The sinking of South Korean Corvette Cheonan

siegecrossbow

siegecrossbow

General
Staff member
Super Moderator
AssassinsMace said:
I'd like to know what kind of activity was happening before and after the incident along the North Korean side of the border. If they are responsible wouldn't there have been some activity anticipating a response? A guy supposedly as paranoid as Kim certainly would've anticpated. The South is not the other side of the coin when it comes to the North. If Sung Yung Moon were from the North, he would be portrayed as the same but he's fortunate to be given the honor of being on the side of "good." I had read that during the Olympics opening ceremony, the Chinese were accused by insulted South Koreans of booing their team entering the stadium that all could hear on TV. Luckily I still had it on my DVR and went back to see and heard no booing at all when the South Koreans walked onto the field. Among other things I've read about South Korean politics and media, I wouldn't be surprised that this is made up or someone is exploiting an accident for political gain.
Click to expand...

Yes I would suspect some sensationalism from the South Korean media. Headlines like "North Korean subs launch surprise attack on Cheonan" sounds a lot better than "Cheonan sank due to internal explosion". Does this remind anyone of the U.S.S. Maine incident which took place over a century before? We really shouldn't be making assumptions until the South Koreans fish out the second half of Cheonan.
 
siegecrossbow

siegecrossbow

General
Staff member
Super Moderator
Shoot I've been behind on news. Thanks for pointing that out. Guess I should read threads more carefully from now on.
 
rhino123

rhino123

Pencil Pusher
VIP Professional
Actually other than a torpedo, I was wondering if a underwater mine would have such an impact too.
 
P

Pointblank

Senior Member
rhino123 said:
Actually other than a torpedo, I was wondering if a underwater mine would have such an impact too.
Click to expand...

No, most naval mines detonate too close to a ships' hull. The vast majority of case, these mines would hole a ship, but not cut it in two. A torpedo is the more likely culprit because it is more accurate and can be detonated at a better distance to cause more damage.
 
rhino123

rhino123

Pencil Pusher
VIP Professional
Pointblank said:
No, most naval mines detonate too close to a ships' hull. The vast majority of case, these mines would hole a ship, but not cut it in two. A torpedo is the more likely culprit because it is more accurate and can be detonated at a better distance to cause more damage.
Click to expand...

Make sense. Thanks. However is it possible for the following scenario,

Saying that the SK ship was actually not delibrately hit by a torpedo, instead, it collide with a floating mine (might be left over from the last Korean War, or some exercises in the past), this mine float to the side of the ship and since the SK ship is moving, might brushed it causing it to detonate.

I know there is a slim chance of this from happening, but is it possible actually for that scenario to play out and could a mine actually rip the ship in two?
 
L

LesAdieux

Junior Member
if it was a torpedo, then how come Choenan failed to detect it? according to SK, the sonar on Choenan is intact and still in working condition, launching a torpedo causes noise.
 
rhino123

rhino123

Pencil Pusher
VIP Professional
LesAdieux said:
if it was a torpedo, then how come Choenan failed to detect it? according to SK, the sonar on Choenan is intact and still in working condition, launching a torpedo causes noise.
Click to expand...

That is why I am suggesting that it might be a mine, in my above post.

Since that area is a troubled area, I do not think Choenan had turned off their radar in those area, thus before any torpedo attack, they might have already detected it, sent distress call and things like that, or even try to engage the torpedo (I do not know if the Choenan actually had weaponry against torpedo though).
 
P

Pointblank

Senior Member
LesAdieux said:
if it was a torpedo, then how come Choenan failed to detect it? according to SK, the sonar on Choenan is intact and still in working condition, launching a torpedo causes noise.
Click to expand...

Poor ASW conditions can be a factor in detection range. The weather, ocean currents, etc all play a factor in detection range.
 
rhino123

rhino123

Pencil Pusher
VIP Professional
Ok... taking it that Choenan was struck by a torpedo... this bring me to another question. What is Choenan equipped with against torpedo... or is it equipped at all against torpedoes.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top