Mk.48 ADCAP Heavy Weight Torpedo Attack Submarine SSN Navy

Submarine Weapon System
Mk.48 ADCAP Torpedo

mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 20

07/24

The Mark 48 and its improved Advanced Capability (ADCAP) variant are US heavyweight submarine-launched torpedoes. They were designed to sink deep-diving nuclear-powered submarines and high-performance surface ships.

The Mk.48 torpedo was designed at the end of the 1960s to keep up with the advances in Soviet submarine technology. Operational since 1972, it replaced the Mk.37 and Mk.14 torpedoes as the principal weapon of U.S. Navy submarines. With the entry into service of the new Soviet Alfa class submarine in 1972, the decision was made to accelerate the ADCAP program, which would bring significant modifications to the torpedo. Tests were run to ensure that the weapon could keep up with the developments and the weapon was modified with improved acoustics and electronics. The new version of the weapon, also known as Mk.48 Mod 4, was extensively tested and production started in 1985, with entry into service in 1988. From then on, various upgrades have been added to the torpedo. As of 2012 Mk.48 Mod 6 was in service; a Mod 7 version was test fired in 2008 in the Rim of Pacific Naval exercises. The inventory of the U.S. Navy is 1,046 Mk.48 torpedoes.

The Mk.48 torpedo is designed to be launched from submarine torpedo tubes. The weapon is carried by all U.S. Navy submarines, including Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines and Seawolf-, Los Angeles-, and Virginia-class attack submarines. It is also used on Canadian, Australian, and Dutch submarines. The Royal Navy elected not to buy the Mark 48, preferring to use the Spearfish instead.

Mk.48 and Mk.48 ADCAP torpedoes can be guided from a submarine by wires attached to the torpedo. They can also use their own active or passive sensors to execute programmed target search, acquisition, and attack procedures. The torpedo is designed to detonate under the keel of a surface ship, breaking the ship's back and destroying its structural integrity. In the event of a miss, it can circle back for another attempt.

General characteristics:
Primary Function: submarine-launched heavyweight torpedo
Manufacturer: Mod.1: Gould, Inc. / Honeywell ADCAP: Hughes Aircraft (now Raytheon)
Power Plant: swash-plate piston engine; pump jet (Otto fuel II)
Diameter: 21 inches (533 mm)
Length: 19 feet (5,79 m)
Weight: 3434 lb (1558 kg), original // 3695 lb (1676 kg), ADCAP
Range: > 25 NM (46 km)
Depth: > 1200 feet (365 m), officially // 800 meters (2620 feet), estimated
Speed: > 30 knots (56 km/h), officially // 55 knots (102 km/h), estimated
Warhead: 650 lb (295 kg)
In Service: 1971 - present (Mod 1) // 1988 - present (ADCAP)

Users: US Navy, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Canadian Navy, Royal Netherlands Navy, Brazilian Navy, Taiwan (ROC) Navy

images

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Mk.48 ADCAP torpedo was loaded into USS Topeka (SSN 754) - Polaris Point, Guam - June 2018

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mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 26

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Mk.48 ADCAP torpedo aboard USS Asheville (SSN 758)

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mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 13

Mk.48 ADCAP torpedoes aboard USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723)

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mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 14

Mk.48 ADCAP torpedoes aboard USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723)

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mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 15

Mk.48 ADCAP torpedo aboard USS Louisville (SSN 724)

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mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 16

Mk.48 torpedo was loaded into a Los Angeles class SSN - 1983

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mk.48 adcap heavy weight torpedo attack submarine ssn raytheon us navy los angeles virginia class 37

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a view into a torpedo tube aboard a Los Angeles class SSN

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