According to a number of US military sources, the US nuclear submarine "Connecticut" crashed into the underwater mountain range in the "impact of unidentified underwater objects" accident in the South China Sea on October 2.
US media released satellite photos of the "Connecticut" nuclear submarine berthing in Guam on October 20
According to the U.S. Naval Institute (USNI) website reported on October 27, four sources familiar with the preliminary findings revealed that as one of the most powerful attack nuclear submarines in the United States, the USS Connecticut, continues to conduct maintenance assessments on Guam, the U.S. Navy is still unsure of what the submarine collided with in the South China Sea on October 2.
These sources said that as of the afternoon of Tuesday (26th), as part of the investigation into the accident, it was uncertain whether the submarine object in the front of the "Connecticut" nuclear submarine had been damaged.
But two Defense Department officials familiar with the U.S. Navy's inspection of the submarine revealed early indications that the Connecticut hit a seamount on the ocean floor, but that news has not been confirmed by investigators.
Us media "politico" first reported earlier this month that the submarine may have hit a feature (object) on the seabed.
Two U.S. Defense Department officials said this week that the Impact of the Connecticut occurred in the front, damaging the submarine's front ballast tank, forcing it to sail a week off the sea to Guam.
The Theater of Operations website earlier said that based on information provided by satellite photos, the collision location appeared to be more likely to be below the submarine's waterline, such as the bottom of the hull.
According to Cindy Fields, a spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Fleet Submarine Command, the command did not add anything to the initial statement on what the Connecticut nuclear submarine hit. The Security Inquiry Committee, convened by the Command, and the Command Investigation, overseen by the Seventh Fleet, are currently being approved to investigate the accident.
Fields said on the 26th that since the arrival of the Connecticut in Guam, it is still undergoing an assessment of the maintenance scope of the USS Naval Maritime Systems Command, the Puget Bay Naval Shipyard and the USS Emory S. Land (AS-39).
Fields said the teams will first determine what repairs the Connecticut needs to safely leave Guam, and then make follow-up repairs.
The report stressed that the nearest large submarine repair dock to Guam is located in Hawaii. The second nearest dock is located at the boat's home port, the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard near Bremerton, Washington.
It has been nearly four weeks since the Connecticut impact, but the US side has not yet given any explanation for the mysteries behind it. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on 26 June that the Chinese side has repeatedly expressed serious concerns about relevant incidents and asked the US side to make clarifications. China and other coastal states have reason to ask the United States to answer: What is the mission of sending nuclear submarines to quietly move forward in the South China Sea this time? What did you end up with this time? Why did it collide? Did it cause nuclear leakage and bring nuclear pollution to the marine environment? As a party concerned, the US side has the responsibility and obligation to elaborate on the situation related to the incident and respond to the concerns and doubts of regional countries and the international community.
Zhao Lijian stressed that the South China Sea is the common home of regional countries and should not become a hunting ground for the United States to seek geopolitical self-interest. The United States has frequently and on a large scale sent warships and military planes to the South China Sea to provoke trouble, show off force, undermine the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, and threaten the sovereignty and security of China and other countries. The US side should change course, stop the above-mentioned erroneous acts, and play a positive role in peace and stability in the South China Sea.
Source: World Wide Web