[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 157 (Tuesday, November 9, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S14402-S14403]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       SAFEGUARDING OUR SECURITY

  Mr. TORRICELLI. Mr. President, there are few matters of more 
importance to the nation than the safeguarding of our security. Every 
day, tens of thousands of men and women wear the American uniform 
proudly in all the world's time zones while guarding against threats to 
American citizens and our interests. Perhaps there is no more perilous 
environment in which our servicemen and women operate than beneath the 
oceans. Because of the secrecy demanded by the myriad missions, Navy 
submariners have come to be known as the silent service. Often 
reluctant to speak on their own behalf, I commend to my colleagues 
attention the following article which is of great importance, not only 
to our nation's undersea warriors, but to the nation's security.
  The commentary in Defense News touches upon an important opportunity. 
It is the chance to secure more useful life from four Ohio-class 
submarines slated for retirement. The article suggests the possibility 
of converting them from their strategic nuclear duties into tactical 
Tomahawk shooters able to provide our overseas warfighting commanders 
additional striking capability.
  I ask unanimous consent this article be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                   [From Defense News, Mar. 29, 1999]

        Converted Submarines Could Bolster U.S. Power Projection

                           (By Ernest Blazar)

       Power projection can be a difficult concept to understand 
     in the abstract. It is a nation's ability to make its 
     military might felt beyond its borders--as diplomacy's 
     coercive underpinning, deterrence or in actual combat.
       American power projection has taken many forms in years 
     past; the man-o-war, expeditionary Marines, the dreadnaughts 
     of the Great White Fleet, the aircraft carrier, the Army's 
     82nd Airborne division and the Air Force's expeditionary 
     wings. Different crises have demanded different kinds of U.S. 
     power projection at different times.
       In recent years, however, U.S. power projection at the 
     lethal end of the spectrum combat has increasingly relied 
     upon a single tool. Since its 1991 Persian Gulf war debut, 
     the Tomahawk cruise missile has become the weapon of choice 
     when crises demand swift and accurate U.S. military response.

[[Page S14403]]

       They have cleared safe lanes for U.S. warplanes through 
     enemy air defenses. Tomahawks have hit terrorists. And they 
     have destroyed sites thought to hold mass destruction 
     weapons. Over 700 have been used in six different strikes 
     since 1991.
       As Tomahawks' use grows so do the strains upon their launch 
     platforms in the shrinking 300-ship fleet. So some in the 
     Navy and Congress are seeking new ways to quickly boost the 
     number of Tomahawk missiles--the power projection tool of 
     choice--available to overseas U.S. commanders.
       Attention has now fallen upon four Ohio-class submarines to 
     be retired in 2003 and 2004. A now overdue Navy study to 
     Congress reveals how these Cold War-era submarines, that once 
     aimed nuclear-tipped missiles at the Soviet Union, can easily 
     be converted to carry hundreds of Tomahawk missiles.
       Doing so would give the U.S. Central Command in the Persian 
     Gulf, for example, one such submarine year-round, thereby 
     almost doubling the in-theater inventory of Tomahawks. That 
     would take the pressure off other Navy ships needed 
     elsewhere, increase deterrence and strengthen U.S. combat 
     power should strikes be necessary.
       The Navy's imminent report has found that the four Ohio-
     class subs could be fitted with Tomahawks and Navy Sea, Air 
     and Land (SEAL) commando gear for $500 million each. 
     According to New Jersey Senator Robert G. Torricelli, ``It's 
     an inexpensive way of adding a new dimension to U.S. 
     warfighting capabilities.''
       All but two of the 24 strategic missiles tubes aboard the 
     Ohio-class boats could be refitted to accept a canister 
     holding six or seven Tomahawk missiles each, yielding a 
     maximum of 154 cruise missiles. If some SEALs are aboard, 
     along with their special gear, only 98-140 Tomahawks could be 
     loaded--still more than any other Navy ship carries.
       The full warload--all 154 Tomahawks--can be ``ripple-
     fired'' from the submerged submarine in less than six 
     minutes. That is key because it allows the submarine to 
     quickly, quietly and safely remove itself from the launch 
     site after firing all its missiles.
       A submarine-launched strike of that size offers two main 
     advantages. First, by virtue of its stealth, a submarine can 
     launch a surprise attack from within an enemy's early-warning 
     perimeter. With no advance warning, large numbers of enemy 
     targets can be hit before they are hidden, dispersed or 
     emptied. There is no build-up of U.S. forces to warn an enemy 
     of a pending attack. Second, submarines are less vulnerable 
     to attack and counter-attack than are surface ships. If 
     embarked SEALs are the best weapon for a mission, the 
     converted Ohio-class boats can house 102 such men for short 
     durations and 66 SEALs nearly indefinitely. This allows for a 
     sustained special operations campaign, rather than solitary 
     strikes, from a stealthy, invulnerable platform.
       SEALs can also use the submarine's silos that once held 
     nuclear-tipped strategic missiles to store their unique gear. 
     There is ample room for a hyperbaric chamber to recompress 
     divers if needed and a warming chamber which helps SEALs 
     recover from prolonged exposure to cold water. The converted 
     Ohio-class boats could also serve as `mother-ships' to 
     special underwater SEAL delivery craft like the Advanced 
     Swimmer Delivery Vehicle minisub.


                               Innocuous

       Even though the four converted Ohio-class boats would no 
     longer carry nuclear-tipped missiles, strategic arms control 
     treaty limits would still apply to these boats. This means 
     the ships' missile tubes, now filled with tactical missiles 
     and Navy SEALs, would still be counted against ceilings that 
     cap the number of U.S. and Russian strategic weapons. The 
     Navy's study to Congress has found that, while complex, this 
     issue can be accommodated as has been done before for other 
     strategic missile submarines converted to special, tactical 
     duties.
       The nation has a rare opportunity to swiftly and cheaply 
     boost its ability to project power. The conversion of these 
     four Ohio-class boats will complement, not compete with, 
     other Navy ships and Air Force expeditionary warplanes 
     deployed to overseas hot-spots. This chance to get new, 
     useful life out of old Cold War-era systems on the cheap is 
     the innovative and right thing to do for the Navy and the 
     nation.

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