2 



DESIGN AND OPERATIONAL 

 CONSIDERATIONS 



To accomplish its passenger-carrying and 

 work functions economically, a submersible 

 must be transportable, easily maintainable, 

 and amenable to launch/retrieval from a roll- 

 ing vessel. A review of the submersibles in 

 Chapter 4 reveals the varied approaches to 

 these requirements. No matter what the ap- 

 proach, there are laws of physics and human 

 biology which all successful vehicles must 

 obey. There are also logistical and operational 

 considerations which, because of their impor- 

 tance, are an integral part of the submersible 

 diving system; these are its support platform, 

 and its launch/retrieval apparatus. 



Five categories have been defined and in- 

 clude the design and operational factors with 



which the successful submersible operator 

 must contend; these categories are: 



Environmental Constraints 



Vehicle Performance 



Human Considerations 



Emergency Procedures 



Support Requirements 

 The factors within these categories are drawn 

 from the history of submersible operations 

 and deal with the submersible system instead 

 of the submersible as an independent opera- 

 tor. Inclusion of support requirements may 

 seem outside the scope of submersible diving 

 principles; but submersibles are not military 

 submarines, and none routinely operates in 

 the open sea without surface support and, in 

 the final analysis, shore support. 



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