Akula Sub

Recent years have seen the Soviet Union pursuing an aggressive policy towards all perceived threats to its waterways, including the sinking of numerous civilian cargo ships and passenger liners. Emblematic of this attitude is the Akula Attack Sub, a stealthy and deadly undersea killer that is often held up as a symbol of Soviet aggression. For all of its notoriety, however, details about the Akula were largely a mystery until an Allied cargo ship found a Soviet sailor adrift in open waters, miles from all known Soviet naval forces.

The sailor, an illiterate peasant impressed into the Soviet naval service, was a crewmember of the Akula Sub K-420. During regular maintenance of one of the Akula's torpedoes, he had inadvertently damaged that torpedo’s motor, preventing an attack on the undefended Allied ship. The captain, uncharacteristically calm, ordered the sailor into a loaded torpedo tube to attempt a repair before the enemy escaped. He then ejected the crippled torpedo into the ocean along with the surprised sailor, who, resigned to his fate, swam to the surface to await capture.

Based on evidence like that gleaned from the Soviet sailor’s interrogation, Allied commanders have been piecing together the story of the Akula Sub. During its design, the Soviet navy knew it needed an effective ship killer, but also that they would have to crew these ships with poorly trained crews, often with no maritime experience. As a result, they chose the RU-7 torpedo as the Akula's main weapon. Based on the previous generation of Soviet torpedoes, the RU-7 is a time-tested design, reliable, effective, and easily used even by an inexperienced crew.

Soviet commanders realized, however, that an even more powerful weapon was needed to deal with the new generation of larger, more heavily armored naval vessels, so the Akula fleet was also given the new RU-20 "supercavitating" torpedoes. Monstrous in size and power, the RU-20s give the Akula an immense destructive capability. However, their power is offset by a slow firing rate, trading a lengthy loading and firing sequence for high reliability.

Beyond the technical specifications of the sub, the captured sailor also gave insight into life aboard an Akula. The frantic pace of Soviet naval operations requires Akulas to stay at sea for years at a time. These long tours, in cramped quarters, skulking under tons of ocean while searching for prey, take a heavy psychological toll on the crews, and Akula captains use a heavy hand to maintain discipline and combat effectiveness. Failure is not tolerated, and reprimands are harsh. Some critics argue that these extreme conditions are detrimental to the Akulas’ ability to carry out their missions, but their overwhelming effectiveness against enemy naval forces indicates otherwise. Indeed, the price of failure seems to be the whetstone that hones both crew and sub into such a deadly weapon.

Battlefield reconnaissance has revealed at least these facts about the Akula Sub:

• Dive! Dive! -- Akula Subs spend most of their time submerged, needing to surface only to target their RU-7 torpedos. Since most surface and air units are unable to target submerged vehicles, Akulas are able to travel most waters with impunity. They excel at escorting more vulnerable ships, such as the Dreadnought, as well as carrying out hit and run operations against enemy naval bases.

• Heavy Hitter -- The RU-20 supercavitating torpedoes are extremely powerful, but they carry no internal guidance. This allows them to be fired underwater; but they cannot track targets, travelling instead in a straight line. They also lack the ability to distinguish friend from foe, and more than one Soviet ship has been sunk because it accidentally crossed in front of one of these devastating weapons.

• Stand-Off Capability -- Enemies of the Soviet Union have begun fielding defensive structures that can target and destroy even submerged Akula subs. The RU-20's extreme long range and destructive power makes it the weapon of choice for the discerning commander to take out these defenses.

• High Tech -- Their titanium alloy hull make Akulas very expensive, and the Soviet Admiralty dole them out sparingly to field commanders. In addition, they require a Super Reactor to charge their advanced batteries. This means that Akulas are usually only found in the most intense combat zones.