![]() ![]() Captain Ketov noted, “there was an insufficient supply of fresh water for the crew, no air conditioning in the compartments – which would otherwise have facilitated the smooth operation of the boat’s machinery – and most importantly, no one had experience in servicing equipment under such high temperatures.” This became worse as the boats tried to avoid U.S. The Foxtrots were designed to operate in northern latitudes and began to experience difficulty as they approached the Caribbean. The internal temperature of the boats rose. This was how they first learned of Soviet missiles in Cuba and the quarantine to be imposed on Cuba.Īs the flotilla headed south toward the quarantine line, conditions aboard the boats began to deteriorate. radio broadcasts to keep current with the emerging events. ![]() The Soviet crews were able to monitor U.S. The crisis began while the flotilla was underway. And then he added, ‘I suggest to you, commanders, that you use the nuclear weapons first, and then you will figure out what to do after that.’” And the third case – when Moscow orders you to use these weapons’. If you have to come to the surface, and they shoot at you, and you get a hole in your hull. First, if you get a hole under the water. Rassokha He said, ‘Write down when you should use these. The boat captains were provided vague instructions for the use of the nuclear torpedoes. The designated officer would prepare the weapon for use and was the only one carrying the keys to load the torpedo. The torpedoes were each guarded by a designated officer who slept by it. The torpedoes were a last-minute addition to the voyage added a week before. The torpedoes also required the voyage be covert, with the boats expected to stay undetected. ![]() The Americans were unaware of this, and mistakenly assumed as the Soviet submarines were identified as Foxtrots that they did not have nuclear weapons. To make this confrontation more dangerous, the submarines were each armed with one nuclear tipped torpedo. Navy who attempted to force these boats to surface. This would lead to confrontations with the U.S. Oddly, the Soviet leadership in Moscow seemed unaware that diesel boats, and not nuclear powered submarines which could make the entire trip submerged, were being sent to Cuba. The Soviet Navy made a critical error in sending Foxtrot class diesel submarines to Cuba as these boats were designed for northern latitudes and were required to run on the surface or snorkel to recharge their batteries. Ketov, the commander of one of these submarines, wrote of his experiences during the crisis. A submarine flotilla was dispatched before the crisis began. ![]() In addition to its missiles and bombers, the Soviet Union intended to establish a naval base in Cuba. A review of the confrontation between the navies of the Soviet Union and the United States during the crisis may inform the Western powers supporting Ukraine in its current defense against Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin provided NATO expansion and “military development of the territories of Ukraine” as a similar existential threat to Russia justifying the invasion of Ukraine. The United States objected to Soviet missiles in Cuba seeing them as a direct threat to the United States and the Western Hemisphere. As a prime example, the Russia-Ukraine War has similar parallels to the Cuban Missile Crisis. The lessons of the Cuban Missile Crisis remain relevant today when nuclear powers struggle in crisis and do their best to avoid escalating to conflict. Ambassador.” –Jeffrey Pelt, The Hunt for the Red October “It would be well for your government to consider that having your ships and ours, your aircraft and ours, in such proximity is inherently DANGEROUS. ![]()
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