Cold War Submarines: The Design and Construction of U.S. and Soviet Submarines, 1945-2001

by Norman Polmar, K. J. Moore

Overview

Submarines had a vital, if often unheralded, role in the superpower navies during the Cold War. Their crews carried out intelligence-collection operations, sought out and stood ready to destroy opposing submarines, and, from the early 1960s, threatened missile attacks on their adversary's homeland, providing in many respects the most survivable nuclear deterrent of the Cold War. For both East and West, the modern submarine originated in German U-boat designs obtained at the end of World War II. Although enjoying a similar technology base, by the 1990s the superpowers had created submarine fleets of radically different designs and capabilities. Written in collaboration with the former Soviet submarine design bureaus, Norman Polmar and K. J. Moore authoritatively demonstrate in this landmark study how differing submarine missions, antisubmarine priorities, levels of technical competence, and approaches to submarine design organizations and management caused the divergence.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781597973199
Publisher:	Potomac Books Inc.
Publication date:	11/30/2003
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	25 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Norman Polmar is a leading expert on naval and aviation matters. An internationally known analyst, consultant, and award-winning author, Polmar has written more than 40 books, including, with K. J. Moore, Cold War Submarines: The Design and Construction of U.S. and Soviet Submarines (Brassey’s, ISBN 1-57488-594-4) and Historic Naval Aircraft: From the Pages of Naval History Magazine (Brassey’s, ISBN 1-57488-572-3). He is a columnist for the U.S. Naval Institute's Proceedings and Naval History magazines. Polmar lives in the Washington, DC, area.

K. J. Moore is the founder of the Cortana Corporation, a high-technology applications firm concerned with submarine development. While on duty with the U.S. Navy, he served on board submarines in the positions of weapons officer, engineering officer, and operations officer. For the Navy and in private industry, he has held analytical assignments that involved the study of Soviet and Western submarines and submarine tactics.

Table of Contents

	Perspective	xi
	Acknowledgments	xv
	Glossary	xix
1	Genesis	1
2	Advanced Diesel Submarines	11
3	Closed-Cycle Submarines	33
4	U.S. Nuclear-Propelled Submarines	49
5	Soviet Nuclear-Propelled Submarines	71
6	Cruise Missile Submarines	85
7	Ballistic Missile Submarines	103
8	"Polaris--From Out of the Deep..."	115
9	The Quest for Speed	127
10	Second-Generation Nuclear Submarines	147
11	The Ultimate Weapon I	167
12	The Ultimate Weapon II	183
13	"Diesel Boats Forever"	201
14	Unbuilt Giants	221
15	Aircraft-Carrying Submarines	245
16	Midget, Small, and Flying Submarines	255
17	Third-Generation Nuclear Submarines	267
18	Submarine Weapons	293
19	Fourth-Generation Nuclear Submarines	307
20	Soviet Versus U.S. Submarines	323
	Appendixes
A	U.S. Submarine Construction, 1945-1991	335
B	Soviet Submarine Construction, 1945-1991	337
C	U.S. Submarine Reactor Plants	339
D	Soviet Submarine Design Bureaus	341
E	Soviet Ballistic Missile Systems	345
	Notes	347
	Selected Bibliography	385
	Index	395
	Author Biographies	407

Editorial Reviews

Polmar and Moore have produced an excellent history of the American and Soviet submarine forces that is both well-written and musters effective evidence to support its arguments…an excellent work for those interested in American and Soviet submarines, and it will be a valuable resource for amateur and academic historians alike for many years to come.”

"A compelling reference material and chronology of submarine designs as well as a look at the radically different approaches of the two competing superpowers."

"Outlining the evolution of the modern submarine in meticulous detail, Cold War Submarines is a serious reference for naval historians and a tribute to sub crews, designers, and builders. . . . The detailed research, personal interviews, and excerpts from declassified reports give the reader great insights into the contrasting ideologies and disparate political-economic systems that drove both navies in the Cold War."

From the Publisher