[ExI] robo-rescue

[spike at rainier66.com]

From: Keith Henson <hkeithhenson at gmail.com> 
Sent: Wednesday, 10 June, 2026 5:50 PM
To: ExI chat list <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org>
Cc: spike at rainier66.com; BillK <pharos at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [ExI] robo-rescue

 

>…This is a silly idea. I can list the extensive problems such a thing would have, but so can you.


Keith

 

 

 

Keith, the comment doesn’t surprise me, but it surprises me that the source of the comment is from someone as imaginative and inventive as we know you to be.

 

Before you list the extensive problems, let us make sure we are talking about the same thing.  I envision vertical tubes, perhaps 10 meters long and about 3 meters across, heavy enough steel to withstand pressure of about 5 atm, allowing it to descend to a depth of about 50 meters.  Imagine 6 tubes, in a row, with flat steel plates along the sides, and front, so a kind of rectangular vessel about 20 meters in length, perhaps 4 meters width and 10 meters height.  A Diesel engine linked to a generator and air compressors stay in a water tight compartment.  The rest of the volume is used to flood or evacuate for underwater buoyancy.

 

The vessel comes to the surface and rides on hydrofoils for short high speed dashes.  When a satellite detects danger, it stops and drops, so that the incoming missile finds no target.  But the vertical tubes contain drones, which can be launched without actually even completely surfacing the vessel: it can stay submerged and raise one tube at a time, open the hatch, launch the drones, close the hatch, drop back down.

 

It isn’t really a submarine because it doesn’t go much underwater.  It doesn’t need to use that inefficient mode of transportation.  It isn’t exactly a carrier either, since it has no crew or traditional aircraft.  It is really a flying submersible battleship, since most of its mission is anti-surface ship.

 

Keith do list the extensive problems you have in mind.  If you or anyone else wishes to use the idea for a SciFi story, do feel free.

 

spike

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Wed, Jun 10, 2026 at 3:45 PM spike jones via extropy-chat <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org <mailto:extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> > wrote:





Someone asked, mighta been John, if a submarine could fly.  Perhaps, in the sense that these boats fly:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_c0UdcDoyc

We can imagine an autonomous submersible which doesn't move much while under water, but surfaces, mounts up on its hydrofoils, goes like hell for a few minutes or until a satellite detects it has been fired upon, it launches drone countermeasures against whatever fired upon it, then drops below the surface until the threat passes overhead.  Sitting still and quiet under water, it would be undetectable.  It is then the flying submarine battleship aircraft carrier.

spike



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