BILLING IN PROGRESS United States | Operation Solid Chance

[Odinson]

---

OPERATION SOLID CHANCE​

---

SECRET​

NAVY DEPLOYMENT​

​

SUBMARINE DEVELOPMENT SQUADRON 5
Captain Drake Riley​

Ship Class	Vessel	Compliment	Home Port
Seawolf-class Submarine (J. Carter variant)	USS Jimmy Carter	Blue: 141	Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

DETAILS

Seawolf-class (J. Carter variant) - Fully Fueled; Non-perishable food/water for 6 month journey; x50 M4A1 Carbine and associated ammo and x50 M1911 and associated ammo in barracks;
Countermeasures: x96 ADC MK5 acoustic decoys;
Armaments: x5 TLAM-E Block IV Tomahawks; x15 UGM-84A Harpoons; x30 Mark 48 torpedoes.

​

DEPLOYMENT ORDERS​

​

CONTEXT​

An unspeakably horrific problem had come back to haunt the United States, and the world, at an inconspicuous location in Antarctica. Only a handful of people knew the full scope of what was at hand and how to eliminate it. However, the entire truth of the matter could never be revealed to the world. In fact, it was decided amongst a few key leaders in the Sinclair Administration that it was best to not even disclose the full information of what was happening to the rest of the government or even the President's inner-circle. That meant, however, that a serious conundrum existed: how would a handful of people in the government convince the rest of the government and the world that the United States must have some kind of a military presence in Antarctica, and how would they get the military to eliminate a threat which everyone from the admirals and generals to the privates and seamen can't be told about?

It was ultimately decided that the President would inform his inner circle that he wanted the United States to take a tougher stance on Sweden's control of Antarctica. To justify doing this, the United States would need to find evidence that Sweden was violating the various Antarctic treaties and agreements, or at least the spirit of them. Because of the Swedish government's proclivity to skirt international law, the top brass at the Pentagon figured that there was a solid chance that Sweden had militarized Antarctica, had some secret black sites, or was otherwise doing things on the continent that it shouldn't be. On the advice of the Commander of Naval Intelligence, the President ordered that the USS Jimmy Carter deploy to the Southern Ocean to find evidence of any Swedish wrong doings. Whether or not the evidence would ever be published to the world, or just used in diplomatic talks with Sweden, would be at the discretion of the President.

The deployment of the submarine was Top Secret and took place in the middle of the night, sometime around two in the morning. Special measures were taken to ensure that certain views of Pearl Harbor were obscured, public cameras in certain places were disabled, and that there would be no press releases about the deployment of the submarine.​

Connor​

 

[Odinson]

DEPLOYMENT ORDERS​

SECRET​

The USS Jimmy Carter had an entire continent to go through to find evidence of Sweden doing anything unusual or blatantly breaking international law. Their mission was to find a needle in a haystack. The Office of Naval Intelligence took note of territories that once belonged to other nations which Sweden had annexed. These territories themselves were remote and desolate, but ONI felt that they would be the most likely places for Sweden to militarize or "occupy" for non-scientific purposes because of the possibility that the original owners would want their territories returned in the future. The decision was made to have the mission focus on these territories first and, if no evidence could be found, then the Navy would have to look harder into the white oblivion that was Antarctica.

The USS Jimmy Carter departed Pearl Harbor with her full complement at 2:04 A.M. on a Sunday. Once out at open sea, she dove to a depth of around 1,000 feet below sea level and traveled at a speed of 35 knots south. It was outside, somewhere in the deep Pacific, that the captain and his XO privately reviewed what their mission was. Their first stop would be near Peter I Island, a former Norwegian territory that Sweden had annexed without Norway's permission. The island was over 250 miles from the coast of Antarctica. Over 95-percent of the island was covered by ice year-round. Officers in the crew carefully studied detailed maps from the National Science Foundation of the parts of Peter I Island which were not always covered in ice, as well as somewhat flat parts of the glacier that could serve as a runway during certain times of the year. Once the submarine was 500 miles from Peter I Island, it slowed down to 20 knots which allowed it to run virtually silent in the deep abyss of the Pacific. Throughout her journey, the submarine would use all passive means of sonar and detection to listen for any threats, most specifically other submarines and warships.

When the submarine crossed the equator, 17 sailors went through an elaborate hazing ceremony that had been a Navy tradition for decades which was commonly referred to as: Crossing The Line. All 17 men went from being lowly pollywogs to proud shellbacks and members of King Neptune's Court. The XO was one of the pollywogs. The ceremony was a great morale booster for the crew. Later that day, before dinner, a Hawaiian party was held on board. The crew was served a tropical-themed dinner that evening which included, among other things, pineapple, coconut ice cream, and fried shrimp. Everyone on board was issued a lei (Hawaiian flower necklace) which they were permitted to wear for the remainder of the day.

The Jimmy Carter continued on her voyage until she was five miles off the northwest coast of the island. She would maintain a safe depth at all times to avoid running aground or into underwater geological formations.​

 

[Connor]

Unlike many of the sub-Antarctic and Antarctic islands under Swedish rule, Peter I Island was an unusual exception to the vast and somewhat unrestricted growth of Swedish defence infrastructure. It remains totally uninhabited and without even so much as a scientific research station. The arrival of the Americans would be somewhat anti-climatic but undoubtedly an amazing opportunity for the crew to experience the vast white cape that Antarctica has to offer - this volcanic island in particular was formally Norwegian territory and adopted as sovereign territory of the Kingdom of Sweden after the successful passing of the Resolution on Antarctica in the Global Assembly. The territory has gone undisputed by the Kingdom of Norway ever since.

The island is surrounded by pack-ice for most the year, making it fairly inaccessible however the ulta-promenant Lars Christensen Peak was an unmistakable landmark of the island, decorated by its unforgettable bluey-white icey coastline. The trip certainly wasn't wasted, it was a perfect introduction for what was in store for the American crew, there were many islands under Swedish rule in the region and many of them were in a similar condition to Peter I Island... some were not however... and they would soon find out. Sweden without doubt had secrets in the region and a few of them were particularly well guarded. Others however were in plain sight and had simply gone without much attention from the international community. Proper excitement was still to come.

Odinson

 

[Odinson]

DEPLOYMENT ORDERS​

SECRET​

The USS Jimmy Carter lumbered gracefully through the icy depths of the frigid Southern Ocean. The ship's navigation officer informed Captain Oliver Sullivan when the submarine crossed into the Swedish waters some 24 nautical miles off the northwest coast of Peter I Island. Captain Sullivan was standing in the Control Room alongside his executive officer, commonly referred to as "XO."

"1-MC," Sullivan said to the XO. The XO unhooked a microphone and handed it to the captain. The 1-MC was a microphone that broadcast to the entire ship via speakers.

"Gentlemen, we have crossed into foreign waters. Remember your duties and your training... Set condition 2-SQ, this is the captain." Sullivan handed the microphone to his XO.
"Set condition 2-SQ, this is the XO." The XO returned the microphone to its place.

The submarine was no longer operating under peacetime conditions and was now one level below battle stations. This heightened state of readiness was put in place so that the submarine could quickly react in case it was detected or attacked. The Jimmy Carter was already running silent at 20 knots, but as she approached the desolate Peter I Island, she slowed down further to just 10 knots. Once she was 6 miles away, she slowed down to 6 knots. The captain ordered, "Rig ship for ultra-quiet."

Certain systems on the submarine were turned off or reduced. The speed of the submarine was decreased to just 6 knots and crewmen who were not performing essential duties at that time went to their racks and laid down in silence. The submarine continued to silently drift towards the five-mile mark and quietly drifted in that same relative area for an hour. All passive means, especially the additional ones available on the USS Jimmy Carter, were used to detect radio signals, sonar signals, or any kind of mechanical devices that would indicate that a submarine or vessel of any kind was in the area. For an hour, nothing but marine life and a minimal amount of geologic activity were heard.

Captain Sullivan ordered the submarine up to periscope depth. The captain saw nothing but the natural landscapes of Peter I Island. The submarine was relocated to several other spaces, but again, nothing on the island appeared to be manmade, and none of the instruments on the ship could detect any kind of human activity. Numerous photographs were taken from the periscope using normal visuals as well as infrared ones. After a couple of hours of going around the island, the submarine submerged further down and was taken off of ultra quiet.

Captain Sullivan ordered the submarine on a northeast heading towards Deception Island. While all of Antarctica was, at some point, claimed by nations other than Sweden, Deception Island was a place in particular that had been used for everything from scientific research and brief militarized use to commercial developments for whalers in the early 19th century. Another careful approach was planned for Deception Island where the Jimmy Carter would remain safely below the water, several hundred feet below if permitting by local geography, while travelling below 20 knots toward the island relatively near Swedish territorial waters. Once the submarine was within fifteen miles West of Snow Island, she would turn southeast and follow the underwater canyon for some ten miles before turning East with a heading towards Deception Island.

Once again, as the Jimmy Carter came within 10 miles of Deception Island, she slowed down to just 10 knots. Once she was 6 miles away, she slowed down to 6 knots and the submarine was rigged for ultra-quiet again. As before, 60-90 minutes would go by as the submarine mostly maintained its position, barely moving at all, and carefully used all of its equipment and the necessary personnel aboard to listen for any kind of mechanical noise or transmitted signals that would indicate human activity. If none were detected, Captain Sullivan ordered her up to periscope depth to take pictures of the island from several different angles.

Connor
​