ELSS Pods

The FET Subsea Emergency Life Support Stores (ELSS) containers are pressure-tight pods used by navies as part of a distressed submarine rescue system. In the event that a submarine becomes stranded on the seabed, ELSS containers are posted into the submarine’s hatches to deliver life-preserving stores to the crew until a full rescue can be mounted.

The ELSS pod is designed to be nominally 10 kg negatively buoyant in seawater, which enables it to be delivered to the Submarine by a swimmer, an Atmospheric Diving Suit (ADS), a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) or the Rescue Submersible itself.

Each ELSS container comprises a cylindrical pressure vessel with a removable end cap fitted with a lifting handle. The payload of the container can be varied using a combination of ballast weights, which keep the weight in water of the container constant.

The cylindrical pressure vessel is manufactured from aluminum and coated with yellow Xylan, which is both tough and resilient to impact during deck handling and deployment.

The removable end cap is manufactured from aluminum alloy and is fitted with a stainless-steel lifting handle. A pressure equalizing valve ensures that the cylinder is not under or over-pressurized before being opened.

The ELSS pod is compliant with ANEP-85 “Material Interoperability Requirements For Submarine Escape And Rescue.”