Midgets V.

This is coolbert:

Do not think that the day of the midget submarine is over. Apparently, far from it! There is now, or will be, a rennaissance in such submarine development? A need exists, NOT for large, atomic-powered, pelagic submarines, but coast-huggers employed in a defensive mode?

There are a variety of nations that still employ midgets. To include:

* Iran. Ghadir class midget submarine.


"Ghadir is a class of midget submarines built in Iran."

An indigenous design built with a lot of the "latest military and technological equipment"!

"the submarine is equipped with the latest military and technological equipment and that its capabilities are equal to that of foreign types."

"The submarine is said to be a sonar-evading stealth submarine which is equipped with state-of-the-art electronic equipment and can fire missiles and torpedoes simultaneously, but no information was given on the range of these weapons."

With submarines of this size, you can build from metals that are less detectable? Create a stealth type midget sub from the get-go!?

* North Korea. Yugo and Sang-O class of midgets.

North Korean midget submarines designed for intelligence, reconnaissance, special operations type of missions. Read about one such abortive mission that did stir up a lot of headlines. The North Koreans take midget submarine missions seriously, even in time of "peace"!

* Russia. Project 865 Piranha.



"Project 865 Piranha (Russian: Проект 865 «Пиранья»), NATO reporting name "Losos", is a Russian supersmall experimental submarine."



"The Losos was designed for special operations and engaging surface ships located offshore, and is thus very durable and almost completely silent."



"The hull is made of a titanium alloy, reducing the effectiveness of mines"

"Due to belief in Russia that there will be an increased demand for small subs, the Project 865 Piranya Submarines have since been revived. Malakhit [Russian design bureau] has resumed development on small submarines based on the original Piranha. These mini-submarine have are being marketed to Asia appearing at expositions in Indonesia and Singapore."

"Malakhit believes that the vessel, which is quick and relatively inexpensive to build, is well-suited to navies that must operate in shallow waters."

Think here of Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia.

Midgets - - wave of the future?

coolbert.