The Socialist Republic of Sieran

[denodon]

Now that I've finished university for the year I have time to draw again so here's a quick question;

How feasible is a Zulu/Foxtrot class submarine clone fitted with a Walter HTP engine for a date of around 1951 or so? Post war Sierans Navy took an ever increasing focus on submarines being their key offensive weapons and the need to operate extended periods beneath ice is crucial.
Also when were the first submarine nuclear reactors produced? I highly doubt Sieran would have such technology in their designs due to budget constraints however I'm interested to know what others think.

One final thing, when did tube-launched missiles become viable?

[eswube]

Also when were the first submarine nuclear reactors produced?

When the USS Nautilius was being built, so the first half of the 1950s.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Nautilus_%28SSN-571%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S2W_reactor
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S1W_reactor

Mind that Soviet Union had their first nuclear submarine in late 1950s (Pr.627 Kit, NATO November class), British HMS Dreadnought actually used US reactor (S5W) and French and Chinese had their submarine reactors around 10 years later, to be followed by India quite recently.
So I highly doubt that Sieran could domestically produce such thing too.

One final thing, when did tube-launched missiles become viable?

I'm not sure, but that's around late early 1980s. UGM-84 for example was deployed first in 1981.

[odysseus1980]

If you want Walther-powered submarine in 1951 look at latest Kriegsmarine submarines equipped with Walther engine.Perhaps this technology could be delivered to Sieran via USSR.

[denodon]

That's effectively what I was thinking, as part of the USSR's 'incentives' for Sieran to join them instead of continuing to follow the US through providing access to some of the technology taken from the Germans. The USSR experimented with both Walter and closed-cycle diesels for some time before, during and after WW2 so it might make sense for some of that to get passed over.

Heh, and yes, basically ruling out any kind of nuclear capability for Sieran for many reasons so other forms of AIP are the focus.
1981 may be a bit late for me then. Probably keep these as just torpedo submarines with perhaps a version fitted for surface-launched missiles.

[denodon]

Here is one of the many drawings that I started but didn't get around to finishing until now, the D class submarine;



A predecessor to the E type, the D class submarines were designed right at the end of the Great War as an enlarged version of the preceding classes taking advantage of the then new bow design and upper work casing. The D class were also the first submarines for Sieran to be fitted with Diesel engines, all previous designs having been powered by petrol engines for which vapors had always been a constant hazard.

The class had a maximum surface speed of 15 knots and submerged speed of 6 knots. The boats handled somewhat sluggishly submerged and were underpowered but had a fairly rapid dive time and decent (for the time) endurance that made them adequate for coastal work. Later designs would feature larger tanks for extended range and room for carrying torpedo reloads. The D class had only it's four torpedoes in the loaded bow tubes, no reloads were carried and thus reloading had to be carried out with the aid of one of the submarine tenders (Drawing coming soon).

Only a handful of the D class boats remained in service by WW2, with many of them having been handed over the Chinese Government for use against the Japanese during the early 30s.

[eswube]

Very nice!

[Raxar]

Nice work, I like it!

[denodon]

Whilst not an actual shipbucket drawing, here is a better map for Sieran taken from one of the Google Maps but with the added town names for all the major locations with populations of over 200. The majority of the population is centered in the South and along the coast in the taiga areas rather than in the tundra of the North. Big Diomede is also part of Sieran however it is not marked on the map as there is no permanent settlement on it beyond a weather station (like the majority of Sierans inherited islands).

Through this map, you can see some of the major areas that would need defenses hence the reason for doing the map. The Anadyr gulf in particular is rather important as a location.
Whilst this map does not show the rivers, it does show the district divisions within the province that exist in reality as well as in this AU.

The map is in a spoiler as it is rather large in size.

[denodon]

Courtesy of Rowdy36's fine work, I now present the Korolev PI-34A 'Kanyuk' (Buzzard) Interceptor;



To compare, here is the original drawing I did which he based the FD scale drawing on;



Designed to a state issue for a monoplane fighter to replace the numerous biplanes then in service, the Korolev entry that became the PI-34 was unusual for a variety of reasons.
Foremost it was the first fighter design to be produced by the design and manufacture bureau, the company having only previously built and designed larger aircraft, primarily bombers and transports for state needs. The design itself had been largely based upon the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 which had been evaluated and found largely satisfactory except for its limitations in range and concerns over its wing loading. The French aircraft however was deemed suitable for production with its traditional construction and ease of manufacture.

The design that ultimately became the PI-34 was in essence a 'Sieranianised' 406, with a larger wing, lengthened rear fuselage for additional fuel and a Movich inverted-vee, direct-injection engine of 850hp based upon the Hispano-Suiza 12Y then in licensed production. Armamant remained the same with two 7.62mm machine guns in the wings and a 20mm cannon firing through the propeller spinner. The cockpit equipment was rudimentary at best with only a primitive gunsight and no fuel gauges amongst others. Despite the spartan fit, evaluation trials proved the aircraft to be agile and capable of decent performance and, perhaps more importantly, was cheap and quick to put into production.

The first combat to be seen by the PI-34A series was in China with a squadron sent to support the Chinese government in their war against the invading Japanese. It was here that the Kanyuks' performance shortfalls became apparent against the Japanese A5M and Ki-27 aircraft. Whilst the Kanyuk could hold its own at medium altitude, it's heavy build meant that acceleration and climb performance was relatively poor compared to its lightweight rivals. Whilst at high altitude the Kanyuk could beat the Japanese, most engagements it found itself in were at low level where the aircraft was a poor match.
It's armament was also found to be lacking. The7.62mm guns lacked the power to deal serious damage to aircraft and the 20mm cannon was too slow firing despite its punch to be used against fighter-sized aircraft.

Despite these issues, the aircraft was popular with its pilots and ground crews, having the by then legendary reputation of sturdiness and rugged construction that Korolevs' bombers were known for. By the time war came to Sieran directly in mid-1942, the PI-34A was obsolete, the remaining squadrons being replaced by improved later models as well as the Litvinov PI-37 Skopa by 1943.

Drawings and information for the PI-34's later models are to come. Stay tuned.

[odysseus1980]

Nice design, one detail only: The Hispano-Suiza 12Y was normal "V", not inverted. It can be modified to direct fuel injection (Daimler-Benz WW2 injection was based on that of diesel engines), but convert a normal "V" to inverted I do think is easy, mostly lubrication is the problem.