Alvin (DSV-2) is a crewed deep-ocean research submersible owned by the United States Navy and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. The vehicle was built by General Mills' Electronics Group in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Named to honor the prime mover and creative inspiration for the vehicle, Allyn Vine, Alvin was commissioned on June 5, 1964. The submersible is launched from the deep submergence support vessel RV Atlantis (AGOR-25), which is also owned by the U.S. Navy and operated by WHOI. The submersible has made more than 5,000 dives, carrying two scientists and a pilot, to observe the lifeforms that must cope with super-pressures and move about in total darkness, as well as exploring the wreck of Titanic. Research conducted by Alvin has been featured in nearly 2,000 scientific papers.
A midget submarine is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, from which they are launched and recovered and which provide living accommodation for the crew and support staff.
Mystic class is a class of Deep-Submergence Rescue Vehicles (DSRVs), designed for rescue operations on submerged, disabled submarines of the United States Navy or foreign navies. The two submarines of the class were never used for this purpose, and were replaced by the Submarine Rescue Diving Recompression System.
A deep-submergence vehicle (DSV) is a deep-diving crewed submersible that is self-propelled. Several navies operate vehicles that can be accurately described as DSVs. DSVs are commonly divided into two types: research DSVs, which are used for exploration and surveying, and DSRVs, which are intended to be used for rescuing the crew of a sunken navy submarine, clandestine (espionage) missions, or both. DSRVs are equipped with docking chambers to allow personnel ingress and egress via a manhole.
The Priz class is a type of deep-submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV) operated by the government of Russia. There are known to be at least five vessels of the class, several of which were involved in the failed rescue attempt when the submarine Kursk sank on 12 August 2000. The Russian word "Priz" (“приз”) means "prize".
A deep-submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV) is a type of deep-submergence vehicle used for rescue of downed submarines and clandestine missions. While DSRV is the term most often used by the United States Navy, other nations have different designations for their vehicles.
DSRV-2Avalon was a Mystic-class deep-submergence rescue vehicle rated to dive up to 5,000 feet (1,500 m) to rescue submarine crews trapped deep under the sea. The submarine was acquired in response to the loss of the USS Thresher, so that the Navy would have a way to rescue trapped submarine crews.
Gray Lady Down is a 1978 American submarine disaster film directed by David Greene and starring Charlton Heston, David Carradine, Stacy Keach, Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox and Rosemary Forsyth, and includes the feature film debut of Michael O'Keefe and Christopher Reeve. It is based on David Lavallee's 1971 novel Event 1000.
DSRV-1Mystic is a deep-submergence rescue vehicle that is rated to dive up to 5,000 feet. It was built by Lockheed for the US Navy at a construction cost of $41 million and launched 24 January 1970. It was declared fully operational in 1977 and named Mystic.
The Type 925 Dajiang with NATO reporting name Dajiang, or 大江 in Chinese, meaning Great River, is a type of naval auxiliary ship belonging to the People's Republic of China. Each ship is usually equipped with up to two Type 7103 DSRV class Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicles (DSRVs). The ship is designed to replace the first People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) submarine tender PLANS Mount Tai, and the lead ship of the Dajiang class is the Changxingdao. The Type 925 is a submarine tender that can also be used as a submarine rescue ship, and hence, it is designated as a submarine support ship by Chinese.
The People's Republic of China developed a class of 35-ton deep-submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV) for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). It was first tested in 1986 and operational in 1989.
Osprey class submersible is a class of submersible of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) specially designed to perform torpedo retrieving missions at test ranges. This class submersible was highly classified when it originally entered service in 1989, and it was not until more than a decade later in the mid of the first decade of the 21st century when it was revealed to the public, when one of the design team members, the deputy general designer Mr. Sun Xin (孙欣), was publicized in a 2006 interview to disclose some characteristics of the submersible. This class is currently consisted of two boats, Osprey 1 and Osprey 2.
The Cheonghaejin class is a submarine rescue ship class of the Republic of Korea Navy. Only one ship has been built in the class, ROKS Cheonghaejin, in 1995. Its operations include rescuing trapped sailors in submarines, naval operation support for submarines, underwater research and mapping support, and recovery of sunk vessels. It is equipped with a deep submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV) that operates up to 500 metres (1,600 ft), and a rescue chamber that holds up to nine people.
URF is the Royal Swedish Navy’s Submarine Rescue Vessel.
Chinese oceanographic research ship Zhang Jian is a Chinese research ship designed by Shanghai Ocean University and built by the civilian owned Zhejiang TianShi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (浙江天时造船有限公司) in Wenling, instead of government-owned enterprise, as in most cases of the ships in Chinese service.
The Rainbowfish class bathyscaphe is a Chinese deep submergence vehicle under development in 2015 and originally scheduled to enter service in 2019, but has since been postponed after 2020.
The LR7 is a deep-submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV) of the People's Republic of China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). It was built by Perry Slingsby of Britain and is a development of the LR5 DSRV. The LR7 entered service in 2009.
SRV-300 is a deep-submergence rescue vehicle that is rated to dive up to 300 m (980 ft). It was built by DRASS (Livorno) for the Marina Militare, and is capable of descending to 300 metres (980 ft) carrying 12 passengers in addition to crew. SRV-300 is hosted by Anteo, berthed at La Spezia.
Striver bathyscaphe is a type of deep-submergence vehicle built in the People's Republic of China (PRC). It was built by China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC). It can accommodate three crew members,and is designed to reach depths of more than 10,000 meters. Striver is equipped with two mechanical arms, seven underwater cameras, seven sonars, hydraulic drills, and other scientific devices.
Submarine rescue is the process of locating a sunk submarine with survivors on board, and bringing the survivors to safety. This may be done by recovering the vessel to the surface first, or by transferring the trapped personnel to a rescue bell or deep-submergence rescue vehicle to bring them to the surface. Submarine rescue may be done at pressures between ambient at depth, and sea level atmospheric pressure, depending on the condition of the distressed vessel and the equipment used for the rescue. Self-rescue of submarine personnel by buoyant free ascent at ambient pressure is considered submarine escape. Survivors may require recompression treatment for decompression illness.
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