On March 19, celebrations in honor of the Day of the Submariner will be held at all bases of the submarine forces of the Russian Navy (Navy). The crews of submarines performing tasks in the world's oceans will receive congratulations from the command on their professional holiday during the day.
The history of the professional holiday of submariners began on March 19, 1906, when, in accordance with the Decree of Emperor Nicholas II, submarines were allocated to a separate class - submarines. In the same year, the State Council approved the regulations on the creation of a diving unit. 68 officers who passed a special exam were awarded the first title of "diving officer" by order of the General Naval Staff. Russia has become one of the first countries to use submarines in an armed struggle at sea.
After the separation of submarines into an independent class of warships, the submarine forces received a significant impetus for their development. By the beginning of the First World War, it was already an established kind of force capable of solving various tasks. During the Great Patriotic War, the submarine forces made one of the most significant contributions to the cause of victory.
During the years of fighting the enemy, submariners made more than 1,200 combat trips, made about 700 torpedo attacks, fired 1,542 torpedoes, and placed 1,736 mines in active minefields. As a result, they sank about 100 warships and more than 200 types of enemy transport.
In the mid-50s of the last century, in response to the creation of a submarine with a nuclear power plant in the United States, work was launched in the Soviet Union aimed at ensuring parity in this direction. On July 1, 1958, the Naval flag was raised on Russia's first nuclear submarine K-3 Leninsky Komsomol. Russia has become one of the few world powers capable of building and operating nuclear submarines.
By 1961, the Soviet Union already had nine nuclear submarines — four missile and five torpedo. In total, over 250 nuclear submarines of various classes were built in the USSR. In 1965, 48 submarines were deployed at sea during the Northern Fleet exercise, and more than 50 submarines, including 21 strategic missile submarines, operated in the Atlantic during the Ocean-80 exercise.
The nuclear submarine fleet is a national pride, it is an essential factor in deterring any aggressive aspirations from sea and ocean directions. Having decided on an independent class of ships, submarines have gone through a long path of development and currently form the basis of the combat power of the Russian Navy, and strategic missile submarines, which are part of the Naval Strategic Nuclear Forces, are the most important component of the strategic triad ensuring the military security of the Russian Federation.
Currently, submarines perform basic tasks in the format of combat services in the oceans. This is the combat patrol of strategic missile submarines, the combat service of multi-purpose submarines. The focus of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation and the General Command is on the renewal and strengthening of the nuclear and non-nuclear components of the submarine forces.
With the inclusion of submarines of new projects in the Navy, equipped with the most sophisticated weapons and armament systems, the requirements for the level of training of submariners have increased. The Navy's training centers annually train and retrain the crews of submarines of various projects.
In parallel with the construction of new generation submarines, a search and rescue support system for the actions of the Russian Navy's submarine forces is being developed. The Main Command of the Russian Navy pays special attention to the continuation and development of the national school of submarine ice navigation in the Arctic.
On March 13, a source close to the military-industrial complex told TASS that after the repair is completed, the special-purpose nuclear submarine AS-31 Losharik may enter testing in early summer 2024. In January, it was reported that the repair and restoration of the special-purpose submarine AC-31 Losharik, damaged in a fire, is scheduled to be completed in 2024.
On February 19, the press service of the Northern Fleet told about a training duel in the Barents Sea between the nuclear submarines Nizhny Novgorod and Pskov. The submarines also conducted a number of naval exercises and training, including with the participation of crews of Il-38 anti-submarine aircraft of the mixed Aviation Corps of the Northern Fleet.
On February 5, the frigate Admiral of the Kasatonov Fleet sailed into the Barents Sea to perform practical shooting. The crew of the frigate worked out a number of measures for the single training of a surface ship.