041002-N-1595A-002 San Diego, Calif. (Oct. 2, 2004) - The Navy test craft, Sea Shadow, prepares to moor alongside the Embarcadero waterfront park in San Diego, Calif., for public tours of the experimental twin-hulled vessel. Sea Shadow is a stealth variety of Naval ship designed to test new technologies for surface ships including ship control, structures, automation for reduced manning, sea keeping and signature control. The ship's visit coincided with the Fleet Week 2004 celebration in San Diego. Fleet Week San Diego is a three-week tribute to military members and their families who make San Diego and Southern Calif., the largest concentration of Navy and Marine forces in the world. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Sheldon Archie (RELEASED)

Would have been cool.



Although it does kind of look like a step backwards towards the civil-war era ironclads (all it needs is some cannons sticking out the sides)

Quoted: Would have been cool. Although it does kind of look like a step backwards towards the civil-war era ironclads (all it needs is some cannons sticking out the sides)

I wonder what kind of armaments it does have?

Quoted: Quoted: Would have been cool. Although it does kind of look like a step backwards towards the civil-war era ironclads (all it needs is some cannons sticking out the sides) I wonder what kind of armaments it does have?

what does it do exactly?

other than be stealthy?

it had better have a kiloton or two to make it cool.

Sea Shadow is unarmed. It's a developmental prototype to explore new technologies.

There's talk of putting a Mk41 VLS in a later version though.

NTM

Quoted: I wonder what kind of armaments it does have?

None. IIRC it was just a test bed for stealth ideas.

Like a lot of X-planes.

Although it appears to incorporate swath hull technology I'ld sure hate to be heading into anykind of rough seas in it.  Granted it's a test vessel.  It still looks like it could be a real rough rider.

I'm still a little unclear on the operations concept.    If you need to sneak up close inshore subs maybe a better vehicle.  If you are going to launch  long range cruise missiles, most foreseeable foes don't have a viable open ocean search and detection capability.  Then again it's probably a lot cheaper  to use for a missile strike platform tha a sub.  

A "tug" for a semi-submerged "barge" filled with vertical launch tubes?   A low cost alternative to CVs and SSNs for strike warfare?

Quoted: Quoted: I wonder what kind of armaments it does have? what does it do exactly? other than be stealthy? it had better have a kiloton or two to make it cool.

This was just a testbed for Naval stealth technology. It was built alongside the stealth fighter 20 years ago.

The idea behind this type of ship was that it would carry a concealed SAM launcher. It would then be able to sail ahead of a Carrier group undetected and better protect it from enemy aircraft.

Navy holds their "Tailhook" parties in that thing now...

Quoted: Although it appears to incorporate swath hull technology I'ld sure hate to be heading into anykind of rough seas in it.  Granted it's a test vessel.  It still looks like it could be a real rough rider. I'm still a little unclear on the operations concept.    If you need to sneak up close inshore subs maybe a better vehicle.  If you are going to launch  long range cruise missiles, most foreseeable foes don't have a viable open ocean search and detection capability.  Then again it's probably a lot cheaper  to use for a missile strike platform tha a sub.   A "tug" for a semi-submerged "barge" filled with vertical launch tubes?   A low cost alternative to CVs and SSNs for strike warfare?

None of the above

It was originally to be an air defense system, the concept was that the enemy would attack the ships that it could see, and the enemy aircraft or their missiles would fly within Standard range of the 'stealth' in the process...

End of the cold war turns it into a research system...

Wasnt it "too stealthy"?

Waves and water reflected radar waves back, this didnt so it left a big hole in the radar image.

it would make a good rail-gun platform, but then again surface ships are nearly obsolete in todays Navy. Submarines and Carriers are the real power.

edited to add: also a stealth ship is very dangerous to be on. Especially in the fog and low-vis.

You don't have a bigger pic, do you?

Didn't James Bond destroy that thing a couple of years ago????
Just playing with you!!

Being a tug for a vls barge includes AAW or strike depends on what you stuff the tubes with.  A barge is all you really need with  Standards as long as you have an Aegis or two around. to provide the targetting info once you start squirting the birds out the tubes.  I was an NTDS/ Assistant CIC Officer on an AAW cruiser so I understand the concept of threat bearings, etc.

I can be a bit of an iconoclast.  You should have seen the looks I got out of the fighter jocks in P'cola when I suggested hanging Phoenixes on S-3s for AAW.  After all you're shooting at targets 100+ miles away, you really don't need a dogfighter to haul them up there and drive in circles until the hawkeye designates your targets, you just need a pick-up truck.  The mod S-3 carries more birds at a lower price.

Long range stand-off weapons don't need a close-in capable platform.  Some of the platforms outh to have some defense capabilities but not all since they are never ever going to see a foe at whites of their eyes range. A rough analogy is equipping the gun crews on a BB with rifles and pistos to repel boarders, useless.  Similarly, do all  coast defence batteries gunners, cooks, washers, etc, need to be infantry capable? (Pointe du Hoc not withstanding)

Did the Fighter Jocks know that the AWG-9/AIM-54 Combo was supposed to be fitted initially under the F-111B?

Might as well use an S-3

NTM

I saw it about 2 weeks ago when I was there for fleet week. Nothing special on the outside.

Quoted: Did the Fighter Jocks know that the AWG-9/AIM-54 Combo was supposed to be fitted initially under the F-111B? Might as well use an S-3 NTM

The 'Vark was originally supposed to be an interceptor like the F-14, and was one VERY maneuverable strike aircraft...

In GW1, an AF EF-111 successfully got a maneuver-kill on a MiG-29 (eg flew in a manner that caused the attacking fighter to crash)...

The F-111 was supposed to be everything for everybody, that they finally found a mission it was outstanding at was a minor miracle.  If it hadn't grown so big compaared to the fighters and attack birds of the day it might have never found a role.  As it was it was big enough and strong enough to carry a big load very quickly, and still not be so big as to incur the negative attention of the Strategic Bomber boys at SAC in time for them to kill it.  After all, it wasn't "a real bomber".

somehow I'd thought it would be bigger

I did several low/slow passes over it when it was in the SoCal OPAREA in '94 and was told to stand off by FASFAC (local military controllers of the Warning Area).  Of course the local TV news had footage, from its news helicopter, of the Sea Shadow pulling in to San Diego in mid-afternoon the next day.