Kursk submarine tragedy: 17-year secret about to be revealed?

The power of the explosion from the Kursk submarine was equivalent to a 4.2 magnitude earthquake and was heard as far away as Alaska, USA.

This year marks the 17th anniversary of the tragedy of the nuclear submarine “Kursk” – the pride of the Russian Navy. And the closer we get to that tragic day, the more painful it becomes.

"Why was the crew not saved?" - The question raised by the events that occurred on August 12, 2000 in the Barents Sea remains unanswered many years after the tragedy occurred. At that time, it was the third day of the Russian Navy's exercises.

The submarine "Kursk" with the registration number K-141 was an atomic submarine twice the size of a large aircraft - at first glance, it looked like an unmovable log.

Kursk submarine

Since then, there have been many information and hypotheses about this event. We would like to introduce the article by author Olesya Kurdyukova posted on ie.ru on July 13, 2017 for your reference.

The explosion was heard all the way to Alaska.

The submarine Kursk had a crew of 118 people. On August 11, from the battleship Peter the Great, a surface ship participating in the exercises, the work performed by Kursk was monitored.

“Kursk” completed the missile firing and moved on to another test, launching simulated torpedoes at surface targets. But by August 12, three other submarines had completed their work, while “Kursk” remained silent.

The explosion occurred at 11:28 (local time) - so strong that its aftershocks could be recorded as far away as Alaska (USA).

Experts say the force of the explosion was equivalent to a 4.2 magnitude earthquake.

A second explosion occurred more than 2 minutes later. All communications with the submarine were completely interrupted and later that day the "Kursk" was declared "in an accident state".

On August 13, underwater positioning devices found the location of the “Kursk” ship in distress at the bottom of the ocean. Rescuers on board the “Petro the Great” heard knocking sounds similar to an SOS signal.

Two ships, the "Altai" and the "Rudnicki", were sent to provide electricity and oxygen to the sailors on the sunken ship. Three attempts to get the sailors out of the submarine with the help of life rafts were unsuccessful.

Two of the three escape hatches on the Kursk are inaccessible. The only possible escape route is the third, located in compartment number nine, where a special escape hatch is designed.

But visibility was so poor that it was almost invisible and strong undercurrents prevented the rescue of the sailors from the sunken ship.

Part of the Kursk submarine wreck after being salvaged from the Barents Sea

The distress signals continued to be heard after five days. The government still believed the sailors could survive for at least another five or six days, so there was still time for rescue work. But all new attempts failed due to bad weather.

On August 20, Norwegian experts began the rescue work. They managed to unscrew the valve of the "Kursk", but could not lift the lid.

The hatch to the ship was opened on August 21, but no survivors were found.

The mysterious SOS sounds

Vladimir Ustinov, who served as Prosecutor General of Russia from 2000 to 2006, wrote in his book "The Truth About the Submarine "Kursk" that the submarine's crew died long before rescue operations began.

According to him, after the second explosion, sailors from compartments 6, 7 and 8 moved to compartment 9, where there was a greater chance of survival, and they suffocated there because there was a lot of carbon monoxide gas there.

After this book was released, lawyer Boris Kuznetsov also expressed his personal opinion: "The truth about the ship "Kursk" was also sunk, once the Prosecutor General Ustinov deliberately concealed it."

Kuznetsov said: No matter how many times Mr. Ustinov repeats his lie that the sailors of the submarine “Kursk” died very quickly, his assertions cannot possibly come true.

According to lawyer Kuznetsov, people trapped in the sunken ship panicked and used hammers or some heavy objects to knock on the ship's walls for at least two days and nights.

Their SOS signals were picked up and recorded by the ship "Petro the Great".

What did the naval ensign of the ship "Piotr the Great" say?

When speaking about the events of that day, Naval Ensign Fyodor N. said that he did hear signals.

They were very weak signals, like distress signals. He even thought they were the sounds of something hard hitting iron.

But later he learned that the signals were not coming from the “Kursk” ship - because the only survivors remained in compartment number 9, and a day later they died, as reality proved.

And the investigation was unable to determine who was sending the signals.

Torpedo explosion hypothesis

In the book "Deserted Harbor" by Vladimir Shigin (Russian Navy writer - Translator's note) it is said that on August 12, the submarine "Kursk" had the task of launching simulated torpedoes at a surface ship target.

The author explains that this type of torpedo has been used by the Russian Navy for more than two decades. However, the torpedoes on the "Kursk" differ from previous models in that they are equipped with a different battery system.

The hull of the Kursk submarine was torn apart.

On the day the official news of the accident was announced, representatives of the shipyard and the military's receiving department were also present at the scene of the incident.

It is reported that Gennady Lyachin, commander of the submarine “Kursk”, requested permission to launch the malfunctioning torpedo.

But the author of the book does not confirm this hypothesis. Shigin writes that, assuming Lyachin had indeed informed his superiors about the incident on the submarine, the torpedo launch could certainly have been canceled or postponed to another time.

We all know now that the nuclear submarine sank due to a torpedo explosion in compartment number 1. But the root cause remains unclear.

The torpedo cannot detonate on its own, because the engineers have installed a multi-layered protection system. The only thing that can act as a catalyst is a very strong external force.

It could have been an underwater collision. Theoretically, it would be possible for a Russian submarine to be surfaced while a foreign vessel was submerged, if that were the case.

3 hypotheses, 3 puzzles

According to the first hypothesis - the most obvious hypothesis, and officially recognized by the Russian government: the K-141 sank to the bottom of the sea due to the explosions of torpedoes on board.

The torpedo 65-76A "Kit" (whale-ND) exploded in torpedo tube №4, after a fuel leak, thereby activating, causing the detonation of the second torpedo.

The second hypothesis was put forward by the Chief of Staff of the Northern Fleet Mikhail Motsak and Fleet Commander Vyacheslav Popov, who suggested that the "Kursk" had experienced a collision with another submarine - most likely an American or British one.

Vice Admiral Motsak said: near the location of the submarine “Kursk” there is “a lot of indirect evidence of the presence of another underwater object, which may also be malfunctioning”.

According to him, the “foreign” object was detected by underwater sound detection equipment on the ship “Petro the Great”. In addition, the sailors involved in removing the life buoys from the water also noticed it.

Portraits of sailors and officers of the submarine Kursk

In the third hypothesis (former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov is inclined to this hypothesis), it is assumed that "Kursk" ran into an anti-submarine mine from the Second World War, and thus triggered it, causing the explosions of the torpedoes on board.

But experts say even a small nuclear explosion would not be enough to destroy the massive submarine, so this theory seems untenable.

When will the "secret" curtain be lifted?

About 15 years after the tragedy, information appeared that the Government was preparing to organize a Commission to determine the possibility of revealing the real cause of the accident of the "Kursk".

The term on the sealed secret seal is 30 years, but according to the announcement of the head of the Archives Center of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation Igor Permyakov, the documents on the tragedy of the “Kursk” ship may be opened earlier - if there is a decision of the Government.

According to Baodatviet