Baffles (submarine)

Baffles (submarine)

The baffles is the area in the water directly behind a submarine or ship through which a hull-mounted sonar cannot hear. This blind spot is caused by the need to insulate the sonar array, commonly mounted near the bow, from the noise of the vessel's machinery.

Following a vessel by hiding in its baffles was a common submarine surveillance technique during the Cold War, which led to the tactic of "clearing the baffles" to detect followers. Other maneuvers relating to a submarine's baffles include the "Crazy Ivan", a hard turn to both clear the baffles and position the submarine to attack any followers, and "Angles and Dangles", a five-hour process of rapid direction and speed changes to ensure a submarine was not emitting any noise. Following a vessel in its baffles is dangerous, because of the high risk of collision.

Following the development of the towed-array sonar, which negates the baffles blind spot, such tactics have fallen out of use.

Read more about Baffles (submarine):  Background and Etymology

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