Surgeon Lieut.-CommanderBennett asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty if he will make a statement on the recent accident involving two of His Majesty's submarines; and what was the reason for the bottoming mentioned in an earlier Admiralty report.
§ Mr. CallaghanThe submarines grounded during exercises to the west of the Hebrides. The sea bed in the area is uneven and it seems that the depth of water is less than that shown on the charts. A fresh survey is to be made by modern echo sounding methods. The exercises precluded the use of the submarines' own echo sounding apparatus and, but for that, it is unlikely that the grounding would have taken place. The submarines suffered only minor damage. They have been docked for examination and are seaworthy.