Russian Federation Submarine News: CO and "Bilge Engineer" to be Court Martialed

Moscow - Mar 31, 2011 - the Voice of Russia

Submarine accident indictments handed down

A case was brought against submarine commander Dimitry Lavrentiev and bilge engineer Dimitry Grobov. The investigation concluded that their inaction led to the accident. The case will be sent to the Pacific Navy headquarters where the defendants will be court-martialed. [color emphasis mine]

On 8 November 2008, while K-152 Nerpa was undergoing sea trials in the Sea of Japan, an accident caused the deaths of twenty sailors and injury to twenty-one others when a fire suppression system discharged in the sub's bow.

.

According to survivors, discharge warning sirens sounded after the gas had already deluged and replaced normal breathing air. It seems the bilge engineer had activated the system without required command authorization. Nerpa's CO, Dmitry Lavrentiev, and Capt 1 rank Sergei Zakharchenko were charged with negligence. Zakharchenko was pensioned off in late 2009, however.

.

The gas tragically suffocated civilians and navy crew members. We now know Russian submarine crew should carry special breathing apparatus with them at all times as protection from asphxyation when the fire extinguishing system gas Dibromotetrafluoroethane ( R-114B2 ) is discharged. The crew is trained to use the complicated apparatus. A total of 208 people - 81 military personnel and 127 civilians - were on board at the time of the accident, however.

.

As of August 2010, after several delays, the Russian Federation was training a crew from the Indian Navy to sail the ship to India in partial fulfillment of a lease agreement for (NATO designation: Akula II) nuclear-powered attack submarine(s).

.

What is a Bilge Engineer? According to an earlier report, the sailor to be court martialed was a "contract seaman" named Grobov.

.

Submarines are always silent and strange.