The scene of cops swarming over a captured semi-sub (technically a Low Profile Vessel, LPV) deep in the South American jungle look familiar. It looks like a dozen similar drug busts spanning the last twenty years. But this is unique.

Brazil is not known for Narco subs. In fact there have never been any found in the Brazilian rainforests; until now. Does this represent a one-off oddity, or a shift in the game?

Evidence found by police suggests that the people who constructed it have ties to Columbian gangs. Around 15 persons lived in the makeshift village and factory, although they escaped before Police arrived.

The move to Brazil is interesting because the new location, in the jungle in the Município de Vigia, is nearly 2,000 nautical miles further along the coast of South America from the more usual submarine building regions of Columbia. At a respectable 5kt cruising speed, that makes the sub’s journey 2 weeks longer than for one built in Columbia. Living on such a craft for weeks on end must be particularly grueling.

The shift to Brazil could simply be to circumvent drug routes through Columbia, or perhaps point at the realization of long rumored cross-Atlantic route to Europe.

Read and watch more (In Portugese): g1.globo.com
g1.globo.com pt2

The design is typical of the Low Profile Semi-Submersibles (LPSS) (technically a Low Profile Vessel, LPV) with a fiberglass hull with slightly arched deck to encourage water to run off as waves break over the bow. The pilot stands in a small single-man conning tower staring out through Perspex portholes with basic controls and instruments, a steering wheel and a compass. Behind him is a single diesel engine with the exhaust raising in a large U-bend over the aft deck before snaking down to the waterline at the back of the boat. The payload would be carried in a hold forward of the cabin. In this particular design the hold was not separated from the main crew space, allowing only a single point of entry/exit in the sub.

Specification
Length: 17m (56 ft))
Beam: 3m (10ft)
Draft: 3m (10ft)
Height above water: 1m (3 ft)
Load: 30 tons of narcotics
Speed: TBC
Range: TBC
Crew: ~3
Propulsion: 1 diesel motor driving a single propeller
Equipment: GPS, compass, Sonar (reported)