Wednesday Russian Submarine Tidbits 23MAR16

Background

Recently noted curiousities of a submarine variety (formerly titled Tuesday Tidbits). New to the public's attention  ...

  # 1

19 MAR 2016  Russian Submariners' Day Press Conference,  St. Petersburg, Russia.  Selected Quotes: 

• "Russia dropped preparing of professional submariners. But a submariner must be raised from the cradle, and big salary is beside the point".  - Admiral, Doctor of Engineering, professor, Government Prize awardee A.A. Komaritsyn

• "To my mind, submarines are like spaceships moving under water. Any country operating submarine fleet is held in respect, so when our submarine fleet decays, we're written off. ... The main thing is people. They need a kind of a delicate approach. Submariner is a piece specimen! If we fail to educate genuine submariners, Russia's underwater power may fall into oblivion".  -  A. Pokrovsky, former submariner and novelist.

#2

22 MAR 2016   Russia confirms higher level of submarine activity by Karl Soper, Washington DC - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly

"The Russian submarine force has significantly increased its operational tempo, according to local media reports marking Submariners' Day on 19 March. Russian Northern Fleet nuclear-powered submarines were underway for 1,500 days last year, 50% more than in 2014, navy spokesmen reported. 

Vice Admiral Alexander Fedotenkov, the deputy commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, informed the media that Russia's submarines have almost doubled the time they spend conducting combat patrols and combat duty since the start of 2015."

#3

4 MAR 2016  Defense One  Russian Subs Are Reheating a Cold War Chokepoint  
As the GIUK gap returns to importance, NATO must look to regenerate its anti-submarine forces.

"Russia’s growing sub-surface capabilities are coupled with an apparent political will to use them. Its recently revised maritime strategy emphasizes operations in the Arctic, along with the need for Russian maritime forces to have access to the broader Atlantic Ocean. And that access will have to be, just as during the Cold War, through the GIUK gap." - Magnus Nordenman, Deputy Director of the Brent Scowcroft Center at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC.


Submarines are always silent and strange.