When the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, everybody thought the times of sinister submarine battles and nuclear one-upmanship have been a factor of the previous. However beneath the frozen floor of the Barents Sea, outdated habits persevered. The USA and Russian navies engaged of their cat-and-mouse video games, every wanting to observe the opposite’s nuclear arsenal with intense curiosity. The upshot? Some of the humiliating—and threatening—submarine crashes of the post-Chilly Warfare period.
Chilly Warfare Methods Received’t Fade Away
Whereas Russia was struggling by means of political and financial turmoil, its personal navy stood robust. The USA, terrified of turmoil and the destiny of Soviet nuclear capabilities, elevated its underwater surveillance. These operations, referred to as Operation Holy Stone, included tapping Russian telecommunication cables and monitoring submarine actions off strategic naval bases.
SOFREP experiences that USS Baton Rouge, an LA-class nuclear assault submarine, was deployed in February 1992 off Severomorsk. The story went that it was putting in or gathering listening gadgets on the ocean ground, however the Russians suspected that it was doing one thing extra provocative.
The Collision: A Sport of Underwater Hen
Roughly 12 miles from the coast of Russia—in worldwide waters in line with American calculations, however claimed by Moscow—the crew of the Baton Rouge felt themselves to be alone. Then their submarine lurched. They’d struck the Russian B-276 Kostroma, a 9,000-ton Sierra-class nuclear submarine with a really uncommon titanium hull.
As documented by Dr. Brent M. Eastwood, the Kostroma was developing at a average tempo of 8 mph, however the weight of the ship meant that the collision was substantial. Each subs have been broken—Kostroma’s conning tower was pummeled, whereas Baton Rouge obtained extreme scratches and a ruptured ballast tank. The U.S. sub was lucky; its single hull may need been compromised, resulting in disastrous flooding.
Following the collision, Baton Rouge navigated across the Russian sub to see if assist was required, then each ships crawled again to their dwelling ports.
Diplomatic Shockwaves
The encounter was a political embarrassment for Washington. The Russians blamed the U.S. for unauthorized entry into their waters, and the Pentagon maintained the collision happened in worldwide waters. The official American clarification—that Baton Rouge was merely tending listening gadgets—rang hole in Moscow.
The political fallout was instantaneous. President George H.W. Bush despatched Secretary of State James Baker to the Kremlin to comprise the harm. Baker had a tough promote in President Boris Yeltsin, who believed the Individuals have been nonetheless into their outdated spying habits.
In keeping with Dr. Brent M. Eastwood, Baker reassured Yeltsin that the U.S. Navy by no means supposed to spy, regardless of rumors that Baton Rouge was eavesdropping on Russian navy communications. Russian strategists claimed that each subs knew of one another’s presence and performed a recreation of cat-and-mouse underwater at excessive stakes.
The Aftermath: Scrapping and Symbolism
Having returned to port, the extent of Baton Rouge’s harm was revealed. Restore and the refueling of her nuclear reactor have been too expensive, and the submarine was damaged up in 1993 after an energetic profession in extra of 17 years.
Kostroma, nevertheless, was repaired and put again into service. In a gesture that mixed humor and bravado, Russian sailors painted a kill mark—a “number one” image—on Kostroma’s conning tower to have a good time the “defeat” of the American sub.
In keeping with Warfare Historical past On-line, Kostroma subsequently underwent modernization, with a brand new sonar complicated being among the many upgrades, and continues to be in reserve standing at the moment.
Classes from the Deep
The 1992 crash served as a reminder that, even during times of assumed peace, the risks of submarine spying are very actual and could possibly be catastrophically disastrous. Each have been lucky—there have been no fatalities, and the accident didn’t result in a navy battle. But with Washington-Moscow tensions ebbing and flowing over time, ghosts of underwater crashes stay, proof of the perilous video games beneath the floor.