Mk48 ADCAP torpedo high-assurance testing

Abstract

The Mk48 ADCAP torpedo is the US Navy's premier heavyweight submarine-launched torpedo and is widely recognized as the world's most capable anti-submarine weapon. ADCAP is a wire-guided, thermal torpedo launched through the full submarine's depth and speed profile. Following ADCAP's initial fleet introduction in 1988, software upgrades were begun to improve torpedo performance in the presence of countermeasures, under the arctic ice canopy and against high speed submarine targets. The ADCAP program has produced an extremely reliable and capable weapon system through over 16 years of development. Since ADCAP is a software controlled weapon, most performance enhancements require no hardware modification, can be made quickly and at low cost. Obviously, software enhancements must undergo testing before fleet introduction. This paper describes the ADCAP torpedo, the problems encountered during development and current status of the Mk48 ADCAP torpedo testing program.