Soviet submarine K-8
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 K-8 off the coast of Spain April 1970 |
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| Career |  Soviet Navy |
|---|---|
| Commissioned: | August 31, 1960 |
| Decommissioned: | 1970 |
| Struck: | 1970 |
| Fate: | Sank on April 8, 1970 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 3065 tonnes surfaced, 4750 tonnes submerged |
| Length: | 107.4 m (352 ft) |
| Beam: | 7.9 m (26 ft) |
| Draught: | 5.65 m (18.5 ft) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × 70 MW VM-A reactors |
| Speed: | 23.3 kn (43.2 km/h) surfaced, 30 kn (56 km/h) submerged |
| Complement: | 104 officers and men |
K-8 was a November class submarine of the Soviet Northern Fleet.
Contents |
[edit] Accidents
[edit] 1960 Loss of Coolant
On 13 October 1960, while operating in the Barents Sea, K-8 suffered a ruptured steam generator tube, causing a loss of coolant accident. While the crew jury-rigged a system to supply emergency cooling water to the reactor, preventing a reactor core meltdown, large amounts of radioactive gas leaked out which contaminated the entire vessel. The gas radiation levels could not be determined because instrumentation could not measure such large scales. Three of the crew suffered visible radiation injuries, and many crewmen were exposed to doses of up to 1.8 – 2 Sv (180 – 200 rem).
[edit] 1970 Bay of Biscay fire
According to news circulated by the controversial Mario Scaramella, Russian officials allegedly confirmed in 2004 that on 10 January 1970, K-8 received orders to lay a number of tactical atomic torpedoes as naval mines in the Bay of Naples, to be used against the United States Sixth Fleet[1].
Four months later, on 8 April 1970, K-8 suffered fires in two compartments simultaneously. Both nuclear reactors were shut down[2]. The captain ordered his crew to abandon ship but was countermanded. 52 crewmen, including the captain, re-boarded the submarine, and were lost when she sank in rough seas while being towed in the Bay of Biscay.
[edit] References
- ^ "Soviet Navy left 20 nuclear warheads in bay of Naples", The Independent, 2005-03-19. Retrieved on 2006-11-30.
- ^ Inventory of accidents and losses at sea involving radioactive material, International Atomic Energy Agency 2001, online pdf version
- The Bellona Foundation (http://bellona.no) — Bellona material is ©, but "reuse and reprint recommended provided source is stated."
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[edit] Additional Reading
- Norman Polmar and J.K. Moore (2004). Cold War Submarines: The Design and Construction of U.S. and Soviet Submarines. Washington, DC: Potamac Books, Inc. ISBN: 1574885308 (paperback).
