A $6B Nuclear U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier 'Sunk' by $100M Diesel 'AIP' Sub

Summary

Key Points and Summary – In 2005, workups off California, Sweden’s AIP-powered HMS Gotland (built for around $100,000,000) reportedly penetrated the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan’s (built for around $6,000,000,000) screen and registered simulated torpedo “kills,” exposing how hard modern diesel-electrics are to detect and track. -The U.S. Navy responded by leasing Gotland (2005–2007) as a full-time sparring partner in San Diego, giving carriers, destroyers, P-3/P-8 crews, and MH-60R squadrons live reps against a truly quiet boat. (October 30, 2007) – USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) conducts Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) following a six-month Planned Incremental Availability (PIA). All Naval vessels are periodically inspected by INSURV to check their material condition and battle readiness. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (AW) M. Jeremie Yoder. -The lesson wasn’t that aircraft carriers are obsolete; it was that air-independent propulsion and patient SSK tactics demand layered, disciplined, team-based ASW. -The experience helped catalyze upgraded sensors, multistatic tactics, and a culture that treats quiet adversaries as the default. When HMS Gotland Humbled A Navy Aircraft Carrier—and Rebooted U.S. ASW In 2005, a small, diesel-electric submarine from Sweden forced the most powerful navy on earth to rethink some very basic assumptions. During pre-deployment workups off Southern California, HMS Gotland reportedly penetrated the defensive screen of Aircraft Carrier Strike Group 7, lined up on USS Ronald Reagan, and registered multiple “kills” with exercise torpedoes before slipping away. No fireworks. No skyline of smoke. Just a periscope, a camera, and the cold arithmetic of probability. As an editor and think tank researcher for several publications and institutions over the years, I was utterly shocked when I came across this story a decade ago. The story has been told—and retold—for years. But when you strip away the internet lo...