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From: deichman@cod.nosc.mil (Shane D. Deichman)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: USSR SSNs
Message-ID: <1991Jun19.011406.12792@cbnews.cb.att.com>
Date: 19 Jun 91 01:14:06 GMT
References: <1991Jun18.074036.14092@amd.com>
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From: deichman@cod.nosc.mil (Shane D. Deichman)

>From: eweinkam@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Eric G. Weinkam)
>
>	Does anybody have any theories as to why the Soviet Union is currently
>producing three different classes front-line SSN (Akula, Sierra, Victor III)?
>

Put quite simply, the SSN is the primary vessel of the Soviet Navy.  You 
raise a vitally important point -- especially in the era of "glasnost," 
"perestroika," and "demokratizatsiya."  While conventional force reductions
are taking place in Europe (and the Soviets agreeing to a stricter implement-
ation of the CFE Tre--y ( <--- BAD word! :-) ), the West seems to be getting
an almost giddy attitude over the warming of relations with the Soviets.

However, the Soviet SS and SSN fleet vastly outnumbers that of the U.S.  The
rationale, returning to the bounds of the sci.mil charter, is the protection
of their SSBN bastions against U.S. interdiction.  In the vernacular of the
Soviet Navy, the surface units (as one observant poster mentioned earlier this
week) serve primarily a support-and-protect role for the submarines.  A key
example is the KIEV-class "ASW Support Cruiser."

So why do they continue to build front-line SSNs?  To keep us honest?  Who
knows -- your guess is as good as mine....

-shane

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