Remembering the submarine USS Thresher

Dear Sir

The sinking of the Indonesian submarine 502 on April 21, 2021, the breakup of the vessel and the death of 53 crew members highlights the hazards of operating in the oceans.

The 502 sinking brings back memories of the sinking and destruction of the USS Thresher on April 10, 1963, off the New England coast with the loss of 129 men. A Navy inquiry determined most likely there was flooding in the engine room possibly from faulty piping causing coolant pumps to slow or stop and trigger a reactor shutdown with a loss of power. Subsequently, the Navy implemented the SUBSAFE program for quality assurance and certification for submarines.

Additionally, the Navy implemented a Safe Test Depth program which ensured all submarine testing would be conducted in accordance with stringent testing parameters, including safe test depths. The USS Tanner, a hydrographic survey/research ship was tasked with surveying test areas which would hopefully give our submarines a chance to survive malfunctions and not sink to crush depths while conducting tests.

As a naval officer on the Tanner from 1963 to 1965, I remember spending many weeks out to sea running survey track lines to develop the safe test areas.

Donald Moskowitz

Londonderry NH

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