Political Science 154: Weapons of Mass Destruction

Political Science 154: Weapons of Mass Destruction

Conventional (mostly) warfare at sea...

• Goal (again) is to provide a basic understanding of military affairs

• Large portion of world’s nuclear weapons are controlled by navies

• San Diego (largest Pacific port of the US Navy)

Naval warfare

• In some ways naval warfare has changed less than land warfare

• Part of this is because navies changed so much in early modern period

• Mission of the navy (any navy): Mahan (Clausewitz, Sun Zi)

• Sea Control:

• Ensure free passage of merchant marine (and US vessels, SSBNs)

• Interdiction of crime, trafficking, pirates, etc.

• Suppress enemy commerce/naval power

• Power projection

• Influence

• War fighting

Naval warfare, cont.

• Naval warfare is about capital ships

Battleship Cruiser Destroyer

Frigate Aircraft Carrier Amphib

Submarines:Attack “Boomer”

Oiler/LogisticsSupport ships:

Tender/C4I

Diesel

Hospital

Naval organization

• Navies organized several ways:

• Platform (flotillas/squadrons of...)

• Geography (regional commands, base commands)

• Operationally (armadas, fleets, the modern battle group)

• Organization can be multiple and overlapping

• Navies have lots of experience with settling jurisdictional issues

• Ships move around, hard to take permanent ownership...

Modern carrier battle group

Modern carrier battle group, cont.

Naval nuclear weapons

• Navies can manage/deploy nuclear weapons in several ways:

• SLBMs (Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles)

• Cruise Missiles (SLCMs, ALCMs, Regulus)

• Gravity Bombs or short range cruise missiles (B83, B61)

• Anti-submarine Rockets, depth charges (SUBROC no longer in service)

• Torpedoes (Mark 45 no longer in service)

Nuclear tests at sea

Naval power

• Oh, and this is also the navy...