A Russian nuclear attack submarine sailed undetected in the Gulf of
Mexico for weeks, a report said Tuesday, its travel in strategic U.S.
waters discovered only after it left.



The Washington Free Beacon, citing unnamed sources, said the voyage was
only the second time since 2009 that a Russian attack sub has ventured
so close to U.S. shores.



“The stealth underwater incursion in the Gulf took place at the same
time Russian strategic bombers made incursions into restricted U.S.
airspace near Alaska and California in June and July, and highlights a
growing military assertiveness by Moscow,” the publication reported on
its Web site.



The Russian patrol managed to expose deficiencies in U.S. anti-submarine
warfare capabilities, American officials said, according to the report.
Some of those forces responsible for anti-submarine warfare and
detection are targeted for cuts over the Obama administration’s plan to
slice nearly $500 billion from the Pentagon’s budget over the next 10
years.



The Navy is responsible for detecting and tracking foreign submarines.
The service uses undersea sensors and satellites to locate and track
them, the Beacon reported.



The report said the Russian submarine was an Akula class, a
nuclear-powered attack vessel initially developed by the former Soviet
Union in the 1980s to counter the U.S. Navy’s Los Angeles class subs.



“The Akula class is the follow on to the Victor III and remains the most
capable Russian attack submarine until the newer Yasen class is
commissioned,” said a description from the Web site WeaponSystems.net.



According to the Beacon, one U.S. official said the Russian submarine operated off the U.S. coast for a month.



“The Akula was built for one reason and one reason only: To kill U.S.
Navy ballistic missile submarines and their crews,” one U.S. official
told the Beacon. “It’s a very stealthy boat so it can sneak around and
avoid detection and hope to get past any protective screen a boomer
might have in place.”



A “boomer” is Navy vernacular for a strategic nuclear submarine.



“Sending a nuclear-propelled submarine into the Gulf of Mexico-Caribbean
region is another manifestation of President Putin demonstrating that
Russia is still a player on the world’s political-military stage,” said
Normal Polmar, a naval analyst and submarine warfare specialist.



“Like the recent deployment of a task force led by a nuclear cruiser
into the Caribbean, the Russian Navy provides him with a means of
‘showing the flag’ that is not possible with Russian air and ground
forces,” he said.



Navy officials had no comment on the report, said the Beacon.





Russian Nuclear Sub Sailed off U.S. Coast Undetected for Weeks
The Moral Liberal





If US Navy had problems detecting our Akula class, our new Yasen class when commissioned

is going to be a nightmare for them
Source: http://www.defence.pk/forums/world-affairs/202371-russian-nuclear-sub-sailed-off-u-s-coast-undetected-weeks.html#ixzz23gybnxOD


Posted by a Russian user on defence.pk