Underwater fighting

[Ze_Abron]

Silly hypothetical question:

Say a blue country went to war with a red country. And two navy divers from opposing sides met each other underwater; how do they fight each other?

Do they even do so? Is the fabulous 'Thunderball' scene just fantasy?

 

[redacted]

Silly hypothetical question:

Say a blue country went to war with a red country. And two navy divers from opposing sides met each other underwater; how do they fight each other?

Do they even do so? Is the fabulous 'Thunderball' scene just fantasy?

Quite a few military forces have developed underwater pistols.
underwater pistols - Google Search

 

[under water]

 

[USCScubaboy]

i suppose whoever put up with all the ragging about rambo knives would have the upper hand

 

[Fatterboy]

If one could cup both palms over the opponents ears and apply pressure I would wager the resulting squeeze with probable rupture of tympanic membranes would be excrutiating.

 

[Guba]

I imagine that a Navy SEAL would be able to answer this one. The few that I've talked to sounded pretty confident that they could take out an enemy underwater, although they didn't go into detail.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

It is said (though of questionable veracity) that during the early days of WWI, a British and German plane, each returning from a patrol, passed each other. The pilots waved. When asked why he didn't try to shoot the german, the British pilot is alleged to have said something along the lines of "Are you out of your mind? It's dangerous enough up here without shooting at each other."

Something similar may well apply to your scenario.

 

[Sas]

Silly hypothetical question:

Say a blue country went to war with a red country. And two navy divers from opposing sides met each other underwater; how do they fight each other?

Do they even do so? Is the fabulous 'Thunderball' scene just fantasy?

When I was playing a computer game the other night I had to sneak onto an oil rig to rescue some hostages. I had flippers, rebreather and a gun. The gun could be fired from underwater as I used it to shoot some guards near my exit point.

It was in a computer game so it must be true.

 

[under water]

It actually looks like they are developing underwater weaponry.
"Perhaps the most intriguing hint of where the underwater arms race is headed comes from a 2005 U.S. patent granted to Thomas J. Gieseke, a Navy scientist at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center. The patent proposes a "high-velocity underwater jet weapon" that fires a stream of high-velocity liquid "bullets" -- fine grains of metal or sand that form a cavity more efficiently than solid rounds"

Splash, Splash, You're Dead: The Military's Next-Gen Water Gun

 

[Token]

I suspect that 'fighting' wouldn't really be an issue. The first diver to see the other one would simply approach from behind and murder him by whatever means handy. One of those shark bangstick gadgets would serve...