Greeneville and the Ehime Maru.

“Nine people traveling on the Japanese training ship Ehime Maru were killed in the crash. Another 26 were rescued alive”Wrote the outlet.

What happened? The American submarine ran over the Japanese school ship upon emerging from the sea and “the presence of civilians at the command post was a distraction during the maneuver”.

PACOCHA

33 years ago, on the afternoon of August 26, 1988, the Peruvian submarine Pacocha was preparing to arrive at Callao after training.

Suddenly collided with the Kyowa Mary, a Japanese fishing boat, and began to sink. The Navy was able to rescue 45 of its 53 crew members.

The magazine “Somos” has recalled the details of the crash. First it was an explosion and immediately a jolt. Daniel Nieva, the commander, tried to avoid sinking, while other crew members were thrown out to sea.

The Pacocha submarine was hit by a Japanese boatman on August 26, 1988. 22 of his men were trapped 40 meters deep. (Navy of Peru)

Nieva gave his life to save his companions, and was replaced by Roger Cotrina, who inexplicably managed to close the ship’s hatch.

Those who survived only had to wait in the depth to be rescued. Around midnight, the rescue divers arrived and communicated with them on a morse code.

Still, saving them seemed like an impossible task. It was then that they decided to go swimming. Fortunately, the day was clear and they could see the sunlight.

OTHER CASES FROM THE LAST 20 YEARS

May 2, 2003 / China

During a military maneuver in the Yellow Sea, off Shandong, an accident occurs. All 70 crew members of the Chinese submarine die.

August 30, 2003 / Russia

A storm in the Barents Sea sinks the nuclear submarine K-159, sending it 170 meters to the bottom of the water. One of the ten that manned the ship survives.

January 8, 2005 / United States

The USS San Francisco runs aground 560 kilometers south of the island of Guam. One person dies and 20 are injured.

September 7, 2006 / Russia

Daniil Moskovski nuclear submarine catches fire and two people die.

November 8, 2008 / Russia

A crew member mistakenly activates the fire suppression system. The freon gas released kills 20 people.

18 August 2013 / India

An explosion at INS Sindhurakshak kills 18 sailors.

July 1, 2019 / Russia

The nuclear submarine Losharik catches fire in the Barents Sea, causing the spread of carbon monoxide that poisoned 14 people who died.