After seeing Crimson Tide for the who knows how many ith time…I have to ask:
What does 1SQ stand for in regard to the weapons system of the boat.
Maybe David will be around for this one?
Thanks
Tank
We could tell ya but… then we would have to shoot ya…
You didn’t hear it from me, but it’s a manning condition, specifically Battle Stations Missile…
Who said that? [;)]
A Google search for “1SQ missile” returns a good list of results.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF FLEET BALLISTIC MISSILE SUBMARINES
Excerpt: “On patrol, the boat’s mission, as it cruised along in Patrol Quiet conditions at a speed of 6 knots, was to man Battle Stations Missile (Condition 1SQ) within 5 minutes of receiving a verified message from higher authority, then launch all 16 missiles, one after the other, one minute apart (later boats could fire 4 per minute).”
USS Henry Clay SSBN-625 AUDIO PAGE
It’s also the 4th track on the Crimson Tide Soundtrack. [;)]
4. 1SQ (18.03)
So if I understand you guys correctly…1SQ is not an acronym or an abbreviation, but rather a reference for crew members to man battle stations missle?
Oh and a follow up question…When the missles are spun up for the lauch why are the first five and the last five designated as opposed to the first ten?
Take care guys
Tank
Just guessing, mind you, but it probably has something to do with keeping the boat in trim - you’ll notice that the missiles are located around the center of gravity and even though the boat is a big mass relative to the missiles, the impulse of the missile launch and then the reduction in weight would cause pitching moments. Alternating the firing between fore and aft would make it easier to maintain the boat at the prescribed depth for missile launch.
Hi Tankbuster, Hey how’s your “Ohio” Boat going?
The toughest part about the missle launch sequence is maintaining “Trim”.
Compensation for the missle leaving, water filling launch tubes, water temps and other items are most difficult to maintain. The Boat usually but not always launches from a “Hover” a well trained crew and wise diving officer and Chief of the watch could perform this task repeatedly. I served on Polaris A3 and Posiden missle boats and the compensating systems on these boats were ancient compared to the new Trident Boats. We had better success firing a “ripple or volley shot” this would get as many birds off as we could before the Boat’s trim was screwed up… On average we went to condition 1 SQ 3 times per week but of course this was during the “Cold War”. Never knew when it was a drill or real thing until the end. I liked The Hunt for Red October and Crimson Tide. But both movies took many “artistic freedoms” with several points.
The best submarine move I ever saw was Das Boot. This portrays the way Submarine life really is … Then and now. One for all and all for one.
So now that the secret’s out…1SQ was the dreaded “get out of your nice cosy bunk and man battle stations” call on the 1MC (the loudspeaker). And yes, it does have to do with the boat’s status with regard to ability to launch missiles within certain parameters from receiving the orders to do so. Anything other than 1SQ meant that you could sleep when off watch (and not in training, or drills, or field day, or collateral duties, or planning for refit, or playing cards, or qualifying, or watching movies). There are a lot of missile things associated with condition 1SQ, but the boat goes to 1SQ to prepare for launch of the missiles. The “prepare” and “denote” stuff has to do with the firing order and does pertain to the trim, among other things. I have personally sat through a ripple launch on a Trident and the boat basically bounces a little bit each time. I understand it was bit more energetic on the older boomers, but we never got to launch anything when I was on one of them. I don’t know where they got 6 knots from in the Google search (maybe they got us on radar going downhill with the wind[;)] ha.ha), but we typically went really slow and hid from anyone nearby. Anyway, the movies did have a bit of reality (not a whole lot), but they were entertaining and showed the rest of the world a little bit of how we lived. Hope this sheds some light- sorry to be late getting in on this one, I worked mids last night and didn’t get up until now. Have a fine Navy day, everyone. Dave Blackwell, MMC(SS), USN, Retired
Hey guys,
Thanks for getting back to me so fast on the boomer question. Great information.
Butchy…the SSBN Florida is next up on the hobby table…I’ve just begun browsing through the box and reading the instructions…Hmmmm it looks like this shanghai/Dragon kit is going to have a couple of twists and turns along the way…I’ll post pics as soon as I’ve had some hull painting done.
Hope you’ll enjoy it.
Tank
P.S. Gentlemen
Set condition 1SQ
For a good weekend rental of …which sub movie should it be?
K-19…U-571…Das Boot? (butchy)…Red October…? Which is your favorite pick guys?
Tank
Das Boot for realism, Red October for the surround sound [:D]
Das Boot does the absolute best job of capturing the true submarine frame of mind. It was amazing how well the entire attitude and twisted sense of humor carried over despite the language difference. If you speak any German at all, it is even better auf Deutsch. Their current day submariners are a great bunch of guys as well- we won the exercise, so they bought when we ran into them out in town on a port call in Norway. Again, they were not all that different from us, attitude-wise. Glad to hear Florida is on the building ways next- enjoy the build. Have a fine Navy day. Dave, MMC(SS), Retired
I’m with you Chief it’s an amazing movie… You know Run Silent Run Deep was a little corney but I still enjoy it, Got the DVD at Wally World for $8…
Wally World is good for something, isn’t it? I picked up The Battle of Britain DVD for a mere $8 as well. Worth every penny- so now I have to go look for some of these other classics up there since you got a good one as well. By the way, U-571 is worth three punches on your hacker card, and K-19 is worth only two (Harrison Ford is worth something). Crimson Tide gets five punches because of the CO’s dog (complete fiction there). Enjoy the flicks. Dave, MMC(SS) Retired
Guys,
Remember Gray Lady Down? With Kris Christopherson as the skipper?
Tank
I give that one 2 and a half stars because you get to see a model? DSRV in action.
and speaking of subs in trouble…
What do all of you guys think about the Kursk? Might an American boat have hit her
or did she just have an accident in the forward torpedo room?
Tank
Crimson Tide gets four stars from me. I wonder if all the non-naval personnel realize
that Weps and Cob aren’t really those guys’ names?
Das Boot gets a bunch just because its cool to hear the captain shoot…“Alaarm” all
the time.
Red October gets ratings because its wild to think there’s a soviet skipper
out there that looks and sounds like Sean Connery…
U-571 gets points because Bon Jovi gets blow off the deck of the sub early
in the film before he gets the chance to really ruin it.
Chat with you guys soon.
Tank
Hey, what about Operation Petticoat? [:P]
They’re all good movies. If I had to choose, I’d either go U-571 or K-19. Seen Red October too many times now. Although Das Boot would be good.
The thing I liked about K-19 was that it was based upon a real story. Of course there were historical inaccuracies, but keeping that in mind, it’s a good movie. I don’t know how to put it, but it was great to see a movie depicting the bravery of those Russian submariners. Rarely are there movies honoring the heroes of other countries.
A good review for the film on Amazon was written by Chapulina R “emotionally compelling”, August 21, 2002. The review mention references both the K-19 and K-219.
Trivia
Trivia for Das Boot
Trivia for K-19: The Widowmaker
Trivia for U-571
Trivia for Crimson Tide
Trivia for The Hunt for Red October
“Kevin Costner was originally cast as Jack Ryan.”
Good thing he wasn’t! [:P]
Even though he wasn’t cast in two of the Clancy films…October and Sum of all Fears…
Harrison Ford is the only true Jack Ryan…
Tank
K-19 was real; nice
Kursk was raised a while ago in two pieces- the bow compartment was raised separately from the rest of the boat, and they did state that a torpedo had gone off and caused the accident. National Geographic Channel had a show on not too long ago that showed them raising the boat. The show filled in a lot of the details. It was chilling to hear of those guys being killed that way- worst case scenario for anyone. The guys that handled the actual K-19 casualty were indeed brave and upheld the selfless ideals that bond all mariners, no matter what their nationality. Anyway, remember their sacrifice, and honor their courage. Have a good weekend, everyone. Dave MMC(SS), Retired
Liked Das Boot, couldn’t believe my son(who was 7 at the time) sat through the whole movie in German and didn’t fuss. Red October and Crimsom Tide were good also. He joined the Navy at 17, but didn’t become a bubblehead(he didn’t want to serve on a ship designed to sink)
Don’t forget “The Enemy Below” (Mitchum and Jurgens play men to look up to) and “The Russians Are Coming”…