Mystery submarines torment Scandinavia

[CougarKing]

Putin now eyeing Scandinavian states?

Defense News

Sweden Hunts Suspected Foreign Submarine Off Stockholm Coast
Oct. 17, 2014 - 04:52PM  |  By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

STOCKHOLM — The Swedish armed forces announced a military operation in islands off Stockholm late Friday evening following reports of suspicious "foreign underwater activity."

"We have begun an intelligence operation ... involving ships, helicopters and several ground units," Commander Jonas Wikstroem told reporters, adding that the operation was based on a tip-off from a "credible source."

Wikstroem did not specify how close the operation was to the Swedish capital but said that the military was informing the public as the area is "heavily trafficked."

In recent months, Swedish media have reported an uptick in Baltic Sea maneuvers by the Russian air force, including a close encounter between a Swedish spy plane in international airspace off Russia's Baltic Sea coast.

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[The Bread Guy]

Sweden's story - highlights mine:

Sweden continued Sunday a major military operation launched Friday to search for foreign underwater activity outside Stockholm, Swedish armed forces said.

The armed forces said Friday it had employed military vessels, aircraft and personnel to look for foreign underwater activity in the sea in the Kanholmsfjärden area, some 40 kilometers east of Stockholm, following a visual observation by a “credible source.” The Stockholm archipelago stretches some 60 kilometers to the east of the city center.

“At the moment we are conducting an intelligence operation in the archipelago of Stockholm with optical reconnaissance as well as with naval vessels equipped with qualified underwater sensors,” said Erik Lagersten, Director Communication and Public Affairs of the Swedish Armed Forces on Sunday. “The operation is conducted in order for the Armed Forces to establish if there are or has been foreign underwater activities in the area.”

Commander Jonas Wikström, who leads the military operation, said Saturday that he had decided to increase the number of vessels with sensor capabilities in the area, as the source was still regarded as very credible.

The armed forces didn’t confirm local media reports about the interception of a Russian distress call. The Svenska Dagbladet daily reported late Saturday that Swedish authorities Thursday intercepted a distress call in Russian, on a radio frequency reportedly used by Russia for emergency calls, and that Sweden also detected encrypted radio traffic between a location outside of Stockholm and Russia’s Baltic enclave Kaliningrad ....

Russia's story:

There have not been any emergency situations with Russian military vessels, spokesman for the Russian Defence Ministry said on Sunday.

“Russia’s submarines, like the surface ships, have been following their tasks in the world’s oceans according to the plan,” he said. “There have not been any emergencies or accidents with the Russian military vessels.”

On Saturday evening, Director Communication and Public Affairs of the Swedish Armed Forces Erik Lagersten said: "At the moment we are conducting an intelligence operation in the archipelago of Stockholm with optical reconnaissance as well as with naval vessels equipped with qualified underwater sensors. The units activated are from all branches of the Swedish Armed Forces, the Navy, the Army and the Air Force.”

Sweden’s spokesman said the ministry would not publish any details. The country’s Armed Forces are not in a position to deny or verify media news or speculations recently published about a missing foreign submarine, he said ....

op:

 

[tomahawk6]

More on the story.

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20141019/DEFREG01/310190012/

 

[Good2Golf]

The Russian spokesperson's statement does not go as far as to say that there are no Russian vessels inside Sweden's (or any other nations') sovereign waters...

 

[The Bread Guy]

The Russian spokesperson's statement does not go as far as to say that there are no Russian vessels inside Sweden's (or any other nations') sovereign waters...

:nod:  Just nothing out of the ordinary or distressing (to Russia, anyway) ....

 

[CougarKing]

Swedish authorities have released a picture:

Sweden releases photo of mysterious 'foreign vessel' suspected of being damaged Russian submarine

An image released by Swedish authorities of the unidentified vessel.


The Swedish military has presented photographic evidence of a mysterious "foreign vessel" off the coast of Stockholm but rejected reports of being on the "hunt" for a damaged submarine.

Ever since the armed forces received a tip-off about a "man-made object" off the coast of Stockholm Friday, 200 men, several stealth ships, minesweepers and helicopters have been searching the sea around islands about 50km east of the Swedish capital.


9News

 

[Shrek1985]

Wow, this again, huh?  interesting. This was going on back on the 60s-80s as well IIRC.

 

[Good2Golf]

"Whatever" it is, it definitely looks to be within Sweden's territorial waters...  :nod:

 

[Cloud Cover]

Have we accounted for our own submarines lately? Perhaps the lads are looking for some Ikea furniture or a volleyball match .... 

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

Nah! We stopped buying from Ikea when the instructions became too complicated for our Engineers…


Just kidding, Chief Stoker.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Apparently another report that a patrol boat struck a unidentified buoy.

 

[OldSolduer]

Maybe its Ogopogo or the Loch Ness Monster....

 

[cupper]

Maybe its Ogopogo or the Loch Ness Monster....

The Swedes have their own version of Nessie:

http://www.strangemag.com/lakestorsjonmonster.html

THE LAKE STORSJÖN MONSTER

Fisheries officer Ragnar Björks, 73, was out checking fishing permits on Sweden's Lake Storsjön when he had the fright of his life. From the placid waters a huge tail suddenly broke the surface near Björk's 12 foot row boat. The colossal creature attached to the tail appeared to be 18 feet long, grey-brown on top with a yellow underbelly. When Björks was alongside the monster, he struck at it with his oar, hitting it on the back. Angered, the creature slapped the water with its tail and the rowboat was thrown nine to twelve feet into the air. "At first I didn't believe that there was any monster in the Storsjön...but now I am convinced."

Does Nessie have a relative in Lake Storsjön in the mountains of Northern Sweden? A large unknown creature has been seen in the lake for over 350 years. Since 1987 the Society for Investigating the Great Lake has collected some 400 reports of "Storsjöodjuret," as the Swedes call the monster.

There is no clear picture of the beastie. Some witnesses describe a large neck undulating back and forth that looks like a horse's mane; others observed a large wormlike creature with recognizable ears. Reports of the creature's size range from 10 to 42 feet in length.

Like the Loch Ness Monster, one of the numerous theories is that during the Ice Age 15,000 years ago, the monster may have become trapped in the Swedish Lake.

Loch Ness and Lake Storsjön are not isolated cases of lakes that are believed to harbor monsters. In Europe there are also reports of such creatures from Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Norway, Wales, and elsewhere. In fact, there are over 250 lakes around the world which are believed to be inhabited by monsters.

There is a common pattern in the lake monster puzzle: the animals all are found in lake and river systems that are either connected to the sea or have been in the past, and these systems all either harbor or once harbored migratory fish. In many cases, the lakes are deep and cold.

 

[CougarKing]

More updates:

Suspicious Russian ship was headed for Denmark
Published: 19 Oct 2014

As Swedish intelligence officers continue their search for a foreign vessel reported outside of Stockholm, a Russian-owned tanker has been circling in international waters for days despite having Denmark as its listed destination.

The picture in the tweet below shows the ship's movements since October 15th.

The Local

Swedes Could be Searching for Covert Russian Midget Sub

By: Sam LaGrone
Published: October 21, 2014

The mystery submersible spotted in Swedish waters near Stockholm on Friday could be one of a handful of Soviet-era midget submarines operating from a mother ship in the Baltics and not likely a larger Russian Navy submarine.

Though the Russians have denied any involvement, the presence of a Russian-owned cargo ship, NS Concord, acting suspiciously in the Baltic and reports of encrypted transmissions on a Russian emergency channel toward the Russian naval base at Kaliningrad originating near Sweden point toward the operation of a Russian midget sub.

NS Concord was spotted moving in a zigzag pattern in Swedish waters, "as if in a search or rendezvous pattern," reported Jane's.

"When the situation became more publicly known, NS Concord turned about and headed northeastwards towards Russian waters."

NS Concord was off the coast of Estonia and steaming in the direction of St. Petersburg, Russia as of Tuesday afternoon, according to MarineTraffic.com. One possible suspect is a Soviet-era midget submarine used for insertion of special operations forces (SOF) that Russia has been marketing for export.[/font]


USNI News

 

[OldSolduer]

So are midget subs manned by dwarves or midgets? >

 

[CougarKing]

So are midget subs manned by dwarves or midgets? >

Elves.  :blotto:

In other news...there's MORE sightings??

Reuters

Sweden gets two new sightings, as hunt for undersea intruder goes on
Reuters

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's military is working on two new observations that could be evidence of suspected "foreign underwater activity" near the country's capital, a senior naval officer said on Tuesday.

Swedish forces have been scouring the sea off Stockholm since Friday, after what the military called three credible reports of activity by foreign submarines or divers using an underwater vehicle.

The vessels were unidentified, but during the 1980s the Swedish navy from time to time hunted suspected Soviet submarines in its waters.

"Today, I can also report that there have been two further observations which were made by members of the public that are interesting enough to require further follow-up work," Admiral Anders Grenstad told reporters.

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[CougarKing]

It's not a scaling down of the operation yet, or so they say.

Defense News

Sweden Pulls Back Ships As 'Foreign Sub' Hunt Draws Blank
Oct. 22, 2014 - 02:17PM  |  By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

STOCKHOLM — Sweden said Wednesday it was pulling back part of its navy that has been searching for a suspected Russian submarine off the coast of Stockholm for nearly a week with no vessel found.

Battleships, minesweepers, helicopters and more than 200 troops have scoured an area about 30 to 60 kilometers (20 to 40 miles) from the Swedish capital since Friday following reports of a "man-made object" in the water.

"Some of the ships have returned to port," armed forces spokesman Erik Lagersten told reporters, adding that it was a "new phase" and not a scaling down of the operation.

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[CougarKing]

It seems Ivan got through the Swedish cordon...if the Russians were ever there at all:

Military.com

Sweden Calls Off Search for Submarine

Associated Press | Oct 24, 2014
STOCKHOLM -- Swedish authorities called off their weeklong search for a suspected submarine in the Stockholm archipelago Friday, saying the presumed intruder had probably escaped into the Baltic Sea.
Naval and amphibious forces were ordered back to base, while some ground forces remained in the search area, military officials said.

"We assess that the (vessel) that violated our waters has now left," Rear Adm. Anders Grenstad said.

Sweden's military launched its biggest anti-submarine operation since the twilight of the Soviet Union last Friday after receiving what it said were credible eyewitness reports of some type of underwater craft in the archipelago that extends from the capital, Stockholm, into the Baltic Sea.
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[OldSolduer]

It seems Ivan got through the Swedish cordon...if the Russians were ever there at all:

Maybe it was an undersea monster.....

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Meanwhile back at the Lutefisk ranch
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/11191777/Mystery-submarine-sighting-gives-clue-to-Russias-Arctic-ambitions.html