Author Topic: Fate of the Russian B-39  (Read 14378 times)

Offline Lance Dean

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Fate of the Russian B-39
« on: June 24, 2010, 12:39:26 AM »
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/jun/21/grsq-museum-build-replica-cabrillos-galleon/

"Plans call for the ship to open as a paid attraction in 2012, when it joins the museum's other ships at the nearby embarcadero. It'll take the spot now occupied by B-39, a Soviet submarine that will be turned into an offshore diving reef."

So if you want to see the B-39, better go soon.  So sad!

Offline Paul Farace

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #1 on: June 24, 2010, 10:23:49 AM »
Sad yes!  But that is what you get when you give ships to education/entertainment entities... they're not in the business of historic ship preservation. The line in the story about "making turnstyles spin..."  says it all!    :knuppel2:


The Soviet sub should be moved instead of sinking as a reef... the cost of cleaning that basturd must be considerable!  Think PCBs everywhere!
Johnny Cash's third cousin, twice removed

Offline Bill Wasil

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #2 on: July 04, 2010, 07:37:47 PM »
I visited the B-39 a year ago June.  I was interested in seeing the USS Dolphin and was surprised that the Russian sub was there to board too.  There was very little information as you walked through it and there were no docents to ask questions so you were on your own.  Fortunately for me, I was with a co-worker who was Russian.  He was able to read the equipment information and translate.  That made the visit much more understandable.  After touring the boat I was glad that I never had to serve on her.

I sent a bunch of photos to Dean.  He may still have them.

It's too bad that she's going to be "reefed".  But like it's been said, she was there to make $$$.  What a waste.
Bill
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Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #3 on: July 04, 2010, 08:07:55 PM »
I have to ask this why were the russian submarines bad to serve on? I know most of the germen WW2 vessels were very bad to be on for those crew but thats the 1940s.
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Bill Wasil

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #4 on: July 04, 2010, 10:29:50 PM »
I have to ask this why were the russian submarines bad to serve on? I know most of the germen WW2 vessels were very bad to be on for those crew but thats the 1940s.

The accommodations on the B-39 were very spartan.  The officer's area was hardly any improvement from the enlisted; cramped with little creature comforts.  And the head was a joke!  Take a look at the attached photos.

But you must remember; the sole purpose of the B-39 was warfare and not accommodations.
Bill
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Offline Bill Wasil

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #5 on: July 04, 2010, 10:38:36 PM »
The accommodations on the B-39 were very spartan.  The officer's area was hardly any improvement from the enlisted; cramped with little creature comforts.  And the head was a joke!  Take a look at the attached photos.

But you must remember; the sole purpose of the B-39 was warfare and not accommodations.

Here's the Officer's head.  The file is big so I have to try it this way. 
Bill
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Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #6 on: July 05, 2010, 12:06:40 AM »
Oh i see it looks nice from the outside no rust on the ship really but in the inside i can see how it was cramped quarters.
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #7 on: July 05, 2010, 12:13:54 AM »
How effective were these submarines anyway i know they patrolled along the californian coast and presumably still do
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Lance Dean

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #8 on: July 05, 2010, 01:35:35 AM »
...
I sent a bunch of photos to Dean.  He may still have them.
...

I sure do.  Still appreciate you taking the time to send.

Offline Bill Wasil

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #9 on: July 05, 2010, 01:48:00 AM »
How effective were these submarines anyway i know they patrolled along the californian coast and presumably still do

When I was a sonarman, I was trained how to identify specific Russian subs by their unique sound.  The B-39 is a Whiskey class sub that was one of the types I had to identify.  Some of the others were known as Hotel, Foxtrot and Alpha class boats.  Each were unique.  The Whiskey was a workhorse for the Russians.  There were a lot of them.  It was odd that after a number of years I was able to tour one.

As far as being effective, the Whiskey was a key player in espionage.  When on the battery they were very quiet but were very loud when on the snorkel.  The same with the others with the exception of the Alpha.  It was one of the most quiet boats out there.  Very hard to pick up.

The boat were extremely effective in that there were many of them and could cover a large area.  At first we were able to pick them up routinely, but the boats improved greatly, making them a larger threat.
« Last Edit: July 05, 2010, 01:59:51 AM by Bill Wasil »
Bill
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Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #10 on: July 05, 2010, 02:10:13 AM »
Oh Okay  :) thanks bill. I heard a story of the USS BATFISH (1970S) following a Foxtrot class for about over 2 months and the russian sub had no idea it was there just some of the maney stories of them good and bad.
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Bill Wasil

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #11 on: July 05, 2010, 05:39:10 PM »
Oh Okay  :) thanks bill. I heard a story of the USS BATFISH (1970S) following a Foxtrot class for about over 2 months and the russian sub had no idea it was there just some of the maney stories of them good and bad.

BAT, (BrokenArrowtiger)

When I was battle stations Sonarman the old diesel boats were the ones the Navy sent out to do the work.  They had a long run on the snorkel to get to areas of interest and were extremely quiet on the battery.  Our boats excelled over the typical Soviet boat in stealth and sonar technology then.  At that time (mid-1960s), the nukes were still the prima donas of the Navy and were not the boats they sent into harms way.  The old (but still good) diesel boats were given the task of secreting themselves into enemy waters (and harbors) and following the bad guys without them knowing it (most of the time).  I remember following a Hotel class boat for an extended period, recording their "acoustic signature" so that the Navy had a tape of what a specific enemy boat sounded like.  They would be used as training tools for sonarmen.  There was one time when I was in the CON when the XO let me look through the scope.  Periscopes have the ability to pan their view up and down.  We were down about 200 feet and were directly below a Soviet sub, which I could make out easily through the scope.  it was about 130 feet above us on the snorkel.  It was so clear I could make out a lot of the detail.  That was something I would never forget.

Unfortunately, the Soviet boats became very stealthy very quickly and could follow our boats and ships undetected (most of the time).  It was a give and take at that time.  
« Last Edit: July 05, 2010, 05:41:28 PM by Bill Wasil »
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Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #12 on: July 05, 2010, 07:39:46 PM »
Wow! that must have been quite a sight to see once you heard a russian submarine could you tell pretty early on which class it was?
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Bill Wasil

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #13 on: July 05, 2010, 11:52:42 PM »
Wow! that must have been quite a sight to see once you heard a russian submarine could you tell pretty early on which class it was?

It was quite a sight.  We could recognize some of the subs by their acoustic signature.  All vessels have certain "sound" characteristics that are specific to that type of vessel, be it surface or submarine.  We were trained to recognize the specific traits that specific vessels had.  Remember the recording I mentioned.  Recordings like that are used as training aids for sonarmen throughout the fleet.  It allows sonarmen throughout the fleet to study the acoustic characteristics for a type of vessel and even a specific vessel if it was unique. A good sonarman could not only tell the type of vessel or specific vessel, they could also estimate distance and angle on the bow (direction the target was heading).  As sonar equipment improved, acoustic frequency printouts replaced the human ear. 
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Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Fate of the Russian B-39
« Reply #14 on: July 06, 2010, 12:05:07 AM »
Oh wow thats amazing when you were starting out the sonar technology as far as listening to vessels that was in its beggening stages right i know now its far technologically better. How good were you at what you did on the blueback? its really interesting to hear about this truly is thanks bill soo much
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian