www.msn.com Open in urlscan Pro
204.79.197.203  Public Scan

Form analysis
0 forms found in the DOM

Text Content

Service on board a submarine is one of the more dangerous military occupations,
with any accident or mistake potentially proving both catastrophic and deadly.

That submarine service can be potentially hazardous is highlighted by the fact
that the danger remains high even during regular peacetime patrols. The crew of
one Cold War Soviet submarine learned this the hard way.



Much like the United States, the early years of the Cold War saw the Soviet
Union begin to experiment with ballistic missile submarines out of a desire to
ensure the maintenance of a survivable second-strike nuclear weapons capability.
Soviet design efforts for a new ballistic missile submarine beginning in 1958
experienced significant issues – particularly with the missile launch system –
and the changes made to the design in order to correct these problems were so
extensive that the program’s designation was changed to 667A.

The resulting Soviet 667A – codenamed Yankee I by NATO – nuclear-powered
ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) was the first Soviet SSBN that was roughly on
par with its American counterparts. The 667A was designed to minimize external
resistance while operating below the surface and was built with noise-reduction
in mind, including the use of a sound-absorbing rubber on the pressure hull and
antihydroacoustic coating on the external hull. The 667A was equipped with
topline Soviet navigation and battle management systems, and the vessel’s two
self-contained propulsion units gave it a maximum speed of 27 knots while
submerged.

 

The 667A was equipped with the D-5 launch system and carried a total of 16 R-27
submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), each of which had a maximum range
of 2400 km. Between 1972 and 1983, 667A SSBNs were re-equipped with the upgraded
D-5U launch system and the R-27U SLBMs, which had a greater maximum range of up
to 3,000 km and which carried multiple reentry vehicles. These upgraded vessels
were designated the 667AU.

The first 667A was launched in 1964, and between 1967 and 1974 the Soviet Union
would build a total of 667A-class SSBNs. The Soviet Union would build upon the
Yankee design with its Project 667B “Delta” class of SSBNs.




In October 1986, the 667A-class SSBN K-219 – while on a cruise roughly 600 miles
off the coast of Bermuda – suffered an explosion and subsequent fire in its
number 6 missile tube. The likely cause was a leak that allowed seawater to
enter into the missile tube, which caused rocket fuel chemicals to enter into
the tube.



As a result of the explosion, the missile, and its nuclear warheads were ejected
into the sea.

The ship’s commanding officer and its crew attempted to salvage the vessel and
prepare it for towing with the help of a Soviet freighter, only to have the
towing cable snap during recovery efforts. The commanding officer ordered the
crew to abandon ship, and the vessel was lost.

The incident caused a stir among the Soviet leadership, with General Secretary
Mikhail Gorbachev questioning not only the competence of K-219’s crew but also
the idea that the incident was purely accidental; Gorbachev reportedly
questioned whether or not the incident could have been the result of American
sabotage, while the idea that K-219 had collided with an American submarine –
which the vessel’s commanding officer categorically denied – was also floated
around.

Soviet leaders were also concerned that the United States might successfully
recover the wreckage of K-219 and loot its codebook and other technological
secrets. These concerns likely stemmed from the CIA’s successful recovery of a
sunken Soviet submarine – along with a trove of intel regarding Soviet undersea
capabilities – in 1968.

The story of Soviet submarine K-219 demonstrates just how hazardous submarine
duty can be, even during a routine peacetime patrol.

From the Vault

‘You Really Oughta Go Home’: F-22 Raptor Stealth Fighter Flew Under F-4 From
Iran

A Second American Civil War? 

Something Is Terribly Wrong With Former President Trump




Continue reading


Sponsored Content

MORE FROM 1945
The Hard Truth: Ukraine Has No Realistic Path to Victory Over RussiaJoe Biden Is
Nothing More Than a Disgraceful Liar‘Panicked Retreat’: Russia’s Defenses Are
Starting to Break in Ukraine
Visit 1945
TRENDING STORIES
 1. Single home at water's edge miraculously untouched by Maui wildfires – just
    like churchMetro
 2. Singapore arrests 10 foreigners, seizes S$1 billion assets in money
    laundering probeReuters
 3. Rudy Giuliani made desperate appeal to Trump to pay his legal bills in
    Mar-a-Lago meetingCNN
 4. Study sounds alarms about collapse of crucial ‘conveyor belt’ ocean current
    system: ‘There is still large uncertainty’The Cool Down


MORE FOR YOU


 * Sergei Shoigu says the war is "debunking many myths" that NATO military
   standards are superior.
 * He bragged that even Russia's Soviet-era weapons fared better in some cases
   than Western equipment.
 * Shogiu said Russia would share findings about the "weaknesses" in NATO
   weapons with its partners.

Full screen


1 of 8 Photos in Gallery©Pavel Golovkin/AP, Alexei Nikolsky/AP, Murat Kula/Getty
Images, Getty Images, Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images, Ludovic Marin/Getty Images,
Ricki Lee/Insider


THE WAR IN UKRAINE HAS LED TO INFIGHTING AMONG RUSSIA'S MOST INFLUENTIAL
PLAYERS. THESE ARE THE 7 PEOPLE YOU NEED TO KNOW.

 * Russia's war in Ukraine has led to infighting among several of the country's
   key players.
 * The tensions bubbled to the surface when Putin faced a short-lived mutiny led
   by the Wagner Group leader.
 * These are the seven people you need to know.

When Russian troops entered Ukraine last February, its once-formidable military
expected to swiftly take over its much smaller neighbor. 

But a war that was supposed to be over in weeks has now stretched on for over a
year — with Russia suffering heavy losses and embarrassing battlefield defeats.

The war in Ukraine has also exposed complex relationships and jostling rivalries
between some of Russia's key players, which include army generals, politicians,
and warlords.

The tensions bubbled to the surface when Putin faced a short-lived mutiny led by
the Wagner Group Yevgeny Prigozhin, in what was a dramatic escalation in an
ongoing feud between him and Russian military leadership.

This is everything you need to know about the most influential people of Putin's
inner circle.

See More


Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu bragged on Tuesday that the Kremlin has
shown the West's military technology is not all it's chalked up to be.

"The Russian army debunked many myths about the superiority of Western military
standards," Shoigu said at a security conference attended by Chinese Defense
Minister Li Shangfu.

He said it was now "obvious" that NATO weaponry, modern war doctrine, and
training "cannot ensure superiority on the battlefield," per a transcript posted
by Russia's Defense Ministry.

"In many cases, even Soviet-made equipment surpasses Western models in its
combat qualities," Shoigu boasted further, though he cited no detailed
information or evidence to support his claim.

Shoigu added that through the war, Russia has obtained data on the destruction
of weapons systems like German tanks, US armored vehicles, British long-range
missiles. He did not go into further detail.




"We are ready to share assessments of the weaknesses of Western technology with
our partners," he said.



It's true that Russia has managed to destroy or obtain some advanced NATO
equipment during the war, but Shoigu also failed to mention any of the Kremlin's
heavy losses in Ukraine when making his comparison.

Ukraine lost around 20% of its US-provided equipment in its summer
counteroffensive, The New York Times reported, citing US and European officials.

The losses were highlighted in July when reports showed that nearly a third of
the Bradley armored vehicles sent by Washington to Kyiv have either been damaged
or destroyed.

Russia has also been claiming that it's routinely destroying German-supplied
Leopard tanks, though it once claimed to have footage of such an incident — only
for the video to show an attack helicopter blasting farm equipment.

In June, Russia claimed to have shot a separate video of a Leopard tank being
destroyed, which open-source networks believed was credible.

The Kremlin also said in July that it managed to seize a downed UK-provided
Storm Shadow missile, as its bases behind the frontlines received repeated
strikes from such munitions.

On the other hand, Moscow has continually been reported to be losing high-value
equipment, such as dozens of Ka-52 Alligator gunships and more than 2,000 of its
3,400 tanks. The Kremlin is said to be reactivating its vast supply of
Soviet-era tanks to fill the gap.

A UK Defense official and military advisor assessed in July that Russia has lost
half of its combat effectiveness since the war began. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine lost some 550 of its initial 987 tanks, per open-source
analysis site Oryx. But it has also captured hundreds of Russian tanks, and its
Western allies continue to send equipment and vehicles to the battlefield.




Continue reading


Sponsored Content

MORE FROM Business Insider
Forget Italy's 1 euro homes. You can buy a crumbling, 2-bedroom fixer-upper for
$1 in Michigan.An Iowa school district asked ChatGPT if a list of books contains
sex scenes, and banned them if it said yes. We put the system to the test and
found a bunch of problems.Listen to ex-Tesla workers describe Elon Musk's
'production hell' in their own words, from working through a raw sewage leak to
sleeping on the factory floor
Visit Business Insider
TRENDING STORIES
 1. Kroger, Costco, and Walmart rival Aldi buys 400 grocery storesTheStreet
 2. Air Force awards a start-up company $235 million to build an example of a
    sleek new planeThe Associated Press
 3. Singapore arrests 10 foreigners, seizes S$1 billion assets in money
    laundering probeReuters
 4. 'A frightened little boy, deep down': Defendant Trump struggling with new
    status: Mary TrumpMSNBC


MORE FOR YOU


 * © 2023 Microsoft

 * Your Privacy Choices
 * Privacy & Cookies
 * Terms of use
 * Advertise


Feedback