Ambivalent
Junior Member
Re: PLAN submarines Thread II
Their primary advantage is cost. There is literally nothing an SSK does better than an SSN in any scenario, and quite a few things SSN's can do that no SSK can do.
Having said that, cost is a major consideration. Nations that could never afford even one SSN can afford a small fleet of SSK's, and there are enough situations where an SSK can be a threat to other hostile navies to make the expenditure on SSK's worth what the nation might have to give up to have them. They won't chase a CSG in blue water, they won't outfight an SSN which has a huge underwater speed advantage including the ability to move at tactically useful speeds making about as much noise as that SSK hanging out on battery. They are useful ambush tools but are not good for offensive operations.
But, if they patrol intelligently and use the continental shelf or other constrained waters to their advantage, an enemy just might come to this SSK and give them a good shot. Lesser navies with no carrier and limited ASW helicopter capability might suffer tremendously at the hands of well skippered SSK's.
An example of the transit speed differential. A USN SSN takes about five days to cross the Atlantic while a Dutch Tijgeraai takes around nine to ten days for the same transit, and makes much more noise doing so. No SSK is going to transit non stop from San Diego to the Arab Gulf at 30 kts submerged however. SSN's have done exactly this.
SSK's buy some less wealthy nations limited capabilities that can be worth the expenditure. Just don't fool yourself into thinking you will sweep an ocean going carrier and SSN equipped navy from the high seas with SSK's or even hold them off for very long.
Their primary advantage is cost. There is literally nothing an SSK does better than an SSN in any scenario, and quite a few things SSN's can do that no SSK can do.
Having said that, cost is a major consideration. Nations that could never afford even one SSN can afford a small fleet of SSK's, and there are enough situations where an SSK can be a threat to other hostile navies to make the expenditure on SSK's worth what the nation might have to give up to have them. They won't chase a CSG in blue water, they won't outfight an SSN which has a huge underwater speed advantage including the ability to move at tactically useful speeds making about as much noise as that SSK hanging out on battery. They are useful ambush tools but are not good for offensive operations.
But, if they patrol intelligently and use the continental shelf or other constrained waters to their advantage, an enemy just might come to this SSK and give them a good shot. Lesser navies with no carrier and limited ASW helicopter capability might suffer tremendously at the hands of well skippered SSK's.
An example of the transit speed differential. A USN SSN takes about five days to cross the Atlantic while a Dutch Tijgeraai takes around nine to ten days for the same transit, and makes much more noise doing so. No SSK is going to transit non stop from San Diego to the Arab Gulf at 30 kts submerged however. SSN's have done exactly this.
SSK's buy some less wealthy nations limited capabilities that can be worth the expenditure. Just don't fool yourself into thinking you will sweep an ocean going carrier and SSN equipped navy from the high seas with SSK's or even hold them off for very long.
