US nuclear submarine hits underwater 'object' in South China Sea

South China Morning Post
Fri, 08 Oct 2021 05:28 UTC

© File/US Navy.jpg

The USS Connecticut nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine

A US Navy attack submarine "struck an object while submerged" in international waters in the South China Sea, officials said on Thursday. They said there were no life-threatening injuries and the sub was still fully operational.

In a brief statement providing few details of an incident that happened on the afternoon of October 2, US Pacific Fleet said the USS Connecticut remained in a "safe and stable condition". Seawolf-class submarine's nuclear propulsion plant was not affected, it added. "The extent of damage to the remainder of the submarine is being assessed," the statement said, adding that the incident will be investigated.

The statement did not specify the location of the incident, but two US Navy officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss details not announced publicly, said it happened in the South China Sea while the Connecticut was conducting routine operations.

The officials said the sub then headed toward port at Guam. The incident was not announced before Thursday to maintain operational security.

The officials said it was not yet clear what object the sub had struck but that it was not another submarine. One official said it could have been a sunken vessel, a sunken container or other uncharted object.

Two sailors aboard the Connecticut sustained moderate injuries and about nine others had minor injuries like scrapes and bruises, the officials said. All were treated aboard the sub.

A US Naval Institute News report said the last known incidence of a US submarine striking an underwater object took place in 2005, when the USS San Francisco struck an underwater mountain in a collision that killed one sailor aboard.

The incident with the Connecticut comes just weeks after Australia, the UK and the US announced a new security arrangement. The so-called AUKUS pact also created a rift with France, which saw a US$66 billion deal to provide Australia conventional submarines voided in favour of a deal for American-made nuclear-powered ships.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended the deal as a "game changer" for Australian security in the face of China's military assertiveness, saying it would add to Indo-Pacific stability.

Comment: Beijing has a question or two on this incident:

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has expressed its concern about an incident in the South China Sea. Speaking on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian called on the US to clarify details concerning the USS Connecticut, a nuclear-powered Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine, which struck an unidentified object while submerged in the South China Sea on October 2.

Zhao requested that the US confirm the specific location of the accident, the vessel's intentions and more details about the collision itself, including whether it caused a leak of nuclear material. The spokesman also asked if the submarine had damaged the local marine environment.

He said China and its neighbors had a right to question Washington over the incident and seek the truth.

"The United States deliberately delayed and concealed details of the accident, demonstrating irresponsibility and a lack of transparency."

Zhao said the root cause of the incident was the US' insistence on sailing through the Beijing-claimed South China Sea under the banner of freedom of navigation.