Fire at Sea: The Tragedy of the Soviet Submarine Komsomolets

by D . A . Romanov (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  2006

  $10.11

  This is a complete English-language edition of D.A. Romanov's vigorous defence of the people and institutions that built the ill-fated Soviet nuclear attack submarine Komsomolets, which caught fire and sank in the Norwegian Sea on April 7th 1989, while on its first patrol. Afterwards, the Soviet Navy claimed that numerous technical imperfections had caused the accident. In addition, official investigators portrayed the crew as self-sacrificing and well trained, upheld the commanding officer's actions and found no fault in the behaviour of the crew. Buoyed by Mikhail Gorbachev's glasnost, dissident voices challenged the official view. The resulting controversy ruined careers, damaged personal and professional relationships and divided the navy itself. Romanov refutes the Soviet Navy's claim that from the very beginning it had done everything to ensure that Komsomolets was well prepared for independent patrolling, that it had trained the crew well and that the submarine's personnel had performed capably during the accident. Observers familiar with the issues and the acrimony that surround the loss of the Russian submarine Kursk in August 2000 will find startling antecedents in the Komsomolets incident. This comprehensive study of what really happened and the ensuing cover-up should appeal to readers with an interest in submarine operations and technology, Cold War navies, Russia, and the dark side of personal and bureaucratic behaviour.