Fictional Warships - Novels

[Grey Havoc]

It also contains the usual 'period notions', in this case that the various European peace movements were either directly or indirectly under the control of the KGB.

There was a fair bit of truth to that. (The Soviet Foreign Ministry was also involved.) Though with regard as to Britain MI5 later claimed (in the early 2000s) that by the 1980s the Soviets had little direct contact or influence over the Peace Movement there. The veracity of this claim is subject to some major scepticism however.

 

[Graham1973]

George Carusso, It's a Long Way Down, published in Full Forty Fathoms: Stories of Underwater Adventure, Phyllis R. Fenner (ed.), 1975

United States

USS S-196M
S Class Submarine?
Details as per the real ships
Note: Appears in a characters backstory. There were only 51 S Class Submarines built. The backstory itself appears to be based on the sinking of USS Squallus (SS-192) (Renamed USS Sailfish upon salvage.).

USS S-169R
S Class Submarine?
Details as per the real ships.
Note: There were only 51 S Class Submarines built.

Note: Class assignments for the two submarines above are based on the names only.

USS Clyde
'Warship' type not specified
No other details provided.

USS Mallard (AM-4)
Lapwing Class Submarine Rescue Ship
Real ship, details as in service 1919 - 1946

Plot summary: It is some time in World War II. A submarine has been sunk in a collision with a surface ship. For the survivors time is running out, but a lack of experienced divers is hampering operations. The commander is forced to turn to a former Navy Diver, once a friend, but now a bitter enemy, for assistance.

Note: The author provides no specific dating information, only that the events of the story proper are taking place in WWII after the Squallus rescue in 1939 and that the events in the backstory are taking place 25 years before the 'now' of the main plot. If the main story is taking place in 1944 (The year the story was first published.), then the events of the backstory are taking place in 1919. As with 'The Living Torpedo' (1951) by Tom Yates, this story was first published in 'The Saturday Evening Post' (In a 1944 edition of the magazine.) before being reprinted in this short story collection.

 

[Graham1973]

Irving A. Greenfield, Depth Force, 1984

USS Stephen Decatur
'Aircraft Carrier', class not specified
No other details provided
Note: Author refers to this ship as an 'Attack Carrier' but provides no other specifics to determine class. The US Navy has never had ship named USS Stephen Decatur, but have had several named USS Decatur, in honor of Commodore Stephen Decatur. The most recent of these being an Arleigh Burke Class destroyer commissioned in 1998, its predecessor a Forrest Sherman Class destroyer was decommissioned in 1983 prior to being converted into a Self Defense Test Ship.

USS Stingray
Submarine (SSN), class not specified
Note: The name had last been used by the US Navy during WWII for a Salmon Class Submarine. The author spells the name 'Sting Ray', editorial discretion has been used.

USS Shark
Submarine, class not specified
Displacement: 25,000 tons
Length: 352ft (107.3m)
Beam: 45ft (13.7m)
Rated Maximum Operating depth: 3000ft
Engines: Nuclear (Uses High, rather than low pressure steam)
Speed: 60knots (Max, not specified if submerged or surfaced speed.)
Crew: 40
Armament: Unspecified Surface to Air & Surface to Surface Missiles, 4 x ICBMs with MIRV warheads (Most likely Tridents), 8 x TT (4 bow and 4 stern), 2 x 6 inch guns, 2 x 20mm guns mounted in the sail.
Electronics: The submarine is highly automated allowing many standard crew positions to be eliminated. The computer provides three dimensional projections of the submarines surrounds through two systems. The Grid Display Table (GDT) provides a precise map of the submarines surroundings and also allows a sonar 'snapshot' of everything within a 5000yard (4.6km) sphere of the submarine to be taken. The UnderWater Image Screen (UWIS) is a visual imager that displays a synthetic image of the submarines exterior based on the input from the submarines sensors. Also fitted is an Aircraft Target Indicator (ATI) capable of tracking 50 airborne targets simultaneously and determining their threat priority.
Hull: Three layer construction, outer layer is steel, middle layer is a glass like form of silicone and the inner layer is aluminum.
Also carries two "...undersea recon craft...". These are described as "...delta wing shaped and driven by an electric motor... fifteen knots under water and four at the surface. They were equipped with sufficient air supply... two men for six hours and they were armed with four mini torpedoes, each of which had an effective operating range of four thousand yards."
Note: Conning tower is retracted into the hull underwater to allow for the high speed. The submarine is not attached to the United States Navy but is operating under the auspices of the CIA.

MV Tecumseh
Submarine Support Ship (Modified Oil Tanker)
No specifics as to dimensions, but large enough to house a dock for the USS Shark inside the hull.
Engines: Nuclear (Stated to be identical to the power plant used on the Nimitz Class Aircraft Carriers, the ship has been designed to simulate use of a conventional power plant.)
Note: Nominally owned by the Thomas W. Williams Company (Stated to be a shell company owned by the CIA.), the crew of the USS Shark are listed as crew members, but there is also a cover crew on board. During the briefing it's stated the idea for this ship was taken from an "...old James Bond film." This is the film 'From Russia with Love', whose novelization I've covered earlier in the thread.

Russia

Skoryy (Eng: Fast)
Kotlin (Pr. 56) Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.
Note: The ships name is also the name of the first Post-WWII Russian Destroyer class (No ship of the Skoryy class was given this name.). The ship is in the original Kotlin Class configuration (e.g. It has not been modified to carry Surface to Air Missiles.). The Kotlin Class as a whole was in service between 1955 and 1992

Z-15
Submarine (SSN), class not specified
Displacement (Surfaced): 4,500 tons
Length: 360ft (110m)
Armament: 4 x TT
No other details.
Note: Described in the text as a November (Pr. 627) class submarine, but the details regarding armament do not fit that class.

Q-21
Submarine (SSN), class not specified
Speed: 40 knots (Submerged)
Crew: 42
Armament: 5 x IRBMs (Three fwd of conning tower, two aft), 1 x 130mm gun (FWD), 2 x ZSU-23 AA guns (One on conning tower, one aft of conning tower), 6 x TT (4 bow, 2 stern)
Can handle all types of torpedos currently in service with the Russian navy, also carries torpedoes that are sonar (5km range)/television (500m) guided.
Captain has unofficialy named the ship "...More Dekar'..." which the author translates as 'Sea Savage', according to Google Translate the correct Russian would be "...Morskoy Dikar'..."
No other details provided.

Boris Paskov
Oiler, class not specified
No other details provided.

Unnamed
2 x 'Z Class' Frigates
No other details provided.

Krasivaya Ukraina (Eng: Beautiful Ukraine)
Gorky Class Cruiser (Fictional Class)
Described as a 'Heavy Cruiser'
No other details
Note: Author spells the cruisers name as 'Kraceve Ukran'. I've elected to substitute the correct translation derived from Google Translate in this case.

Unnamed
2 x Petrov Class Destroyers (Fictional Class)
No other details

Torpy Island Base
Guided Missile base.
Located on a island located "...a few degrees below the equator, in the middle of the Pacific ocean..." it sits on a "...fault that goes all the way down to the Antarctic." Author later states it is part of the 'Nekor Islands', a fictitious chain of coral atolls located '...somewhere in the South Pacific...'
Armed with "...long-range multiple warhead nuclear missiles..." In the same paragraph it's casually mentioned that the Russians never pulled the missiles out of Cuba following the Cuban Missile Crisis but instead shipped more in.

China (People's Republic)

Yu-Kwai Chwan
Type 056 Class Frigate (Fictional)
Armament: 1 x 2 5 inch (A Turret), 8 x AT-11 ASW Missiles (FWD, Most likely where B turret would have been on the unmodified ship.), 4 x AT-11 ASW Missiles (AFT), 2 x TT, 2 x AA mounts, 1 x Depth Charge Rack (Aft)
Dimensions as per the original Riga (P.50) Class Frigates
Note: Author describes this ship as "...a Chinese Type-Fifty-Six Missile Frigate. That's the one converted from the Soviet RIGA class DEs." No specifics are provided for the 'AT-11' ASW missiles, most likely these are related in some way to the Russian RBU series of ASW missiles. The actual Type 056 Class Frigates entered service in 2013 and are a replacement for the Type 053 Class.
No other details provided.

Non-ship, but interesting.

United States

Underwater breathing mask.
Description: Appears just like a standard scuba mask.
Capability: To extract oxygen directly from seawater, allowing a diver to operate without oxygen tanks at depths up to 500ft (152.4).

M-88 'Sidewinder'
Submachine Gun
Ammunition: .45 ACP (Can be converted to 9mm Parabellum)
Fire rate: 1200 rounds-per-minute
Can fire either a single round, three-round burst or full auto depending on how far back the trigger is pulled.
The ones in the novel are described as civilian versions of a weapon in service with the US Army, but no specifics beyond what's given above is provided.

Russia

AK-SK
Assault Rifle
5.56mm successor to the AK-74
Described as being newly introduced.

For the aircraft mavens.

United States

U-4
High Altitude Reconnaissance Aircraft
No other details provided
Note: Presumably the aircraft is a further development of the U-2.


Plot summary: The year is 1995. The US has just commissioned a new and highly secret submarine, it's undergoing it's sea trials when it's discovered the Soviets have built a missile base in the southern Pacific. It has to be taken out before it can be put online, only the new submarine appears to offer the chance to do so in deniable fashion.

Note: Irving A. Greenfield (b.1928) was a veteran author specializing in science fiction and borderline pornographic fiction, when this series was launched. Sporting impressive cover artwork (Not only better than the contents of the books, but better than the covers used on Richard P. Henrick's much superior fiction.), the series ran for 17 novels, plus a double length 'Super Depth Force' novel between 1984 and 1992. Having read this book I'm surprised the series lasted as long as it did, it feels like something from the 1960s and the authors emphasis on graphic sex scenes every other chapter does not help. I've seen other reviews online that indicate the series did not improve with time and may have held their audience by the simple expedient of ending each story on a cliffhanger.

 

[Graham1973]

William H. Keith (Pen name H. Jay Riker), The Silent Service: Ohio Class, 2006

United States

USS Pittsburgh (SSN-720)
Los Angeles Class (Flight II)
Real ship, details as in service 1984 - 2019.
Note: This submarine also appeared in the following previous novels in the series 'Grayback Class' (2000) and 'Los Angeles Class' (2001).

USS Ohio (SSGN-726)
Ohio Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service 1981 - Ongoing.
Note: The submarines former 12th missile silo has been modified to act as a 'hangar' for the Manta Submarine Fighter, the modifications include the equipment necessary to allow the minisub enter the silo underwater.

USS Sirocco (PC-6)
Cyclone Class Patrol Ship
Real ship, details as in service

USS Firebolt (PC-10)
Cyclone Class Patrol Ship
Real ship, details as in service

USS Manta (XSSF-1)
Underwater Fighter (Minisub)
Rated Maximum Operating depth: 3281ft (1000m)
Crew: 1 (The crewman in the test program is a US Navy fighter pilot. The cockpit of the submarine is designed to be ejected from the submarine in an emergency.)
Description: "Just over ten meters in length and two meters thick, the Manta looked like a squat and slightly flattened torpedo in prelaunch mode, it's dimensions dictated by those of the Trident II D5 ICBM. ...the Manta's aft section unfolded to create a downward angled delta with a gaping forward intake. ...the tough little delta-foil..."
Armament: 2 x Supercavitating Torpedoes (Carried internally.) mounted in the bow. The weapons are called Stormwind Supercavitating Torpedo (Rocket) (STR), Weight: 0.5 tons, Speed: 230 knots, "...small HE warhead... ...relying on mass and speed to achieve a kinetic kill." The weapons have been designed for use on UUVs and craft like the Manta.
Engines: Fuel Cells which are used to heat water which is "...squirted astern like the exhaust of a ramjet."
Speed: 100knots(+)
Note: Like the fictional Orca Class Submarines in 'The Last Fathom' (1967) by Martin Caidin, this submarine has been designed with negative buoyancy, it has to move at at least 15 knots or it will sink. The intention of the development program is to produce a submarine fighter that can be carried in the former missile tubes of Ohio Class Submarines. 'XSSF' officially stands for "...Experimental Submarine Fighter...", the unofficial meaning is "...X-Files Super-Science Fiction...".

Advanced SEAL Delivery Vehicle
Minisub (Class)
Details as per the real vehicle.
Note: This was a class that was under development between 1983 - 2009. The program was cancelled due to cost overruns. In the novel the class has become operational in 2008.

MV Dolores Chouest
Submarine Support Ship
Real ship, details as in service.
Note: A Civilian vessel leased by the US Navy to support DSRVS and is part of Military Sealift Command. In the novel this is the support ship for the Manta Submarine Fighter program.

Iran

Alborz (72)
Alvand Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service

Tareq (901)
Kilo (Pr.877) Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service.

Noor (902)
Kilo (Pr.877) Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service.

Yunes (903)
Kilo (Pr.877) Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service.

Ghadir
Ghadir Class Submarine (Fictional version)
Length: 76m (249.3ft)
Weight: Probably around 3000 tons submerged. At one point the author states that the displacement of a 275,000 oil tanker is nine times greater than the submarines submerged displacement, suggesting a submerged displacement of 30,000 tons which is too high given that it appears to be close in size to the Kilo (Pr.877) Class.
Armament: 4 x 21 inch TT Bow
Engines: Diesel Electric, equipped with a snorkel.
Note: The actual Ghadir Class is a minisub derived from the North Korean Yono Class. This appears to be a Kilo (Pr.877) Class derivative.

Plot summary: The year is 2008 (The story runs between Tuesday, 27th of May and Friday, 8th of August.). The United States has tried to investigate an Iranian military base believed to contain nuclear weapons. The first mission ran into trouble and now a new team has been sent in, but will they find what's expected...

Note: This is the last book in the series. In the other novels I've read the author stuck to real classes of warship, in this one with the introduction of USS Manta (XSSF-1), the author brings in something that, as he has his characters state seems out of Science-Fiction. I've covered the authors background in the post for the short story 'UNODIR' (1999).

 

[Graham1973]

Steven Wilson, Voyage of the Gray Wolves, 2004

United Kingdom

HMS Firedancer
F Class Destroyer (Modified)
Armament: 'A' turret has been replaced with a Hedgehog launcher. The main battery guns are 4.5 inch guns rather than 4.7 inch. Other armament appears typical of the ships of the E & F Classes at this point in the war.
Built: 1935 (Not clear if author means launched or commissioned.)
Other details as per the real ships.
Note: Author identifies this ship as a member of the 'Fame' Class, HMS Fame was an F Class Destroyer launched in 1934. Details about the armament are from the authors 2007 novel 'Armada' in which this ship plays a prominent role.

HMS Punjabi (F21)
Tribal Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1939 - 1942
Note: Ships history in the novel does not correspond to the real ships history.

HMS Encounter (H10)
E Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1934 - 1942.
Note: Ships history in the novel does not correspond to the real ships history..

HMS Foresight (H68)
F Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1935- 1942
Note: Ships history in the novel does not correspond to the real ships history.

HMS Fury (H76)
F Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1935 - 1944.
Note: Ships history in the novel does not correspond to the real ships history.

Germany

U-686
Type VIIF U-Boat
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Pennant is that of a Type VIIC U-Boat ordered in 1941 whose construction was cancelled in 1944.

Gruppe Grief

Lech
Submarine Depot Ship
Weight: 6000tons
Fully equipped to repair U-Boats
No other details provided.

U-1027
Type XIV U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Pennant is that of a Type VIIC/41 ordered in 1943 whose construction was abandoned at the end of the war.

U-3535
Type XXI U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Modified to carry two RTG missiles in canisters aft of the conning tower. Pennant is that of a Type XXI that was captured incomplete on the slips by the Soviets.

U-3712
Type XXI U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Modified to carry two RTG missiles in canisters aft of the conning tower. The pennant number does not appear to have been used by the Kriegsmarine.

U-3719
Type XXI U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Modified to carry two RTG missiles in canisters aft of the conning tower. The pennant number does not appear to have been used by the Kriegsmarine.

U-3780
Type XXI U-Boat
Details as per the real ships. The pennant number does not appear to have been used by the Kriegsmarine.
Note: Scuttled due to battle damage before it can be modified.

9 Unnamed Type XXI U-Boats
Details as per the real ships
Note: All unnamed units are destroyed on the slips prior before they can join the main force.

For the rocketry mavens

Raketen Tauch-Geschoss (RTG)

Underwater launched missile
Range: 100km (62miles)
Warhead: Either 1860pd (844kg) of TNT or equivalent weight of Anthrax (Including a small bursting charge.)
Description: "...pencils with stubby wings aft: just a shade over seventeen meters in length and two meters across."
Launch process: The missiles are carried in canisters aft of the conning tower. When the time comes to launch the missiles the top of the canister opens and the missile is raised to the vertical position before firing.

Plot summary: The D-Day landings have succeeded and the Germans are been driven back. For the German navy the loss of French submarine bases has been crippling, but with new designs at last coming on line, the chance to strike back has to be taken.

Note: The story begins shortly after the D-Day landing, While this appears to be the earliest published of the three novels by this author, chronologically it is set after the events of 'Armada' (2007).

 

[Graham1973]

John Franklin Broxholme (Pen name: Duncan Kyle), A Raft of Swords, 1973

United Kingdom

Unnamed
'Destroyer', class not specified
No other details provided.

Russia

Acadamecian Vashurin
Oceanographic Research Ship
No other details provided.

Valerian IV
Kresta II (Pr.1134A) Class Cruiser
Details as per the real ships

Suvarov
Kresta II (Pr.1134A) Class Cruiser
Details as per the real ships

Unnamed
Sverdlov (Pr.68bis) Class Cruiser
Details as per the real ships.

Unnamed
Yankee (Pr. 667A) Class Submarine (Sub-Class not specified.)
Details as per the real ships.

For the rocketry mavens

Sword (Russian: Mech)
Ramp launched, short range ballistic missile
Warhead: Unspecified nuclear.
Range: 400miles (644km)
Deployment: The missiles are deployed in shallow water attached to their launch ramps. The targets are pre-set for each missile. The launch ramps are secured to the ocean floor by heavy concrete blocks to which the ramps are chained. The missiles are launched via a radio signal.
History: The system was conceived as a way to counteract the US Polaris missile system. Deployment started in 1964, but the missiles rapidly became obsolete as the Russians perfected submarine launch technology.
No other details provided.

Plot summary: It is the early 1970s. A series of strange events surrounding a visit by a Soviet leader to Canada focus the attentions of MI6 on the waters off Vancouver Island.

 

[Graham1973]

Irving A. Greenfield, Super Depth Force: Project Discovery, 1988

United States

USS Shark
Submarine, class not specified
Displacement: 25,000 tons
Length: 352ft (107.3m)
Beam: 45ft (13.7m)
Rated Maximum Operating depth: 3000ft
Engines: Nuclear (Uses High, rather than low pressure steam)
Speed: 60knots (Max, not specified if submerged or surfaced speed.)
Crew: 40
Armament: Unspecified Surface to Air & Surface to Surface Missiles, 4 x ICBMs with MIRV warheads (Most likely Tridents), 8 x TT (4 bow and 4 stern), 2 x 6 inch guns, 2 x 20mm guns mounted in the sail.
Electronics: The submarine is highly automated allowing many standard crew positions to be eliminated. The computer provides three dimensional projections of the submarines surrounds through two systems. The Grid Display Table (GDT) provides a precise map of the submarines surroundings and also allows a sonar 'snapshot' of everything within a 5000yard (4.6km) sphere of the submarine to be taken. The UnderWater Image Screen (UWIS) is a visual imager that displays a synthetic image of the submarines exterior based on the input from the submarines sensors. Also fitted is an Aircraft Target Indicator (ATI) capable of tracking 50 airborne targets simultaneously and determining their threat priority.
Hull: Three layer construction, outer layer is steel, middle layer is a glass like form of silicone and the inner layer is aluminum.
Also carries two "...undersea recon craft...". These are described as "...delta wing shaped and driven by an electric motor... fifteen knots under water and four at the surface. They were equipped with sufficient air supply... two men for six hours and they were armed with four mini torpedoes, each of which had an effective operating range of four thousand yards."
Note: Conning tower is retracted into the hull underwater to allow for the high speed. The submarine is not attached to the United States Navy but is operating under the auspices of the CIA.

USS Hanover
Oliver Hazzard Perry Class Frigate
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Described as "...newly reconditioned...". Author explicitly identifies the ship as a member of the Oliver Hazzard Perry Class.

USS Keen
'Destroyer', class not specified
No other details provided.

USS Princeton
'Destroyer', class not specified.
No other details provided.

USS Bunker Hill
'Aircraft Carrier', class not specified
No other details provided.

Russia

Leningrad
'Aircraft Carrier', class not specified
No other details provided

Gorky
Kotlin (Pr. 56) Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.

Odessa
'Support Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided.

Gorsky
'Trawler' (e.g. Spy Ship)
Electronics: "...millions of dollars' worth of electronic surveillance equipment.", naval grade sonar.

Poland

Gdansk
'Destroyer', class not specified
No other details provided.

Germany (Democratic Republic of)

Dresden
'Frigate', class not specified
No other details provided

Yugoslavia

Tito
'Heavy Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided.

Bulgaria

Sofia
'Command vessel', class not specified
No other details provided.

United Kingdom

HMS Horton
'Aircraft Carrier', class not specified.
Note: Stated to have been named after Admiral Max Horton, the officer in charge of the 'Western Approaches' during WWII and one of the men who laid the groundwork for Allied victory in the Battle of the Atlantic. The author provides no specifics, but implied to be larger than an Invincible Class Carrier.

HMS Trafalgar
'Aircraft Carrier', class not specified
No other details provided.
Implied to be larger than an Invincible Class Carrier. Note: The novel spells the ships name as 'HMS Trafalger', I have used editorial discretion in this case. Name clash with the lead ship of the Trafalgar Class of submarines.

France

Unnamed
'Pocket Battleship', class not specified
No other details provided.

China (Peoples Republic)

Hǎishàng Sǐwáng (Eng: Sea Death)
Submarine (SSN), class not specified
Note: The submarine is an exact copy of the Q-21, featured in the novel 'Depth Force' (1984), basically the Chinese stole the plans from the Russians.

Plot summary: The year is 1992, the United States has decided to invite the tall ships of the world to visit to mark the 500th anniversary of Columbus reaching the America's. Someone has decided to spoil the party...

Note: The first volume of the series which introduced the USS Shark was set in 1995 at which time the submarine had just finished construction. In this novel which is supposedly set before the events of the first book not only is the USS Shark complete, but events that I know occur in later volumes of the series are described as if they took place before the events of this novel. What is meant by a 'super' volume in this case is that the book is twice the length of regular series volumes. This was the only such volume written for the series.

Due to the author not realizing that the Soviet Union (and the Eastern Bloc) would be gone by 1991, this novel fits into the category of being a 'Future of the Past' novel . Other novels exhibiting this 'future of the past' quality I've covered are 'Seven Days in May' (1962) (Charles W. Bailey II & Fletcher Knebel), 'Thirty-Four East' (1974), 'The Hastings Conspiracy' (1980) (Both by Alfred Coppel), 'The Crash of '79' (1976) (Paul E. Erdman), 'North Star Crusade' (1976) (William Katz), 'Side-Wall' (1982) (David Graham), 'CV' (1985) (Damon Knight), 'The Phoenix Odyssey' (1986) (Richard P. Henrick), 'Rockets' Red Glare' (1988) (Greg Dinallo), 'Omega Sub' (1991) (Michael Jahn ) 'Debt of Honor' (1994) (Tom Clancy) 'Rites of War' (1998) (Cyn Mobley) and 'End Game', 2011 (Matthew Glass), along with what is probably the most well known 'alternative history' sequence, 'Raise the Titanic' (1976), 'Vixen 03' (1978), 'Night Probe' (1981) & 'Deep Six' (1984) (All by Clive Cussler) which are set in an alternative 1980s (The novels are set between 1987 ('Raise the Titanic') & 1989 ('Deep Six').) with many differences from what actually happened, most notably Canada being absorbed by the United States (Something Cussler quietly dropped in later novels.).

 

[Graham1973]

John Winton, The Fighting Téméraire, 1971

United Kingdom

HMS Téméraire
Resolution Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on armament only. Stated to be a "...two-year-old Polaris Submarine..." at the time the novel is set. If the novel is set the year it came out then the ship was commissioned in 1969, probably shortly after HMS Revenge. She is identified as Britain's "...eighth Polaris submarine...", which may suggest the novel is set later than the year it came out.

HMS Iphigenia
Leander Class Frigate
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Class assignment based on ships name only.

United States

USS Utah Beach
'Aircraft Carrier', class not specified
No other details provided
Note: Not possible to confirm class with out specific details

USS James T. Doig
Belknap Class Cruiser
Details as per the real ships
Note: In 1971 Belknaps were classified as Guided Missile Destroyers. In 1975 they were reclassified as Guided Missile Cruisers. Author explicitly identifies this ship as a member of the Belknap Class.

USS Morton Wayne
'Destroyer' class not specified
No other details provided.

Russia

Various Unnamed warships.

Plot summary: A RN submarine is ordered to enter the Black Sea, intercepted by the Soviets and damaged in the resulting clash, the submarines crew must deploy all their skill to escape.

Note: This was the authors sixth novel. Rather than simply focusing on the action side of the story, the author brings in the messy aftermath that would result from the events described in the novels opening chapters. There is no specific dating information, however the reference to the Belknap Class as being destroyers means it cannot be set any later than 1975.

 

[Graham1973]

Bill Knox, Devilweed, 1966

United Kingdom

Marlin
Fishery Protection Vessel
Crew: 24
Length: 180ft (55m)
Draft: 9ft (2.7m)
Weight: 400 tons
Engines: 2 x 2000hp Diesels
Speed: 30 knots (Max)
Armament: None fitted, provision exists to fit weapons in wartime.

Skua
Fishery Protection Vessel
Details as per the Marlin

Plot summary: Sent to investigate reports of a drifting trawler, the crew of the Marlin instead find a boat used by a Scottish bank as a floating branch office with plenty of evidence on board pointing to an attack. The crew are missing, but the money remains on board, so what were the attackers after...?

Note: This is one of a long running series about the Marlin and her crew. Each book in the series is a standalone murder mystery, with an action emphasis.

 

[Graham1973]

John Wingate, Red Mutiny: A Diary, 1978

Russia

GS 249
Mayak (Pr.502M) Class AGI
Details as per the real ships.
Note: The Mayak Class were converted civilian trawlers used as spy ships. As far as I can tell this is a fictional member of the class.

Uran (Eng: Uranus)
Moma (Pr.861M) Class AGI
Details as per the real ships.

Arktur (Eng: Arcturus)
Moma (Pr.861M) Class AGI
Details as per the real ships.

Zemlya
AGI, class not specified
No other details provided.

Unnamed
'Several' Kuril Class Carriers
Note: Misidentification of the Kiev (Pr.1143) Class Aircraft Carriers.

Tobol
Ugra (Pr.1886) Class Submarine Tender
Real ship, details as in service.

Plot summary: It is the early 1980s (The story runs between two unspecified years, based on the dates given 1983/84 is the best fit.). The crew of a Russian spy ship find themselves driven to the unspeakable by a long and grueling deployment.

Note: In 1975, the crew of the Krivak (Pr. 1135) Class Frigate Storozhevoy mutinied in what can only be described as a quixotic attempt to ignite a second Russian Revolution and overthrow Brezhnev. Led by the ships political officer, the mutiny ultimately failed. It is well known that this event inspired Tom Clancy's 'The Hunt for Red October' (1984). This is an earlier novel based on the event and from the blurb, it would appear that while the basic story was known in the West, the reason for the mutiny was not, as the blurb ascribes the cause to the crew of the Storozhevoy being denied leave. While the author does not specifically state the year, he has a character refer to the events of 1975 as taking place 'some time ago', and from a few dates where the day of the week is given, it's possible to work out that the story is most likely set between 1983 &1984 (The dates in question cover a period between December in one year and January in the next.), this being the first pair of years after publication where those day/date combinations occur.

As the sub-title of the novel suggests, the book is presented as the 'cleaned up' version of a diary found in the possession of one of the ships surviving officers supplemented with various footnotes from the person who found the diary.

 

[Graham1973]

Warwick Collins, Challenge, 1990

Russia

Moskva (Eng: Moscow)
'Amphibious Assault Ship', class not specified.
No other details provided
Note: Name clashes with the lead ship of the Moskva (Pr.1123) Class Helicopter Carriers, this ship was in service 1967 - 1996. While the author provides little specific description, it's clear that he's not thinking of that ship, but something more akin to an Ivan Rogov (Pr.1174) Class Amphibious Assault Ship, with reference being made to transporting men and yachts aboard it between the Baltic and Black Seas.

Uzbekan
Udaloy (Pr.1155) Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.

Salud
Udaloy (Pr.1155) Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.

Zamyatin
Warship, class not specified
No other details provided

Mikhail Gorbachev
Warship, class not specified
No other details provided

Plot summary: The year is 2000, the Soviet Union has challenged the United States for the America's Cup.

Note: The America's Cup is a yacht race that has been run since 1851. Held by the United States for much of it's existence, this grip (Maintained some said by rules manipulation on the part of the US) was finally broken in 1983 by Australia, who lost the cup at the next challenge in 1986/87. The Soviet Union never challenged for the cup, even after the events of 1983.

This is another 'Future of the Past' story, in the authors 2000, the Soviet Union is still a going concern, when in fact it was dissolved only a year after the novel came out. The author was however able to compensate for this in the next two novels that made up the trilogy ('New World' (1991) & 'Death of an Angel' (1992)).

Other novels exhibiting this 'future of the past' quality I've covered are 'Seven Days in May' (1962) (Charles W. Bailey II & Fletcher Knebel), 'Thirty-Four East' (1974), 'The Hastings Conspiracy' (1980) (Both by Alfred Coppel), 'The Crash of '79' (1976) (Paul E. Erdman), 'North Star Crusade' (1976) (William Katz), 'Side-Wall' (1982) (David Graham), 'CV' (1985) (Damon Knight), 'The Phoenix Odyssey' (1986) (Richard P. Henrick), 'Rockets' Red Glare' (1988) (Greg Dinallo), 'Super Depth Force: Project Discovery', (1988) (Irving A. Greenfield ), 'Omega Sub' (1991) (Michael Jahn ) 'Debt of Honor' (1994) (Tom Clancy) 'Rites of War' (1998) (Cyn Mobley) and 'End Game', 2011 (Matthew Glass), along with what is probably the most well known 'alternative history' sequence, 'Raise the Titanic' (1976), 'Vixen 03' (1978), 'Night Probe' (1981) & 'Deep Six' (1984) (All by Clive Cussler) which are set in an alternative 1980s (The novels are set between 1987 ('Raise the Titanic') & 1989 ('Deep Six').) with many differences from what actually happened, most notably Canada being absorbed by the United States (Something Cussler quietly dropped in later novels.).

 

[Graham1973]

James H. Cobb, Unidentified Contact, published in First to Fight II, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2001

United Kingdom

HMS Moonshade
M Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships
Note: Author does not specifically name the class, but the armament details fit British destroyers of the period, specific class assignment based on the ships name.

Plot summary: The year is 1942, a destroyer has been sent to investigate a garbled distress call from three trawlers, all they find is wreckage, but was it a U-Boat? Something is not quite right.

Note: The story ends with a footnote to the effect that the tale was inspired by something in the RN's archives. I seriously doubt this. The anthology this story appears in is another of the military themed short story anthologies that appeared at the end of the 1990s and start of the 2000s.

James H. Cobb was a writer of action fiction who's most well known for the 'Amanda Garret' series of novels ('Chosers of the Slain' (1996), 'Stormdragon' (1997), 'Seafighter' (1999) and 'Target Lock' (2002)), to date I've only covered three of his novels in this thread, the first two 'Amanda Garrett' books and ''Robert Ludlum's The Arctic Event' (2007), his last novel as far as I've been able to determine. He also wrote a certain amount of short fiction appearing in military themed anthologies around the start of the 2000s.

 

[Graham1973]

James H. Cobb, Cat Bag Bay, published in Crash Dive, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2003

United States

USS Niobe
Narwhal Class (WWII) Submarine
Details as per the real ships.
Note: The Narwhal & Nautilius were two of the submarines built under the V-Boat programm in the 1920s and 1930s and were the 'cruiser variant' of the preceeding USS Argonaut which was built as a minelayer. Both real life members of the class were used for covert ops during WWII.

Japan

Unnamed
Akitsushima Class Seaplane Tender
Details as per the real ships
Note: This class of Seaplane Tender was planned as a five unit class, in the event only the name ship was completed, it was in service between 1942 and 1944.

Plot summary: The year is 1943, an American submarine proceeding to an isolated atoll finds themselves surprised when a Japanese warship arrives at the same location and drops anchor.

Note: 'Crash Dive' was another of the late 1990s/early 2000s military themed anthologies, in this case it specialized in stories involving submarines.

 

[Graham1973]

Jim DeFelice, The Ambiguity of the Wine-Dark Sea, published in Crash Dive, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2003

United States

USS Swordtail
Sturgeon Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Unnamed
Diesel powered submarine, class not specified.

North Korea

Unnamed
Various Warships

Russia

Unnamed
Victor Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Plot: It is the late 1960s, following the capture of a US Intelligence gathering ship by the North Koreans a US team is sent to carry out a very specific task.

Note: This story is most likely set in late 1968 or early 1969, the main POV character has heard the Jimi Hendrix version of 'All Along the Watchtower' which was released in September of 1968. Given that the capture of the USS Pubelo (AGER-2) took place in January of 1968, this is the most likely time frame for the story to be set.

 

[Graham1973]

R. J. Pineiro, Valley of Death, published in Crash Dive, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2003

Germany

U-529
Type VIIC U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Explicitly identified as a Type VIIC by the author. Pennant clashes with a Type IXC/40 U-Boat in service 1942 - 1943

Plot summary: The year is 1943, a U-Boat is ordered by High Command to act as a decoy so that other U-Boats can attack a key convoy.

 

[Graham1973]

Continuing to work my way though a 2003 anthology of submarine fiction...

John Helfers, Single Combat, published in Crash Dive, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2003

United States

USS Hart
Orca Class Submarine
Described as an '...littorial class missile boat...'
No other details provided

USS Barracuda
Prototype submarine
Length: 120m
Anechoically coated.
Crew: 18
Armament: XRM-70 Ultra-EMP Cannon.
Engine: Magnetohydrodynamic Drive for stealth along with a conventional propellor, power supplied by a nuclear reactor.
Described as a "...new submersible reconnaissance system..."

USNS Carson Wainwright
Support ship for the Barracuda program.

Plot summary: The year is 2042, the United States is about to begin a test of it's newest covert operations submarine.

 

[Graham1973]

Tony Geraghty, Passage to Paradise: The Voyage of U-181, published in Crash Dive, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2003

Germany

U-181
Type IXD U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note; Pennant clashes with that of a Type IXD2 U-Boat that served in the German Navy until May 1945 when it was taken into Japanese service as I-501.

United States

Unnamed
Hospital Ship
No other details provided.

Plot summary: The crew of a German U-Boat sent to operate in the Indian Ocean mutiny and try to escape the war.

 

[Graham1973]

Doug Allyn, Prize Crew, published in Crash Dive, Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 2003

Germany

U-233
Type VIIC U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Pennant clashes with a Type XB U-Boat in service 1943 - 1944

Plot summary: The year is 1944, the crew of a U-Boat operating off the coast of Brazil find themselves the subject of an offer they find hard to refuse, it could get them out of the war and make them rich, but should they take it...

 

[Graham1973]

James B. Adair, Piranha, 1992

United States

USCGC Avenger
Coast Guard Cutter, class not specified
No other details provided.

Pirahna (ex-Holly Go Lightly)
Q Ship (Armed Motor Yacht)
Engines: 2 x Gas turbine replacing 2 X Diesels
Speed: 20 knots (Cruise) (Maximum speed is never given.)
Crew: 6 (5 male, 1 female)
Armament: Small Arms (Colt Model 635 Submachine gun, M-249 SAW, M-9 Pistols, all weapons have been modified to allow them to be used underwater if need be.)
Modifications: 1 x 2 man SDV (Deployed vertically through a hatch in the bottom of the hull rather than horizontally), 1 x Helipad aft large enough to take a UH-1 Helicopter (In the climactic battle the ship is carrying a Bell 206 armed with a 7.62mm minigun and a 7 shot rocket pod (Hydra 70 rockets)), propellers replaced with water jets "...gives her another three knots and is half as loud... ...make ol' Holly go like a bat outta hell."
Note: The ship itself was impounded after the Coast Guard captured it with a cargo of drugs. The water jet system came from another drug smuggling boat that was badly damaged during the capture. The rebuild provides the ship with passenger accommodations/upperworks that look like those on a privately owned motor yacht. The areas outside that are more in keeping with a military vessel. Exact dimensions are never provided.

United Kingdom

HMS Chimera
Q Ship (Armed Trawler)
Crew: 25
Armament: 3 x 0.5inch MGs (Concealed), 2 x Milan Anti-Tank Rocket Launchers, small arms
Engines: Twin Turbines (Presumably Gas)
Speed: 28 knots
Note: Ship looks like a typical trawler operating out of Hong Kong. The ship is used to lure in pirates targeting Vietnamese refugees.

Non-State

Hong Kong Triads

Unnamed
Armed Motor Yacht
Cabin Cruiser (Described as 'large'.) disguised as a Hong Kong Police Vessel
Armament: Machine Guns & Small Arms.

Ramon's Crew (e.g. Pirates)

Espiritu Sante (ex-Esmeralda)
Armed Motor Yacht
Length: 98ft (30m)
Armament: RPG-7s & AK-47s
Note: The Piranha is described at one point as making the Espiritu Sante look like a rowboat.

Note: The 'Crew' specializes in hijacking yachts using a 'distressed sailor' scam, the boats taken are then either used to smuggle drugs into the United States or sold to those who wanting to do so.

Plot summary: Modern Day (1990s) pirates have started hitting private motor yachts off the Florida Coast, killing the crews and then using the boats to smuggle drugs into the United States. Normal methods might not track them down quickly enough so the Coast Guard puts together a special team and sets a trap.

Note: The rather inaccurate cover (Nothing depicted on it has any resemblance to what happens.) paints the author as the next Clive Cussler. As he appears to have stopped writing before the 2000s, that was obviously not the case. It's not a brilliant novel, but the author tells the story well and the villains are not presented as idiots, there is a nice scene towards the end where the heroes attack the villians hideout. The villains leaders are allowed to demonstrate that they have actual leadership skills rather than simply ruling through thuggery, in the process this makes the heroes look better when they win. Nor are the heroes presented as perfect either, in the same attack two of the Coast Guard team dismiss the gangs 'woman' as nothing more than an 'airhead' and let her go, their mistake...

In the stories epilogue the author seems to be setting up a follow-up story, which obviously didn't get written.

This is the earliest novel I've found dealing with this kind of 'Q Ship' program, other stories like this covered in the thread are 'Chasing Pirates' (2006) (Harry Rubin) and 'The Somali Pirate Project' (2011) (J. C. Carlson & Robert C. Hinz)

 

[Graham1973]

W. Jay Holmes (Pen name: Alec Hudson), Up Periscope! & Other Stories, 1943

United States

S-52
S Class Submarine (USN)
Details as per the real ships
Note: Historically last S Class Submarines was S-51, fictional S-Class Submarines S-55, S-56 & S-57 appear in the novel 'Crash Dive' (2015) by Craig DiLouie which is covered earlier in the thread.

China (Republic Of (e.g. Nationalist China))

Unnamed (ex-?, Ex-S-?)
S Class Submarine (USN)
Details as per the real ships
Note: Described as one that had been transferred/sold to Russia prior to the Revolution and then obtained by the Chinese. The submarine is still equipped with it's WWI era equipment. The crew contains a number of western mercenaries, hired to provide training/officers until the Chinese have 'learned the ropes'. The submarines Chinese name is not given in the story it appears in. The story itself is set before the start of WWII, but after the fall of Nanking (e.g. Between 13 December 1937 & 1 September 1939).

United Kingdom

HMS Otter
Odin (O) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only. The name had been used in WWI for an Avon Class Destroyer in service 1896 - 1916 and would be used post-War for a member of the Oberon Class.

HMS Oryx
Odin (O) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only.

HMS Ocelot
Odin (O) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only. This name was used post-War for a member of the Oberon Class.

HMS Orion
Odin (O) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only. Name clashes with a Leander Class Cruiser in service 1932 - 1949

HMS Orcus
Odin (O) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only. A fictional Oberon Class Submarine of this name appears in the novel 'Submarine' (1982) by John Wingate

HMS Petard
Parthian (P) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assigment by name only. Name clashes with a P Class Destroyer in service 1941 - 1964. The story in which this ship appears is set prior to the Japanese entry into WWII (e.g. Between 1 September, 1939 & 7 December, 1941)

HMS Perseus
Leander Class Cruiser.
Details as per the real ships
Note: Until 1941 the name would clash with that of a Parthian (P) Class Submarine in service 1929 - 1941. Class assignment based on details provided which best fit the Leander Class. The story in which this ship appears is set prior to the Japanese entry into WWII. (e.g. Between 1 September, 1939 & 7 December, 1941)

HMS Searover
S Class Submarine (RN)
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only. There was an HMS Sea Rover, which was in service 1943 - 1949, the story in which the submarine appears is set contemporaneous with the Dunkirk Evacuation (May - June 1940), so it cannot be the later sub.

Germany

Admiral Schroder
Deutschland Class Cruiser
Details as per the real ships
Note: The story in which this ship appears is set prior to the Japanese entry into WWII. (e.g. Between 1 September, 1939 & 7 December, 1941)

Various Unnamed Warships

Japan

Various Unnamed Warships.

Note: The author was a Professor of Engineering at the University of Hawaii who had been a submarine commander in the US Navy until mid-1930s when he was forced to retire due to injury. During the Second World War he was part of the US Navy Intelligence teams involved in breaking the Japanese naval codes. The stories in this volume were originally published in The Saturday Evening Post between 1938 and 1941. Two of the stories in the volume 'Rendezvous' & 'Night Action' make use of 'generic' settings where it is not possible to identify nationalities or ship classes and so they has been omitted from this post.

 

[Graham1973]

David Hagberg (Pen name: Sean Flannery), Winner Take All, 1994

United States

USNS John Hopkins (T-AGOS-?)
Stalwart Class Ocean Surveillance Ship
Details as per the real ships.

All other US ships mentioned in the novel are real.

Russia

Kremlin (142)
Aircraft Carrier, class not specified
Length: 984ft
Beam: 125ft
Displacement: 75,000tons
Engines: 2 x Nuclear Reactors, 200,000shp
Speed: 35knots
Armament:64 x SS-N-12, 72 x SA-N-2, 40x SA-N-4, 2 x 2 AK-726 76mm guns, 8 x AK630 20mm gatling guns, 10 x 533mm TT, 2 x SUW-N-1 and 2 x 12 barrel RBU-6000
Airgroup: 20 x MiG-29, 10 x SU-27, 16 x Ka-27 'Helix' (ASW), 4 x Ka-27 'Helix' (AEW)
Described as "...faster and more maneuverable than the Nimitz-class carriers..."
No other details provided.
Note: The author never provides a clear physical description of the ships layout, but the armament suggests either an enlarged Kiev (Pr.1143) Class design or a similar design based on the Kirov (Pr.1144) Class rather than either the Kusnetsov (Pr.1143.5) Class or the abortive Ulyanovsk (Pr.1143.7) Class.

Gorkiy
Details same as the Kremlin
Note: Building of this ship has been halted.

All other Russian ships mentioned in the novel are real.

Ukraine

Pogin
Alfa (Pr. 705) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Spassky
Sierra (Pr.945) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Subtype is not specified by the author.

Ryanny
Krivak II (Pr.1135M) Class Frigate
Details as per the real ships
Note: Nominally part of the Russian Navy, the crew has defected to the Ukraine.

And for the aircraft mavens

F/A-22 'Starfire'
Details as per the F-22 'Raptor'
Author provides no specifics, but F/A-22 was at one time considered as the designation for the F-22.

SR-91
Crew: 2
Speed: Mach 3
Maximum altitude reached in story: 120,000ft
Description: "The delta-wing SR-91 spy plane... Its rubber-coated titanium fuselage and wings were practically radar-invisible even to sophisticated look-up systems aboard Russian air-launched missiles... she could fly nearly one-third of the way around the Earth without refueling."
Note: Stated to have been mothballed and bought back into service shortly before the story starts.

And for the rocketry mavens

KH-15
Spy Satellite
Nation: United States
No other details provided.
Note: Fictional successor to the KH-11

Plot summary: It is the late 20th Century. The United States and Russia have signed an agreement allowing for a joint naval exercise code-named 'Pit Bull' to be held between the two countries off the coast of Brazil. Communist hardliners in Russia and the Ukraine see an opportunity to restore the Cold War and lay their plans accordingly.

Note: The book contains no specific dating information, so the 'Day After Tomorrow' rule applies. Author David Hagberg used this pen name for Tom Clancy-style novels unconnected with his 'Kirk McGarvey' series.

 

[Graham1973]

Douglas Terman, Cormorant, 1994

United States

USCGC Griswald
'Cutter' class not specified
No other details provided.
Note: Appears in a characters backstory, does not take part in the plot.

United Kingdom

HMS Alacrity (F174)
Type 21 Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service (RN) 1977 - 1994, (Pakistani Navy) 1994 - 2013

Non-State

Brunner's Gruppe

Valkyr (ex-?)
Armed motor yacht.
Dimensions as per the French P-400 Class Patrol Vessels
Engines have been upgraded from the originals speed is now 35 knots
Armament: Small arms including RPG-7 Anti-Tank missiles and a (concealed) 20mm cannon.
Note: Former French patrol vessel converted into a private yacht

Note: Karl Brunner is leader of a group of 'terrorists for hire' composed of former East German military personnel. This boat serves as his mobile headquarters.

Plot summary: A US underwater tunneling expert is asked to investigate the risk of a terrorist attack on the Channel Tunnel, when people start dying he realizes that someone plans to use his report as the basis for such an attack...

Note: In the lead up to and for a few years after the opening of the Channel Tunnel in 1992, many writers of action fiction wrote novels involving terrorists attacking the Channel Tunnel, this novel which falls comparitively late into that sequence was the last completed by the author before his death in 1999.

 

[Graham1973]

Dean McLaughlin, Hawk Among The Sparrows, published in War and Peace: Possible Futures from Analog, Stanley Schmidt (ed.), 1983

United States

USS Iwo Jima (LPH-2)
Iwo Jima Class Amphibious Assault Ship
Real ship, details as in service 1961 - 1993

USS Eagle
'Airplane Tender', class not specified
Note: Described as a conversion of an aircraft carrier to support Mach 4 aircraft tasked with ballistic missile interception under Operation Skeetshoot
No other details provided

For the aircraft mavens

United States

Pika-Don
Anti-Ballistic Interceptor
Crew: 1
Length: 89ft (27.13m)
Wingspan: "...less than twenty-five..." feet (e.g. Less than 7.62m)
Speed: Mach 4 (Max)
Highest altitude mentioned in story: 130,000ft
Armament: 6 x Lance Missiles (a fictional weapon) armed with a sub-kilton nuclear warhead,
2 x Jet Engines, tanks hold 50,000 gallons (189,270.59 liters) (Note: Calculation carried out using US Gallons.)
Electronics: Intertial Navigation System, terrain scanning radar, radar altimeter. Flight recorder system is capable of being used for basic espionage purposes as it is fitted with instrumentation capable of monitoring nuclear explosions.
Description: "She was like a needle dart, sleek and shiny and razor-sharp on the leading edge of her wings. Her fuselage was oddly flat-bodied, like a cobra's hood. Her airscoops were like tunnels."
Note: The original magazine publication depicted an SR-71/A-12 type aircraft. It is not clear if the name given to the aircraft in the story is official or the pilot's private name.

Plot summary: An American pilot monitoring a French nuclear test in Algeria finds himself thrown back in time to World War 1.

Note: The story was originally published in Analog Magazine in 1968. There is no specific dating information for the 'future' part of the story so the 'Day after Tomorrow' rule applies in this case.

 

[Graham1973]

James H. Cobb, Seafighter, 1999

United States

USS Sirocco (PC-6)
Cyclone Class Patrol Boat
Real ship, details as in service

USS Santana (PC-??)
Cyclone Class Patrol Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: Name may be a reference to the 'Santa Ana Winds' a seasonal weather phenomenon in the southern United States/Northern Mexico rather than the guitarist, this would best fit the class naming scheme.

USS Cunningham (DDG-79)
Cunningham Class Destroyer
See the entry for 'Choosers of the Slain' (1996) for the major details for this ship.
Note: Pennant clashes with that of the Arleigh Burke Class Destroyer, USS Oscar Austin (DDG-79). In the previous novel in the series 'Stormdragon' (1997) the ship was severely damaged and is currently being rebuilt to serve as a test bed for systems intended for the 'SC-21' (e.g. Zumwalt Class). All three VLS arrays originally fitted to the ship have been removed, one is being replaced with a twin 155mm Vertical Gun for Advanced Ships (VGAS) mount, the others are being replaced with enhanced versions capable of handling "...the navalized variant of the army's ATCAMS land-attack missile and the Block IV Standard theater ABM...". The forward gun turret has been replaced with a new turret carrying a 5/62 inch gun capable of firing Extended Range Guided Munitions (ERGM). Due to the incomplete refit the ship does not take part in this story. It does take part in the next story of the series 'Target Lock' (2002)

USS Gregory H. Boyington (DDG-??)
Cunningham Class Destroyer
Details as per USS Cunningham (DDG-79) prior to the refit in 'Seafighter' (1999)
Note: Ship is only referred to as the USS Boyington in the novel (Editorial discretion was used). Name is that of Gregory 'Pappy' Boyington, USMC Ace Pilot (WWII), former member of the American Volunteer Group in China, commander of the VMF-214 Corsair squadron and subject of the 1970s TV series 'Baa Baa Black Sheep'. Given that the lead ship of the Cunningham Class was named after a famous (later infamous) naval aviator it makes sense that this ship is also a Cunningham Class destroyer, the context in which the name was mentioned also suggests this identification. The ship itself does not take part in the story proper.

USS Connor (DDG-??)
Cunningham Class Destroyer (?)
Details as per USS Cunningham (DDG-79) prior to the refit in 'Seafighter' (1999)
Note: This is a tentative class identification based on context. The ship itself does not take place in the story proper. I was unable to identify a specific naval aviator for whom the ship was named after due to the common surname.

Note: It is likely that these two ships above are DDG-80 & 81.

USS Queen of the West (PGAC-02)
Benton Class Patrol Gunboat
See below

USS Carondelet (PGAC-03)
Benton Class Patrol Gunboat
See below

USS Manassas (PGAC-04)
Benton Class Patrol Gunboat
See below

Benton Class Patrol Gunboat
Combat Hovercraft
Length: 90ft (27.4m)
Width: 36ft (11m)
Crew: 9
Armament: 2 x 4 cell VLS (Capable of holding, Harpoon II and Sea SLAM missiles. The starboard cell in PGAC-02 - 04 have been removed to provide additional space for boarding crews in this operation) 2 x 'Guntubs' (P & S), fitted with a modified version of the Boeing AN/TWQ-1 'Avenger' Air Defense system fitted with 2 x M230 30mm chain guns and missile pods capable of taking Hydra 70 rockets or AGM-114 'Hellfire' Missiles. A power operated scarff-ring is fitted at the cockpit hatch, this can fit either 2 x 0.5inch MGs or a Mk 19 Automatic Grenade launcher. For this mission additional pintle mounts are added at the side and rear hatches that can take either a single or twin mount 0.5inch MG or a Mk 19 Automatic Grenade Launcher.
Engines: 4 x AVCO Lyoming T-40 Gas Turbines, 2 x drive the lift fans, 2 x drive the propulsion fans (2 x Ducted Fans with a diameter of 11ft (3.35m)). Also has two podded 150hp electric motors driving propellers, giving 5 knots in 'swimmer mode' (e.g. Sitting on the hull with the air cushion deflated.)
Speed: 65 knots (PGAC-02 reaches 68knots in a test run.)
Range: 750 miles
Carries an 8 man 'Mini Raider' a 16ft version of the 24ft boat used by the Navy SEALS.
Note: The lift skirts are made of rubberized Kevlar weave.

Note: USS Benton PGAC-01, the first ship built is being used as the class test bed and does not take part in this story. All members of the class are named after American Civil War era gunboats.

Non-Warship, but interesting

Mobile Offshore Base 'Floater One'
Note: The Mobile Offshore Base was a concept the US looked at in the 1990s to develop a barge based platform that could be used to support US forces in areas where there was no friendly base available. The concept was abandoned in the early 21st Century when it was declared to be too vulnerable to threats such as missiles and less capable than simply providing logistics support from offshore ships. The one in the novel provides support for two Cyclone Class Patrol Boats and three Benton Class Patrol Gunboats

United Kingdom

HMS Skye
Sandown Class Minehunter
Details as per the real ships.

France

La Florette
'Corvette'
3000 tons

West African Union (Fictional African state formed from a merger of Liberia & Sierra Leone in 2005.)

Promise (ex-Marabai).
Lerici Class Minehunter
Details as per the real ships
Armament has been modified from Nigerian Service by the removal of all mine-sweeping equipment. The ships armament is now: 1 x 2 30mm Emerson (fwd), 2 x AK-725 (Twin 57mm) aft, unspecified anti-air missiles.
Note: Former Nigerian navy vessel. Now flagship of the navy of the West African Union.

Unity (ex-Moa)
Type 062 Gunboat
Details as per the real ships. Armament augmented with hand held AAM.
Note: Former Sierra Leone navy vessel.

Allegiance (ex-?)
Swift Class Patrol Cutter
Length: 150ft (45.72m)
Armament: 1 x 40mm Bofors L70 (fwd), 1 x 2 20mm Oerlikon (Aft), 2 x mgs of unspecified type amidships. Also carries hand held AAM.
Note: Former Sierra Leone navy vessel.

Unnamed
40 Boghammer gunships divided into four squadrons of ten ships each
Armament: 1 x 2 KPV 14.5mm machine guns (Fwd mount) augmented with various small arms
Other details as per the real ships.

Non-ship

Naval Mines made from hot water tanks. Contain 65 pounds (29.5kg) of gelignite, how detonated (Impact, command or other means) is not specified in the novel.

Plot summary: It is the late 2000s (The story runs between the 26th of December 2006 and the 1st of October 2007.). A new leader has arisen in West Africa, unlike some other 'strongmen' he is delivering on the promises of 'peace and a new future', but the methods he's used to expand his influence have raised the ire of the international community forcing him into dangerous alliances. Now it appears that he is using the same destabilization tactics he used on Sierra Leone against the Republic of Guinea and the UN has been forced to act. With the USS Cunningham in drydock being refitted after the events of 'Stormdragon', her captain is promoted and put in charge of the effort to impose sanctions on the West African Union to force it to abandon it's attempts to absorb Guinea.

Note: The author sets up an interesting situation, the leader of the West African Union is efficient and pragmatic, his ultimate goal, ending the endemic violence and poverty in West Africa (This was a major issue in the late 90s/early 00s and still is, even if the violence has been bought under control.) is a noble one, but his methods ('weaponized' releases of refugees and 'deniable' commando raids to put pressure on targeted neighboring states, and make his subsequent conquest easier.) have alienated him from the international community. The real villain in the story is the ambassador sent to the WAU by Algeria, the only government currently talking to them. He's exploiting the situation to try and turn the WAU into an outpost of fundamentalist Islam in the region. Something that greatly complicates Amanda Garrets task.

Linked to this novel are three short stories, 'Point of Decision' a 2006 set story published in the anthology 'First to Fight' (1999) (ed. Martin H. Greenberg) covers events in Mali mentioned at the end of 'Choosers of the Slain' and introduces characters who appear in 'Seafighter'. The 2008 set short story 'Demonstration', published in 'First to Fight II' (2001) (ed. Martin H. Greenberg), follows another character (Vince Arkady, the SAH-66 pilot from 'Choosers of the Slain' & 'Stormdragon'.) who's mentioned in 'Seafighter' but does not appear in the story itself. Finally the 2001 anthology 'Combat' edited by Stephen Coontz contains a short story by Cobb entitled 'Cav'. Set in the 2020s it appears to be a sequel to 'Seafighter', with the Algerians invading Mali, now part of a 'West African Economic Federation' who's leader appears to be the leader of the WAU in 'Seafighter'.

Series wise, this novel shows the author was following the trajectory used by C. S. Forester in the 'Hornblower' series, with the character rising up the ranks as the series progressed. Sadly, for unknown reasons the series ended with the next novel 'Target Lock' (2002), at least in English, there is a novel published in German as 'Duel in Foreign Waters' (The English translation of the title.), which from a translation of the blurb suggests that it is a continuation of the plotline of 'Target Lock' (A poster at Goodreads claims that the book is simply the German translation of 'Target Lock'. However a 2006 message on the 'James H. Cobb' message board at AllreadersDotCom, allegedly from the author which, gives the title of book 5 as 'Phantom Force', indicates that it had been published both in Germany and Japan, but that he'd been unable to find a publisher in the English speaking world, there is also reference to unspecified changes in the setting.) The authors next English language novel didn't appear until 2007, when he wrote a volume in the 'Robert Ludlum's Covert One' series entitled 'The Arctic Event'.

The attached cover is from the 2000 paperback edition published by Headline. The artist Chris Moore, is well known for his science-fiction artwork, in this case his depictions of the Benton Class hovercraft are inaccurate, reputedly the cover of the original Jove edition of the novel is far closer to what's described. Also attached is the 2021 CGI cover to the Silvertail Books ebook of the novel.

 

[Graham1973]

Theodore Taylor, To Kill the Leopard, 1993

United Kingdom

HMS Spriggs
Hunt Class Destroyer (Sub-type not specified)
Details as per the real ships.

HMS Dauntless
D Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Class assignment based on name only. Name clashes with a D/Danae Class Cruiser in servce 1918 - 1946

HMS Faulknor (H62)
F Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1935 - 1945.

United States

USS Clayton
Mahan Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.

USS Catawaba (AOG-77) (ex-Esso Dolomite)
Q-Ship (Modified Oil Tanker)
Crew: 136
Length: 375ft (114.3m)
Displacement: 4,100 tons (Empty)
Engines: Diesel (Twin screws)
Speed: 9 knots
Armament: 4 x 3inch guns (2 a side), 1 x 4inch gun (Stern), ? x 20mm Cannon, ? X 0.5inch MGs, depth charge throwers (Everything except the 4inch gun at the stern is concealed.)
Small Arms: 5 x Thompson Sub Machine Guns, 5 X Double Barreled Shotguns (Sawn off), 12 x M1911 Colt Pistols, 50 x 'Hand Grenades' & Tear Gas Grenades (For use by boarding parties.)
Modifications, all tanks on the ship normally used for cargo have been filled with mixture of empty oil drums and wood to give added buoyancy.
Note: The ship has been leased to the navy as an Auxiliary, the pennant was not used during the war. While renamed for navy service, she sails under her original identity for deceptive purposes.

Germany

U-122
Type IX U-Boat
Details as per the real ships
Note: The pennant number clashes with that of a Type IXB U-Boat in service 1939 - 1940. The submarine in the novel is in service in 1941, the backstory as given is that the submarine is undergoing her first patrol, the previous one being aborted due to engine problems.

U-455
Type IX U-Boat
Details as per the real ships.
Note: The pennant number clashes with that of a Type VIIC U-Boat in service 1941 - 1944. The U-Boat in the novel is specifically identified as one of those taking part in the first round of attacks on US shipping following the German declaration of war on the United States (December 11, 1941).

Plot summary: The story covers the years 1941 and 1942, an American seaman, survivor of an attack on his oil tanker volunteers to serve on a Q-Ship in the hopes of sinking the U-Boat that sank his tanker.

Note: The author is most well known for an earlier novel called 'The Cay' in which a young white boy learns some important lessons about racism when he's shipwrecked along with a black man and forced to rely on that person for survival.

This story slightly distorts WWII history (The 'Deutscher Kurzwellensender Atlantik' black propaganda radio station aimed at the U-Boats was not started by the British until 1942, while the author has it coming online in March 1941.) The story itself is more of an ensemble piece with characters ranging from the commander of the U-Boat with the Leopard insignia and the man who hunts him, to a member of the French Resistance ordered to seduce U-Boat captains in the hope of gathering information knowing full well that she's now in danger from people on both sides of the war.

The idea of modifying an oil tanker to act as a Q-Ship first appeared (As far as I know.) in a 1958 comic strip entitled 'Tanker Trap' written by Joe Gill and published in 'Submarine Attack No. 11'. Similarly modified tankers intended as 'torpedo sponges'/salvage ships appear in the 1992 novel 'The Talisman Deception' by Eric J. Collenette.

 

[Graham1973]

Mark Joseph, Typhoon, 1991

United States

USS Reno (SSN-777)
Los Angeles Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Pennant clashes with that of USS North Carolina (SSN-777), a Virginia Class Submarine.

Russia (Empire)

Beloye More (Eng: White Sea)
Submarine, class not specified
No other details provided

Russia (WWII)

S-99
S Class Submarine (Russian)
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Sunk by German air attack in 1945.

Russia

Odessa
Akula (Pr.971) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships.

Gorky
Akula (Pr.971) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships.

Minsk
Akula (Pr.971) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships.

Taifun
Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Specifically identified as the first member of the class. In the real world this was the Dmitriy Donskoy (Tk-208)

Sovyetskii Soyuz
Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Specifically identified as the sixth and last member of the class. In the real world this was the Severstal (Tk-20).

Lenin
Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Rodina
Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Pervoye maya (Eng: First of May)
Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Velikaya Otechestvennaya Voyna (Eng: The Great Patriotic War)
Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Non Ship, but interesting

Naval Station Gremikha
Underground naval facility specifically designed to support the Typhoon (Pr.941) Class Submarines, has dock space for all six members of the class, along with full refit facilities.
The base itself is located at the western edge of the mouth of the White Sea.

Plot summary: As the Soviet Union slides towards dissolution, hardliners attempt to launch a coup attempt to save the Soviet Union, the commander of one Russian sub decides to do whatever it takes to stop it, and an American submarine is caught in the middle...

Note: This is the authors third novel following his debut with 'To Kill The Potemkin' (1986), it took him four years to complete his next novel, a 'war on drugs' thriller named 'Alpha 7' (1990), with this novel, his last work of naval fiction to date following a year later.

 

[Graham1973]

William H. Keith (Pen name: Bill Keith), Sharuq, 1993

United States

USS Leviathan (SSCVN-1) (ex- Slavnaya Revolyutsiya (eng: Glorious Revolution))
Leviathan Class Submarine
Dimensions as per the Typhoon (Pr.941) Class.
Crew: 112 Officers and Men
Armament: 12 x SFV-4B 'Barracuda' Fighters, 1 x SFV-4C 'Cachalot' & 3 x SFV-4D 'Dolphin', 8 x 21inch TT (Bow).
Electronics: Underwater Laser Tracking & Communications (ULTRA-C) (Underwater laser com system), Submarine Virtual Imaging Electronic Window (SUBVIEW) (Takes in all exterior sensory input to create a visual picture of what's happening outside the submarine, two interfaces exist, a wearable helmet, or as in the SFV-4B, a simulated external cockpit view.)
Note: Author identifies her as being one of eight members of the Typhoon (Pr.941) Class built in this 'universe'. This ship has been sold to the United States in the 1990s with another member of the class. Historically the Russians had planned the class to have ten members, but ultimately only six were built.

SFV-4B 'Barracuda'
Submarine Fighter (Fictional Class)
Length: 25ft
Crew: 1
Engines: Hydrojets
Speed: 80 knots
Armament: 2 x Mk.62 Torpedos (12ft long, 1ft thick, rocket propelled (Range: less than a mile. Speed: 110knots), wire/acoustic/laser or "...other programmed..." targeting systems, 80pd shaped charge warhead. Described as a descendent of the Mk. 50)
Maximum Safe Depth: 4000ft (4A/B/D versions, 4C versions maximum safe depth is 10,000ft.)
Electronics: Fitted with a virtual exterior view system called SUBVIEW (See the entry for USS Leviathan for more details)
Designed to fit in the launch tubes for the SS-N-20 missiles formerly carried aboard Typhoon Class Submarines. Upon launch wings and tail fins are extended to provide maneuverability and lift.
Note: There also exist a 4A version with fixed wings/tail fins that is optimized for land launch. A 4C 'Cachalot' version intended for deep underwater operations and an unarmed 2 seat 4D 'Dolphin' version intended for underwater reconnaissance. The overall development project is codenamed Project Orca. This is a possible reference to Martin Caidin's 'The Last Fathom' (1967). Like the USS Manta (XSSF-1) in 'The Silent Service: Ohio Class' (2006) and like the submarines in 'The Last Fathom', the SFV-4Bs are negatively buoyant, they need to keep moving or they will sink.

USS New Haven
Los Angeles Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

USS Charlotte (SSN-766)
Los Angeles Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service 1994 - Ongoing

USS Taylor (FFG-50)
Oliver Hazzard Perry Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service 1984 - 2015

USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58)
Oliver Hazzard Perry Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service 1986 - 2015

USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53)
Arleigh Burke Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1993 - Ongoing

United Islamic Republic (Capital: Cairo, also referred to as the 'Islamic union'. Founded in 2002.)

Sharuq (ex-Komsomolets Ukrainyy)
Oscar (Pr.949) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: The Russians sold this submarine and three other members of the class to Japan in the 1990s, the submarines were then onsold by Japan to the newly created UIR in 2003. The Japanese have augmented the original armament with a laser guided surface-to-air missile called 'Sea Snake', these are mounted to the submarines snorkel. Also carried aboard is a counter torpedo system called 'Hadaf qati' this is a torpedo tube launched counter weapon that uses active sonar to locate the incoming torpedo before detonating in it's path. The resulting pressure wave causes the incoming torpedo to detonate.

Rih Sadid
Oscar (Pr.949) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Back history and modifications are the same as with the Sharuq.

Rasul
Alfa (Pr.705) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Rais
Alfa (Pr.705) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Nabi
Alfa (Pr.705) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Hayal
Akula (Pr.971) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Tarhib
Akula (Pr.971) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Note: These are all former Russian units purchased by Japan in the 1990s and onsold at a later date to the United Islamic Republic.

Cuba

San Juan (ex-El Poder de Los Obreros (Eng: The Power of the Workers))
Kilo Class Submarine
Detail as per the real ships.
Note: Stated to have been built in Russia for Cuba in the late 1990s with the transfer taking place in 2000. The ship was renamed on the death of Castro.

Plot summary: The year is 2006, the United Islamic Republic a nation founded in 2002 following a massive fundamentalist led uprising and at least temporarily allied with a resurgent Japan has started to flex it's military muscles, the obvious target, the United States of America.

Note: For the basic history on author William H. Keith see the entry for the short story 'UNODIR' (1999) in this thread. This story and a sequel 'Stingray' (1994) were both published under a fairly transparent pseudonym. It manages to fall into no less than two categories at once, 'Future of the Past' & 'Yellow Peril (Japan)'. In addition, like the novel 'The War in 2020' (1991) by Ralph Peters the author of this novel toys with the idea of Japan bankrolling Islam as a way of distracting America from their long term goals.

The fictional nation in this story (United Islamic Republic) is the earliest such fictional nation of that name that I know of, the other appeared in Tom Clancy's 'Executive Order' (1996), the difference between the two being that Clancy's version consisted only of Iran and Iraq. Keith's version incorporates all of North Africa and the Middle East, exactly what happened in Indonesia is not specified. A similar (e.g It covers the same geographical area as Keith's UIR.), but much more benign 'Caliphate' turns up in the background of 1950s science fiction author H. Beam Piper's future history.

 

[Graham1973]

Another entry in the irregular 'non-state' series

Hugh Edwards, The Pearl Pirates, 1977

Non-State

Lee Kung's Gang

Unnamed (ex-Makassar)
Armed Merchant Ship (Converted Freighter)
Displacement: 300 tons
Engines: Diesel
Electronics: Radar (Civilian) of unspecified type fitted
Armament: Unspecified 'Machine Guns' and at least one M1A1 'Bazooka' anti tank rocket launcher
Note: Former small Indonesian freighter hijacked by a mixed Malay/Chinese gang for the purpose of raiding pearl farms off the North-West Australian Coast.

Plot summary: A family touring the North-West coast of Australia find themselves crossing the paths of a dangerous gang of pearl thieves.

Note: This was one of a series of children's novels published in the 1970s following the adventures of a family travelling around Australia on a yacht they've built themselves. As a kids book the family themselves are not put in any direct danger by the bad guys, but wind up following their trail until the villains get what they deserve...

 

[Graham1973]

Tom Clancy and Doug Littljohns (Capt. RN (Ret.)), SSN, 1997

United States

USS Cheyenne (SSN-773)
Los Angeles Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service 1996 - Ongoing

All other US naval units in the novel are real ships.

China (People's Republic)

Chung
Alfa (Pr.705) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Ex-Russian submarine sold to China.

All other Chinese naval units in the novel are Unnamed.

Plot summary: The United States and People's Republic of China clash over the Spratley Island's and Taiwan.

Note: This is actually the novelization of a 1996 video game to which Tom Clancy had licensed his name for use with. It is one of the few novels Clancy wrote that is not tied to his 'Ryanverse'.

 

[Graham1973]

Thomas Block, Forced Landing, 1983

Iran

IRIS Sharaf (ex-IIS Kousseh (SS 101) , ex-USS Trout (SS-566))
Tang Class Submarine
Real ship, details as in service (US) 1952 - 1978 (Iran) 1978-79, (US) 1992-2009
Note: In real life the ship was transferred to Iran in 1978 but didn't leave the US before the outbreak of the 1979 Revolution. The submarine was restored to US service in 1992 after a period in limbo and used for research and development work. In the novel the ship was sucessfully transferred to Iran prior to 1979.

United States

USS Yorktown (CV-10)
Essex Class Carrier
Real ship, details as in service 1943 - 1970, museum ship 1975 - Ongoing.

Plot summary: A group of criminals come up with an elaborate scheme to get their hands on a large quantity of gold being shipped by air.

Note: This is the second novel in this thread to feature a scene with an airliner (In this case a DC-9) landing on an aircraft carrier. The other is the 1979 novel 'Random Track' by Austin Ferguson. While the author does not explicitly give the year the story it takes place events occurring in 1982 are referred to in the past tense suggesting the story is taking place either the year the book came out or a few years after.

 

[Graham1973]

John Wingate, Below the Horizon, 1974

Iceland

ICGV Hekla
Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length: 204ft
Speed: 19 knots
Armament: 1 x 57mm gun
Note: This ship appears to be based on the ICGV Óðinn, a Icelandic Coast Guard vessel that had a prominent role in the second and third Cod Wars.

ICGV Laki
Length: 187ft
Speed: 18 knots
Armament: 1 x 57mm Gun
No other details provided

ICGV Stóri
Length: 206ft
Speed: 17 knots
Armament: 1 x 57mm gun
No other details provided

Note: I do not have a good source on the Icelandic Coast Guard, it is possible that the last two ships are real, but I've been unable to confirm this.

Plot summary: As the third Cod War drags on, the tension increases leading to fears of a Third World War...

Note: The 'Cod Wars' were a series of confrontations between Iceland and Great Britain over fishing rights in the North Sea, Iceland ultimately prevailed by threatening to leave NATO. What the author does in this novel is a fairly straightforward extrapolation of what was going on at the time with a few minor tweaks.

I became aware of this novel when the author mentioned it in a footnote to his later submarine disaster novel 'The Sea Above Them' (1975), indicating the two stories were set in the same fictional 'universe'. That reference implied this story was also a naval action novel, but it's firmly focused on British trawler crews, the only warships beyond the Icelandic Coast Guard ships mentioned are all unnamed.

 

[Graham1973]

John Wingate, Carrier, 1981

United Kingdom

HMS Furious
Centaur Class Carrier
Armament noted to retain 40mm Bofors Guns and Sea Cat missiles.
Airgroup consists of Harriers and Sea King helicopters.
Note: Class determination based on backstory which is based on that of HMS Hermes.

HMS Saracen
Swiftsure Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

HMS Sealion
Swiftsure Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

RFA Resolve
'Replenishment ship', class not specified
Speed: 16 knots
No other details provided.

RFA Resurgent
'Replenishment ship', class not specified
Speed: 16 knots
No other details provided.

HMS Phoebe (F42)
Leander Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service 1964 - 1992

HMS Brazen (F91)
Type 22 Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service (UK) 1982 - 1996, (Brazil) 1996 - 2015

HMS Gloucester (D96)
Type 42 Class Destroyer (Batch III)
Real ship, details as in service 1985 - 2011

HMS United
Upholder Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only.

HMS Upholder (S40)
Upholder Class Submarine
Real ship details as in service (UK) 1990 - 1994 (Canada) 1998 - Ongoing.
Note: In real life the submarine entered service in 1990, in the novel it's stated to have just entered service.

United States

USS Jesse L. Brown (FF-1089)
Knox Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service (US) 1973 - 1994 (Egypt) 1994 - Ongoing.

Canada

HMCS Athabaskan (DDG 282)
Iroquois Class Destroyer
Real ship, details as in service 1972 - 2017

Germany (Federal Republic)

Köln (F211)
Bremen Class Frigate
Real ship, details as in service 1984 - 2012
Note: Assumed to be this ship on the basis that the author includes HMS Gloucester, a ship still under construction at the time the novel came out in the story.

Goeben
'Warship' class not specified
Equipped with a Lynx Helicopter.
No other details provided.

Netherlands

HNLMS Oileus
'Fast Combat Support Ship', class not specified
Speed: 21 knots
Aircraft: 2 x Sea King, 3 x Lynx
Equipped with naval grade sonar
Note: Stated to be an improved version of the HNLMS Poolster (A835), a replenishment ship in service 1964 - Ongoing.

Russia

All ships are unnamed, reference is made to the fourth Kiev Class Carrier (Baku) being operational at the time the story is set. Also reference is made to the first two Kirov Class Battlecruisers (Kirov & Frunze) being in service, thought they are not named in the story.

Plot summary: The year is 1986, relations between the Eastern and Western Blocs has broken down. As the vital troop convoys leave the United States and Canada bound for Europe the Russians throw everything they have into the battle to stop them from arriving.

Note: The author does not give the year, but on one page does give a date with the day of the week. The first year that April 11th falls on a Friday after the date of publication is 1986, this also suggests that the other two novels in the series 'Frigate' & 'Submarine' (Covered in this thread.) are set in the same year.

 

[Graham1973]

Philip McCutchan, Beware, Beware The Bight of Benin, 1974

United Kingdom

HMS Aurora
'Cruiser', class not specified
Displacement: 3000 tons
Built: c.1880s
Armament: Main battery 6 inch rifled muzzle loaders.
Note: Name clashes with an Orlando Class Armoured Cruiser in service 1889 - 1906.

Russia (Empire)

Grand Duke Alexis
'Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided

Romanov
'Cruiser', class not specified
Has a ram bow
No other details provided

St Petersburg
'Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided

Note: As far as I can tell none of the names above were actually used by the Imperial Russian Navy.

Plot summary: The year is 1891, the 'Scramble for Africa' is on and those Russian bounders are up to something on the West African coast, but what exactly are they up to?

 

[Graham1973]

Sam Llewellyn, Storm Force from Navarone, 1996

United Kingdom

HMS Frantic
F Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Class assignment based on name only.

HMS Masai
Tribal Class Destroyer
Details as per the real ships.
Note: Author explicitly identifies this ship as a Tribal Class Destroyer.

Germany

Gruppe Werwolf

Unnamed
3x U-Boats, type not specified.
Speed: 40kts (Submerged)
Walter engine
No other specifics given.

Plot summary: The year is 1944, evidence has emerged that the Germans have put into production a revolutionary type of submarine and that a force has been assembled near the Spanish border to strike at the Allied invasion fleet as soon as the D-Day landings occur.

Note: Alistair MacLean's 'The Guns of Navarone' (1957) is one of the seminal action novels of the late 20th Century, the author was prevailed on to write a sequel 'Force 10 from Navarone' and in the 1990's author Sam Llewellyn, most well known for a series of action novels built around yacht racing, was asked to write two further sequels. This is the first of them, and in my own opinion the author does a pretty good job with this one.

 

[Graham1973]

Sam Llewellyn, Thunderbolt from Navarone, 1998

United Kingdom

HMS Sea Leopard
S Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Class assignment based on name only.

MTB-109
MTB, Make/Manufacturer unspecified
Details as per the real ships.
Equipped with radar
Note: Pennant number is that of an experimental MTB that was sold off in an incomplete state at the end of WWII.

For the rocketry mavens

A-3 (V-4)
IRBM
Payload: 3 ton HE warhead
No other details provided
Note: The designation 'A-3' was used for a prototype of the A-4 that was tested between 1935 & 1937, the rockets were never intended to be armed and in reality the payload of the A-4 (Aka the V-2) was 1 tonne of high explosives. The designation 'V-4' was also used by author Nigel Seed in his novel 'V4 Vengeance' (2018) for a completely different type of Vergeltungswaffen (Vengeance Weapon) system.

Plot summary: The year is 1944 (This story takes place immediately after the end of 'Storm Force from Navarone' (1996)). Examination of the wreckage recovered after a German freighter was sunk in the Aegean has revealed that the Germans are working on rockets even larger than the V-2, fresh from dealing with German submarines, the men who destroyed Batterie Navarone are given another difficult task.

Note: This novel was the second and last of the authorized sequels to 'Force 10 from Navarone', the ending sets up the possibility of a further sequel, but this never eventuated.

 

[Graham1973]

Taking a step back from the 20th Century to the early 19th...

Sam Llewellyn, Gurney's Revenge, 1978

Non-State

Vandal
Topsail Schooner
Length: 150ft (45.72m)
Armament: Broadside (Port/Starboard) 6 x guns, 5 x 12 pdr, 1 x 68pdr long gun ("...at the widest point of her beam...") (12 guns in total), the ship has an enclosed gundeck, sternchaser armament is mentioned, but not specified, most likely a pair of 9pdr long guns.
Crew: 60
Note: The 68pdr Guns carried aboard can fire common shell and 'spherical case' (e.g. Shrapnel) shells in addition to the standard naval shot types. I have not been able to verify if 68pdr guns were ever deployed in naval service prior to the 1840s. It is possible, but the author does not state explicitly, that these either are custom cast weapons or former land (fortress) weapons on naval mountings. For clarification, at this time, 'common shell' referred to a hollow spherical shot filled with gunpowder, and fitted with a pre-cut fuse designed to be ignited on firing. 'Spherical case' was a similar weapon, but the shot was filled with a mixture of gunpowder and musket balls.
No other details provided. The ship is owned and operated by shipbuilder/landowner George Le Fanu Gurney (Ex-RN Captain).

Plot summary: The year is 1824, the Greek War of Independence has been going on for three years, as the British prepare to send the Hellenic Republic a loan of £800,000 (In 1824's money.) a former Royal Navy captain is contacted by the man who runs the RNs spies. It seems certain documents have been lost in Greece and need to be recovered, if the captain agrees to help with this, unofficialy of course, then the loans he took to build his shipyard will not be called in... Faced with an offer he cannot refuse, the captain sets sail with his crew and discovers that the politics of the Hellenic Republic (The provisional government the Greeks established to provide a face to the world, first recognized by the Republic of Hati...) are truly byzantine.

Note: This novel is one of three the author wrote at the start of his career centered around the character of George Gurney ('Gurney's Release' (1976?), 'Gurney's Revenge' (1977) & 'Gurney's Reward' (1978)), there is a lot of confusion about this series, especially as the author no longer mentions them on his website. The copy of 'Gurney's Reward' I have has an introduction identifying it as the second book in the series when in fact it may be the third and the order I've given is based on a lot of research, but it's all fairly provisional until I have all three books. The author was clearly trying to do for the post-Napoleonic period, what authors like Alexander Kent, Patrick O'Brian, Dudley Pope & C. S. Forester had done for the Napoleonic period. It's quite an enjoyable book with a number of good action sequences and a climactic sword fight aboard the flagship of Ibrahim Pasha as he sets sail to crush the Greek Revolt.

It's this last detail that helps firmly date the story in 1824, since that fleet departed Egypt on the 19th of July, 1824.

 

[Graham1973]

Larry Bond and Patrick Larkin, Red Phoenix, 1989

United States

All US naval units in the novel are real ships.

Korea (Democratic People's Republic)

Hullyunghan Lideo (Eng: Great Leader)
Kilo (Pr.877) Class Submarine
Fitted with an SA-N-8 missile system mounted on the periscope mast. This is stated as a Russian 'optional extra'.
Details as per the real ships

Haebangja (Eng: Liberator)
Romeo (Pr. 633) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Admiral Yi
Romeo (Pr. 633) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships
Note: Author only gave name in English, I have not been able to determine the Korean name.

Hyeogmyeong (Eng: Revolution)
Osa (Pr.205) Class Fast Attack Craft (Missile)
Details as per the real ship
Note: Not specified if Osa I or Osa II subclass.

Ang-gap-eum (Eng: Retaliation)
Osa (Pr.205) Class Fast Attack Craft (Missile)
Details as per the real ship
Note: Not specified if Osa I or Osa II subclass.

Eobenjyeo (Eng: Avenger)
Osa (Pr.205) Class Fast Attack Craft (Missile)
Details as per the real ship
Note: Not specified if Osa I or Osa II subclass.

Note: The Korean ship names above have been determined using Google Translate where possible, I make no claims as to accuracy.

Russia

Kavkaz
'Trawler' (e.g. Spy Ship)
No other details provided.

Konstantin Dribinov
Tango (Pr.641B) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Aleksandr Ogarkov
Akula (Pr.971) Class Submarine
Details as per the real ships

Note: All other Russian ships mentioned in the novel are real or Unnamed.

Plot summary: It is the 'Day after Tomorrow', after long years of peace, the North Korean government has decided to resume hostilities in the Korean War.

Note: This is the first novel by Larry Bond under his own name, the second ('Vortex' (1991)) like this one dealt with a 'hot button' scenario of the period, an attempt by the South African minority government to maintain it's hold on power by force. The co-authors name is only given on the copyright page.

 

[Graham1973]

Philip McCutchan, The New Lieutenant, 1996

United Kingdom

HMS Geelong (ex-SS Thornton)
Q Ship (Converted Collier)
Crew: 80
Armament: 2 x 4.7inch guns (Port/Starboard concealed mounts), 2 x 12pdr guns, 1 x 4pdr gun (mounted on poop), unspecified machine guns mounted on the bridge, rifles for the boarding crews. All armament save the poop deck gun is concealed. (At the end of the novel it is mentioned the armament is to be upgraded by adding 1 x 4.7 inch gun and depth charges to the existing armament.)
Engines: Steam
Note: Disguise is that of a tramp steamer.

Germany

Unnamed
U-Boat, unspecified class
Note: Captured by HMS Geelong

Plot summary: A RN Reserve Officer is assigned to the crew of a Q Ship.

Note: In the author's introduction he states that certain incidents in the novel were based on things his father described in a 1932 newspaper inverview, I have not been able to confirm this. The story itself runs from the start of the war, to early 1916 (Before the Easter Rising in Ireland.) going on the internal references. This is in fact the authors last novel, he died the year it came out.

 

[Graham1973]

Philip McCutchan, Halfhyde's Island, 1975

United Kingdom

HMS Viceroy
Ironclad
Built: c.1850s
Length: 350ft
Displacement: 9210tons (as built)
Armament: 4 x 8 inch guns, 24 x seven inch guns (All rifled breech-loaders)
Engines: Steam (Auxiliary Sails)
Speed: 14.35 knots (Steam power only)
Note: Stated to be "...one of the first iron-built armored warships to join the British fleet..." At the start of the novel the ship has been reduced to a stores hulk at Portsmouth before being refitted. Based on the authors description the ship would not have been much different in appearance to HMS Warrior, the first Ironclad warship in the Royal Navy. A further clue to this is a reference in the novel to the ship carrying aboard her an incomplete set of the last sails made for HMS Warrior which are compatible with her masts.

Russia (Empire)

Ostrolenka
'Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided

Tsarevich (Note: The author spells the name 'Czarevitch', editorial discretion was used.)
'Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided
Note: The name was used for a pre-dreadnought battleship launched in 1903.

Gregoriev
'Cruiser', class not specified
No other details provided

Note: No other description of these ships other than them being "...first class armored cruisers..." is given in the novel.

Japan

Shimonoseki
Pre-Dreadnought Battleship
No other details provided.
Identified as the flagship of the IJN's 2nd Battleship Squadron

Unnamed
4 x Pre-Dreadnought Battleships
No other details provided

Plot summary: A new volcanic island has arisen in the Northern Pacific, the Royal Navy sends a reconditioned warship to plant the flag on it before anyone else can...

Note: This story is based on several real world incidents during the 19th century involving flag plantings on volcanic islands that subsequently sank beneath the waves. The author in this series seems to be making a habit of giving only names of 'opposing' warships without providing much in the way of specific details. This story is the second in the 'Halfhyde' series and is set shortly after the events of the first book 'Beware, Beware, The Bight of Benin' (1974) which was set in 1891, but no specific dating information is given.

 

[Graham1973]

Philip McCutchan, Halfhyde and the Flag Review, 1991

United Kingdom

Chile

Almirante Smith (ex-HMS King William IV)
'Battleship' class not specified
No other details provided.
Note: In an earlier novel in the series 'Halfyde Ordered South' (1979) the Royal Navy transferred an Inflexible Class Battleship, HMS Meridian to the Chilean Navy. This is a later British transfer. The author describes the ship as the 'flagship' of the Chilean Navy. No specifics are given to determine what class she is. The ships original name is only mentioned in the preceding novel in the series 'Halfhyde and the Admiral' (1990)

Plot summary: The year is 1897. A former RN officer is asked to assist with the preparations for Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee by ensuring a former comrade now serving as an Admiral in the Chilean Navy does not disrupt proceedings.

Note: At this point in the 'Halfhyde Series' the title character has retired from the Royal Navy and is now an independent freighter captain, who still gets his arm twisted by the Admiralty when they have need of his talents. Unlike many of the other volumes in the series it can be firmly dated to a specific year. This, the final novel in the Halfhyde series is set in 1897, meaning that the series as a whole is set between 1891 and 1897.