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According to the weekly Argumenty Nedeli (Moscow, Russia), Yuri Krutskikh, former submarine soldier of the Soviet Fleet (retired, now in Vladivostok, Russia) in early March 2021 has just published a second book on the events of his period at the Cam Ranh base (Vietnam ) in the late 1980s. This book is titled Cam Ranh o is the last submarine of the Foxtrot class.
Cam Ranh’s Soviet base in the 1980s |
The featured book deals with events through the memories of this former submarine soldier, although it is not a memory, some character names have been changed accordingly. In particular, the weekly newspaper Argumenty Nedeli citing a passage from this book about the (unconfirmed) fact that a Soviet navy stationed at Cam Ranh nearly “lost” a nuclear torpedo on a Foxtrot-class diesel-electric submarine (Project 641) served by the author.
Soviet submarines monitor the US navy in the South China Sea to the Straits of Malacca
According to an excerpt from the book, the author is a soldier in charge of weapons in a diesel-electric submarine of the Project 641 class (the NATO designation is the Foxtrot class), belonging to the 19th underground submarine regiment of the Soviet Fleet from Pacific. In the late 1980s, Mr. Krutskikh and the submarines were brought to the Cam Ranh base to patrol the South China Sea.
The length of time Mr. Krutskikh served at Cam Ranh is approximately 7 months. His unit’s mission is to oversee the operations of US aircraft carriers and naval bases in the South China Sea, and oversee shipping lanes through the Straits of Malacca.
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Foxtrot-class submarines at Cam Ranh in the 1980s |
The Foxtrot class submarines were built in the late 1950s, when Mr. Krutskikh was in his 30s, but they were still very durable, despite the very difficult living conditions on the ship. Every time it goes to sea, its submarines always carry 22 torpedoes, including 2 nuclear warheads that, according to estimates, are each enough to sink a US nuclear aircraft carrier.
Problems dismantling nuclear torpedoes.
According to excerpts from the book, sailors and officers on the submarine have their own standards for serving alcohol. The mechanic is about 20 liters / month, the radio leader is 15 liters, the navigator is 10 liters, and the soldier in charge of weapons is 3 liters / month. Weapons that submarines carry during patrols include torpedoes, sea mines, rifles, pistols, and the most expensive are torpedoes, especially nuclear torpedoes.
Upon returning to base, the nuclear torpedoes will be dismantled from the submarines, brought ashore and stored.
Once a rare event happened with this. After a business trip, the ship returned to base and the crew had to bring 2 nuclear torpedoes ashore.
“Everything is normal. We measure the safe wind speed at a normal level and then we take out the torpedoes and report it to the ground unit. They come, check everything and let it go.
Mr. Yuri Krutskikh when he was a submarine soldier |
The first nuclear torpedo was removed from the submarine. Have you ever had a nuclear torpedo in hand? It was a giant pure black green that did not distinguish anything from other torpedoes in color or size. There are also no warning signs such as radioactive symbols or skulls and crossbones … ”, according to the excerpt.
Then, slowly advancing the millimeter, the torpedo was transferred from the deck of the ship. Then a tow truck arrived, carefully lifted the torpedo “like a father cradling his first child” and packed it into the bed of a special Kamaz truck parked nearby.
The crew then also carefully took the second nuclear torpedo and slowly carried it to the deck of the ship, waiting for the crane to be ashore. Suddenly, the person in charge of loading and unloading torpedoes on the ground announced that he would stop accepting torpedoes because the wind speed was already above the allowed level of 1 m / s, according to his anemometer. Then the crane stopped loading and unloading and returned to the garage. The curator approached Mr. Krutskikh, handed over the weapon to him and was delighted to be home early with his wife and children.
Painting of the Foxtrot-class submarine in Cam Ranh in a book by Mr. Yuri Krutskikh |
“You cannot leave the nuclear torpedo on the deck of the ship, if it rains, it could be stolen. And then, slowly in millimeters, we put the torpedo back in the compartment, put the catapult in place and covered ourselves again … The next morning everything seemed calm … But no one rushed to carry the capsule. The remaining nuclear torpedoes outside our ships.
After lunch, I got nervous and called the base weapons department. A sleepy voice replied that he didn’t know anything, please don’t bother (?). Half an hour later, I called again and asked when the crane would come to load the torpedoes. The voice from earlier replied with annoyance that the torpedo finished unloading yesterday, there is a 2-ball delivery record on your desk. “The torpedo is in stock, stop asking stupid questions,” then hung up, “according to the excerpt.
The millionaire dream faded
So, Mr. Krutskikh immediately checked the record of which he had a copy and realized that it recorded 2 results, not 1, signed by the person in charge of loading and unloading weapons.
“So the torpedo on board is ours! I immediately informed the ship’s commanders, he expressed his joy. We agreed to deliver this nuclear torpedo to Saddam Hussein. A little discussion arose just over the question of how much money was needed from Saddam. The commander says that he will not fight with a friend, only one million is enough, and I want up to 10 million not a task.
Cam Ranh base in the late 1980s |
However, the millionaire dream of the underwater soldiers only lasted … 2 hours. Just before lunch a tow truck arrived with representatives from the arsenal where the submarine was parked. Wind speed is normal now. And half an hour later, the remaining nuclear torpedo was slowly and carefully loaded from under the ship, allowing the crane to pick it up and place it in the tank of the specialized Kamaz torpedo truck. And then the torpedo was returned to be stored in the arsenal below the ground.
“Sadly, in the late 1980s there should have been an opportunity to change the entire history of the world: save Saddam Hussein from torture rooms and the gallows, and Iraq from humiliation and looting. There will be no IS either, there will be no terrorists, nothing will happen … ”, according to the humorous conclusion of the extract.
But Mr. Krutskikh didn’t bother for long. Several months later, the submarine received nuclear torpedoes to continue patrolling and, after returning to base, its alcohol ration doubled.
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Before that, in 2019, Mr. Yuri Krutskikh released the first book also about Cam Ranh with the name Cam Ranh or the unprecedented adventures of the underwater soldiers in Vietnam.
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The Foxtrot class submarines are 90 meters long, 7.4 meters wide, displace 1,983 tons (when floating) and 2,500 tons (when diving). The train works with an electric-diesel engine, it can transport 78 sailors and officers. The range of the boat when floating is more than 20,000 km and when diving is about 700 km. The ship is equipped with 10 torpedo tubes, including 6 at the bow and 4 at the stern, allowing the ship to launch torpedoes at targets behind the ship without turning around. The Soviet Union built a total of 74 aircraft, production until 1983 was discontinued. Replacing this class is the Kilo-class diesel-electric submarine.
Foxtrot-class submarines participated in the Cuban missile crisis in 1962. At that time, the Soviet Union sent four ships to Cuba, and the United States Navy dropped explosives on the seabed near Cuba to force the ships to surface for identification. Three ships emerged and moved towards Cuba, the other escaped the pursuit of US warships and continued sailing under the sea towards Cuba. |
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