Flatulent whale mistaken for 'Russian' submarine, reports say
Britain's Royal Navy initiated a search for a stealthy submarine, only to discover that the source of the disturbance was actually whale flatulence. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
The Royal Navy of the UK reportedly misidentified a marine mammal as the elusive ‘Red October’ during a extensive search for a suspected Russian stealth submarine.
British ships spent several days investigating sonar signals captured off the northwestern coast of Scotland, specifically between Applecross and the Isle of Raasay. Initially believing these sounds to be man-made, the Royal Navy launched an in-depth maritime operation.
“We have been analyzing the sounds and now believe it was a marine mammal. A whale,” an anonymous naval official told The Sun, noting that the whale might have been releasing gas at the time. Another Royal Navy source added, “We are taking it very seriously. We have to assume the worst.”
The first sonar signal was detected moving northward toward the open sea, while a second signal was picked up “days later” heading south, only to turn around and depart again.
The admiralty had speculated that the Russian military's Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research could be attempting to deploy sensors in order to capture the acoustic signatures of Royal Navy submarines, including the Vanguard-class missile carriers and Astute-class attack submarines.
The location of the UK's submarine fleet is supposed to remain a closely guarded secret. The New York Post reported that the curious sounds attributed to flatulence were detected “about 100 miles” from the submarines' home base.
In a lighthearted take on the incident, the US outlet dubbed it “the Hunt for Red Fart-ober,” playing on the title of the 1990 film focused on a covert Soviet submarine.
Ballistic missile submarines are considered a vital element of a country's nuclear deterrent, providing assurance that an atomic arsenal remains intact despite the threat of a surprise first strike. Earlier this month, the French navy took action against the use of a fitness-tracking app at its nuclear submarine base, concerned that online posts from Strava could inadvertently expose patrol schedules.
Amid rising tensions between NATO and Russia, fueled by the conflict in Ukraine, Western navies have sometimes reacted with heightened caution. Notably, a beluga whale spotted off Norway's northern coast in 2019 was labeled a “Russian spy” and monitored by the Norwegian navy for years. This whale, affectionately named ‘Hvaldimir,’ was found dead last August, reportedly from natural causes.
Sanya Singh contributed to this report for TROIB News
British ships spent several days investigating sonar signals captured off the northwestern coast of Scotland, specifically between Applecross and the Isle of Raasay. Initially believing these sounds to be man-made, the Royal Navy launched an in-depth maritime operation.
“We have been analyzing the sounds and now believe it was a marine mammal. A whale,” an anonymous naval official told The Sun, noting that the whale might have been releasing gas at the time. Another Royal Navy source added, “We are taking it very seriously. We have to assume the worst.”
The first sonar signal was detected moving northward toward the open sea, while a second signal was picked up “days later” heading south, only to turn around and depart again.
The admiralty had speculated that the Russian military's Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research could be attempting to deploy sensors in order to capture the acoustic signatures of Royal Navy submarines, including the Vanguard-class missile carriers and Astute-class attack submarines.
The location of the UK's submarine fleet is supposed to remain a closely guarded secret. The New York Post reported that the curious sounds attributed to flatulence were detected “about 100 miles” from the submarines' home base.
In a lighthearted take on the incident, the US outlet dubbed it “the Hunt for Red Fart-ober,” playing on the title of the 1990 film focused on a covert Soviet submarine.
Ballistic missile submarines are considered a vital element of a country's nuclear deterrent, providing assurance that an atomic arsenal remains intact despite the threat of a surprise first strike. Earlier this month, the French navy took action against the use of a fitness-tracking app at its nuclear submarine base, concerned that online posts from Strava could inadvertently expose patrol schedules.
Amid rising tensions between NATO and Russia, fueled by the conflict in Ukraine, Western navies have sometimes reacted with heightened caution. Notably, a beluga whale spotted off Norway's northern coast in 2019 was labeled a “Russian spy” and monitored by the Norwegian navy for years. This whale, affectionately named ‘Hvaldimir,’ was found dead last August, reportedly from natural causes.
Sanya Singh contributed to this report for TROIB News
