AIS shows this warning pretty quick

[jamie N]

Surely the easiest way to get a charge into the pipe would be from the inside, in both senses?

No, they're quite easily imploded by a detonation, and to get the explosive into the pipe at a Russian end, and 'pig' it to the right place, and then explode it when you want, would be a bit trickier I reckon.
I'm unsure about how deep they've been trenched, or have been back filled to cover, but it wouldn't be any great task to find the pipe, to expose the pipe and do some malicious damage such as we've seen.
It'd take an adapted ROV less than 12 hours to do all of the above, if one had inside info, which if it's the Russian Navy, they'd have.
I'm not sure what gas was filling the pipe? I wonder whether it had been filled with a more 'inert gas' at the time of the shut-down.
I've worked on a number of pipeline repairs and installations, and would imagine that a Hyperbaric welding system was already being brought out of 'Stand By' mode, ready for the day when this madness ends. I'd imagine that there already existed a maintenance contract with an International diving company, where it would be already covered with a risk assessment and procedure. The welded repair itself is a very well established procedure, (where they'd be able to use pipe sections that have been kept back for exactly this type of event, but with an anchor or fishing boat causing the damage), and not too time consuming.
Back in the day 'we' used to average 1 a day during installation phases, when everyone was geared up for it.

 

[Bilgediver]

Obviously Russian dirty tricks. I wouldn't be surprised to find that their naval excercises on the edge of the Continental Shelf off Southwest Ireland last February took place in order to cover up the placing of demolition charges on the undersea transatlantic cables pasing through that area.

Maybe an explosive pig sent along the pipe ?

 

[boomerangben]

Maybe an explosive pig sent along the pipe ?

Doesn’t pigging need “cooperation” at the other end of the pipe? In other words someone at western end needs to open their end of the pipe.

 

[RobbieW]

Thread purely stated because of the perfect use of an AtoN...

I was then intrigued by the depth in that area... Navionics Webapp strangely shows a blank in just that area...

50-100m according to CM93

 

[Martin_J]

50-100m according to CM93

I was going to check that next... but that's on board.

 

[Martin_J]

This then got me thinking. At what point does a submerged tunnel (you know the type where a tunnel shape is built onto the seabed and then water pumped out) become known as a pipeline and vice versa.

I imagined this pipeline was like a long tunnel.. something that without the gas in it could be driven through.. Then just read it's only 1.153metres internal diameter.

Talk now is of it could be unusable once sea water has entered and remained within it for a period of time..

Surely if it was made of many sections there would have been sea water in it at some point during the building.. or was each section added to the next (on a ship's deck above sea level) whilst one end remained on land (in fresh air) and it never had sea water in it to start with?

 

[GHA]

Thread purely stated because of the perfect use of an AtoN...

I was then intrigued by the depth in that area... Navionics Webapp strangely shows a blank in just that area...

Same for cmap in sasplanet.

Norway transmits ais messages online as well, but doesn't go as far as Bornholm, the ais message would have been interesting, though istr the ais message just indicates that it has been repeated, not where it was repeated.
153.44.253.27 port 5631
Kystinfo
Opencpn & laptop struggles with hundreds of ais messages every second..

 

[Martin_J]

Just found the answer as to how it was built.. or at least the page on how the three sections were joined by hyperbaric tie-ins to join the three sections. .

Nord Stream Pipeline - Tie-Ins and Hyperbaric welding

And how each section was constructed in previous pages... incredible really and so many things that could go wrong with all that heavy kit.

 

[jamie N]

Just found the answer as to how it was built.. or at least the page on how the three sections were joined by hyperbaric tie-ins to join the three sections. .

Nord Stream Pipeline - Tie-Ins and Hyperbaric welding

And how each section was constructed in previous pages... incredible really and so many things that could go wrong with all that heavy kit.

Back in the early 80's, two companies that did a lot of the hyperbaric welding around the North Sea were 2W and Comex. That's an Aberdeen company and a French company. Comex were widely deemed to be a superior diving company, after all they'd developed so much of the tech and the tables for saturation diving. I did a couple of jobs for them where the divers set up the hyperbaric stuff, and the welders would do the welding. 2 separate teams, the welders never got wet as the system was dry transfer with the bell locked on to the habitat. Very complex with "Experts" directing things.
2W were a company where they dived to make money, known as the 'Piranha Brothers' at the time. Their attitude was very 'can do', and make do. The people with the knowledge made the kit that they were going to use (to a point), so it really was rugged, very simple with all/most spares being generally available and field serviceable to the extreme. The divers were the (coded) welders as well, they swam to the job and were in the habitat for up to 12 hours. If they needed something from the surface it'd be sent down on a shot line in the 'paint pot', a small heavy tin with a return line to the top.
I was the ROV guy for them over a few years, apparently not because I was any good, but I knew when to look away and be busy 'somewhere/anywhere else', if the diver was doing something that might cause the client to lose sleep. A public service really!

 

[Spirit (of Glenans)]

AIS shows 'a really big hole'

Although Marine traffic is showing this as received by a shore based receiving station on Bornholm Island... I wonder where the real AIS AtoN is being transmitted from (over VHF) in order for vessels in the area to receive it..

View attachment 143623

News says vessels should keep 5 miles clear (although that could I guess have been added to the AIS AtoN name to allow any small yachts to at least see what it's about if they haven't got access to news).

View attachment 143624

Looks like Nordstream has become Sodastrean?

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

Interesting article from 2015, including a pic of a pipeline underwater. Not buried... Might not be it of course....
Explosive-Laden Drone Found Near Nord Stream Pipeline | Pipeline Technology Journal

 

[Beneteau381]

Surely the easiest way to get a charge into the pipe would be from the inside, in both senses?

Drop a pig in with a payload, set the counter on the triplex pump,

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

Surely just a big bomb dropped off a fishing boat with a rov to position it?

 

[NormanS]

Drop a pig in with a payload, set the counter on the triplex pump,

How's that going to work if the pipeline isn't in use?

 

[jamie N]

Interesting article from 2015, including a pic of a pipeline underwater. Not buried... Might not be it of course....
Explosive-Laden Drone Found Near Nord Stream Pipeline | Pipeline Technology Journal

I encountered an 'old mine' lying against a main pipeline in the N.Sea. It wasn't on our known fault list, and was a big deal for when we stumbled across it. A bit of a let down was when we were told that it was well known within the operator, but was not on our data as it was possible to judge the quality of our survey that we saw it; a good point.
It was eventually removed a few years ago, and found to be no longer viable.

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

I encountered an 'old mine' lying against a main pipeline in the N.Sea. It wasn't on our known fault list, and was a big deal for when we stumbled across it. A bit of a let down was when we were told that it was well known within the operator, but was not on our data as it was possible to judge the quality of our survey that we saw it; a good point.
It was eventually removed a few years ago, and found to be no longer viable.

Yeah the phrase "drone" suggests rather more recent than "old mine", and the article is 7 years old, back when such things were... Well, rarer..

 

[Greemble]

Interesting article from 2015, including a pic of a pipeline underwater. Not buried... Might not be it of course....
Explosive-Laden Drone Found Near Nord Stream Pipeline | Pipeline Technology Journal

Rather light in detail, I think.

Found during an annual inspection - Have they increased the number of inspection following this?
Says the drone was made safe when they cut the control cable. How long was that cable? Where did it go? who was holding the other end?

Did they not even wonder about this?

 

[WindyWindyWindy]

Did they not even wonder about this?

It's the oil biz, who's going to get their knickers in a twist over an explosive laden drone?

 

[jamie N]

Some ROV's have a small explosive charge fitted to enable the umbilical to be cut when the umbilical becomes irretrievably snagged. The cable is cut and the ROV floats to the surface. The orginal small ROV, the RCV225 had this feature.
A clue as to the expertise shown in the article is that of calling an ROV a drone, which indicates a lack of knowledge.

 

[RupertW]

It’s very odd that a relatively new pipeline which I believe was installed by a reputable western contractor would have not one, but three leaks. They would be trenched into the sea bed so not easy to get at for sabotage. I wonder what’s really going on.

It’s actually 3 out of the 4 pipelines that have simultaneously had seismic events followed by a major leak. Accidental seems very very unlikely as does amateur terrorism or environmental protests.