The sunken submarine. Catastrophes in the nuclear submarine fleet of the USSR and Russia

The wrecked nuclear submarines of the USSR and Russia are the subject of continuing discussions. During the Soviet and post-Soviet years, four nuclear submarines were lost (K-8, K-219, K-278, "Kursk"). The sunk submarine K-27 was flooded independently in 1982 in the Kara Sea after a radiation accident. This was done because the nuclear submarine was not subject to recovery, and disposal was too expensive. All these submarines were assigned to the Northern Fleet.

The K-8 nuclear submarine

This sunken submarine is considered the first officially recognized loss in the nuclear fleet of the Union. The cause of the loss of the vessel on 12 April 1970 was the fire that arose during his stay in the Bay of Biscay (Atlantic). The crew for a long time struggled for the survivability of the submarine. The sailors were able to drown out the reactors. Part of the crew was evacuated on board in time of the approached Bulgarian civilian ship, but 52 people were killed. This sunken submarine was one of the first Soviet nuclear-powered ships.

Submarine K-219

This atomic project 667A was once one of the most modern and surviving ships of the submarine fleet. He sank on October 6, 1986 due to a powerful explosion of a ballistic missile in the mine. As a result of the accident, 8 people were killed. In addition to the two reactors, the sunken submarine had on board at least fifteen ballistic missiles and 45 thermonuclear warheads. The ship was badly maimed, but it showed remarkable vitality. It was able to surf from a 350-meter depth with terrible damage to the hull and a flooded compartment. The nuclear ship sank only after three days.

Komsomolets ( K-278)

This submerged submarine of project 685 died on April 7, 1989 as a result of a fire that arose during the execution of a combat mission. The vessel was located near the Bear Island (Norwegian Sea) in neutral waters. The crew fought for six hours for the survivability of the submarine, but after several explosions in the compartments the submarine went to the bottom. On its board there were 69 crew members. Of these, 42 people died. "Komsomolets" was the most modern submarine of that time. His death caused a great international response. Before this, the sunken submarines of the USSR did not attract so much attention (in part because of the regime of secrecy).

«Kursk»

This tragedy, probably, is the most famous catastrophe, connected with the death of a submarine. "The killer of aircraft carriers," a formidable and modern nuclear cruiser, sank at a 107-meter depth of 90 km from the coast. At the bottom were found locked 132 submariners. Activities to save the crew were unsuccessful. According to the official version, the nuclear submarine sank because of an explosion of an experimental torpedo that occurred in the mine. However, in the death of the "Kursk" is still a lot of unclear. According to other versions (unofficial), the nuclear ship sank because of a collision with the American submarine "Toledo", which was nearby, or because of the torpedo launched from it. The unsuccessful rescue operation to evacuate the crew from the sunken ship became a shock to the whole of Russia. On board the nuclear-powered ship, 132 people died.