A struggle has been waged between America and Russia in almost all spheres of activity. The arms race is a constant companion of rivalry between countries. The absolute leader has not been identified for many years. Superiority in the military industry sector is constantly moving from one state to another. In a specific industry such as the submarine fleet, the United States is currently in first place.
However, this was not always the case, in Soviet times the domestic producer held the palm. Thanks to the powerful base created by Soviet designers, even at this stage in the Russian fleet base there are such exceptional instances, which have no analogues in the world. So still, whose submarine fleet is stronger - Russia or the United States? Who is the winner in the race is Russian exclusivity or American technicality.
First submarine project
Comparison, whose submarine fleet is stronger (Russia or the USA), began as early as the eighteenth century. Then the subject of the dispute was the first military submarine. For a long time they could not decide who became the very first developer of such an apparatus.
The designer and tester of the first submarine was Cornelius Drebbel. This is a physicist and mechanic from Holland. He tested his development on the River Thames. The ship was a boat. Her skin was oil-soaked leather. Management and movement was carried out thanks to the oars. They protruded a short distance into the underwater space. The crew could include three officers and twelve rowers. According to historical data, King Jacob I was present at the tests. The technical characteristics of the built vessel allowed him to be in the underwater space for several hours. The limit of the depth of immersion was equal to five meters.
But further development was interrupted by the death of Drebbel. Another scientist from France, who wrote a practical guide on the construction of submarines, became his follower and follower of ideas. According to his recommendations, the boat should be made of metal (mainly copper), its shape should resemble fish, but the edges should be pointed. It is not necessary to improve this unit in dimensional terms.
Developments of rival countries
Comparison of the submarine fleet of Russia and the United States begins with the first vehicles. In addition, they were built with a difference of half a century. This gives the right to say that the beginning of the history of the submarine fleet in both countries is approximately the same.
The modern submarine fleet of Russia owes much to its compatriot Efim Nikonov, from whose ship the development of technologies and methods for building submarines began. It was a simple carpenter from the village of Pokrovskoye near Moscow. He wanted to bring his development to life and sent a petition to Peter I, in which he proposed a submarine project. The idea of a secret ship that would be able to smash enemy ships, very attracted the king. On his orders, Nikonov appeared in St. Petersburg and began construction of the apparatus. The project was implemented in three years. The first tests were attended personally by Peter I. Soon, while finalizing and perfecting the project, a talented carpenter adapted powder flamethrowers to the ship. The king, seeing such successes, suggested starting the construction of a similar vessel of a larger configuration. But only Peter I saw a prospect in this matter and after his death the development of underwater space ceased. The unfinished boat rotted in the barn.
Process improvement in production
Comparison of the submarine fleet of Russia and the United States is impossible without mentioning the achievements of scientists and engineers, the development of which became the basis of modern activity. For the first time, this project was put into production in the thirty-fourth year of the nineteenth century. The project manager was K. A. Schilder, who was a military engineer by training.
The design of the vessel included special strokes, with the help of which the apparatus was moved under water. During their development, the principle of bionics was taken, that is, the laws of nature were taken into account to create technical equipment. In this case, the engineer drew attention to the structure of crow's feet. Such devices were placed in pairs on both sides of the housing. In order to launch such “paws”, it was necessary to make the efforts of sailors and rowers. This was very inconvenient, because with the incredible efforts of the crew, the speed was not too impressive. She could develop up to a maximum of half a kilometer per hour. In order to improve this process and make it more productive and efficient at a lower cost, the project manager planned to use electrical devices. But the development of this industry went by leaps and bounds, and this greatly impeded the implementation of new ideas.
The boat was a military model. She was armed with missile launchers. Numerous problems negated this idea, and work on the modernization of the vessel was stopped.
Use of the engine in the submarine fleet
The next stage in the development of the submarine fleet is the introduction of engines into the design of ships. The first to such a decision was the inventor I.F. Aleksandrovsky. To implement his ideas, he chose a motor running on compressed air. The inventor brought his idea to life. According to his design, a boat was produced. But the project itself was not particularly successful, since productivity still left much to be desired. The engine allowed only three miles to sail at a speed of one and a half knots.
Success in the implementation of this idea was achieved only by another Russian inventor S.K. Dzhevetsky. A comparison of the submarine fleet of Russia and the United States gives the right to say that at this stage, Russian inventors made a breakthrough, because Dzhevetsky installed an engine on his boat that powered the battery. At that time, there were no analogues in the world of such a ship that could move from electricity. In this case, the device could reach a speed of four knots.
According to the project of the same inventor, the Pochtovy boat was built. Its main feature, which, when comparing the submarine fleet of Russia and the United States, again gives leadership to the Russians (there was no such ship anywhere else in the world at that time), is a single engine. The only drawback of the device is a trace in the form of bubbles, which it leaves behind. That is, due to the low level of camouflage, it cannot be used for military purposes.
At that time, the development and implementation of power plants was actively going on in this industry. It was at that time that such schemes and principles were formed that are still used in the design of boats. Developments were also carried out in the weapons sector. Dzhevetsky designed torpedo tubes that were in service with the submarine fleet for a long period of time. But the backwardness of industries such as electrical engineering and the motor industry did not allow the creation of a full-fledged warship.
Submarine "Dolphin"
It is possible to compare the submarine fleet of the Russian Federation and the USA precisely with this apparatus. The ship was built at the beginning of the twentieth century according to the design of Bubnov and Goryunov by the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg. The propulsion system consisted of two parts. The first was a gasoline-powered motor, and the second was an electric motor. The development was so powerful and non-standard that it surpassed the American Fulton in technical specifications.
From this moment, the development of the submarine fleet of the Russian Federation went at a very fast pace. Qualified personnel were trained. From design developments, this industry has become a reliable branch of the country's military forces. The government strongly supported this sector. And after the introduction of a special badge for submarine officers, the desire to serve in these troops increased, as did the authority of the sphere as a whole.
The modern composition of the Russian Navy
Currently, the Navy of the Russian Federation includes five units. Each of them consists of surface and submarine forces. The following components of this army unit are distinguished:
- Baltic Fleet The main base of this component is located in Baltiysk. The flagship is the destroyer "Persistent". Baltic submarine forces are characterized by three diesel boats. By the way, a comparison of the submarine fleet of Russia and the United States (2016) suggests that this type of vehicles exists only on Russian territory. In the United States, the production of such ships has long been abandoned.
- Northern Fleet. The main base of this component is located in Severomorsk. The flagship is the Peter the Great heavy nuclear missile cruiser. The Northern submarine fleet of Russia is distinguished by a wide variety of technical means. Based on this unit, there are three heavy missile submarine cruisers and eight strategic missile submarine cruisers. Submarines of the Northern Fleet of Russia are represented by models with cruise missiles (3 units), multipurpose nuclear (12 units), diesel (8 units), special purpose (2 units).
- Black Sea Fleet. The main base of this component is in Sevastopol. The flagship is the Moscow missile cruiser. The underwater component is represented by two diesel submarines.
- Pacific Fleet. The main base of this component is located in Vladivostok. The flagship is the Varyag missile cruiser. 5 missile submarine cruisers, 6 nuclear submarines with cruise missiles, 7 multipurpose nuclear submarines and 8 diesel models are on the balance sheet.
- Caspian flotilla. The main base of this component is in Astrakhan. The flagship is the patrol ship Tatarstan. This unit does not include submarine forces.
Multi-purpose devices
A comparison of the submarine fleet of Russia and the United States (2016, like other years, did not bring significant breakthroughs in this area) allows us to generally assess the potential of the naval forces. One of the most important devices that are on the technical equipment of the army of any powerful maritime power are boats, which are faced with solving operational-tactical problems. The purpose of such ships is the destruction of surface targets of the enemy and the defeat of the objects of the coastline. Cruise missiles and torpedoes are used as weapons. Depending on the type of weapons, submarines are:
- with cruise missiles;
- with torpedoes;
- with cruise missiles and torpedoes.
The US Navy submarine fleet has a large number of operational-tactical submarines. It is on such ships that the general military concept of America is aimed. If we take another classification attribute, such as quality, then there is no clear leader. This is due to the high technical potential of both countries.
US Tactical Boats
What is dangerous about the US submarine fleet is precisely this type of submarine. There are fifty-nine models of this type based on the U.S. Navy. Most of them (and this is thirty-nine ships) entered the balance in the seventy-sixth year of the last century. They are called "Los Angeles" and belong to the third generation. By type of weapon, they are of a mixed type. They include harpoon anti-ship missiles and torpedoes. In the future, it is planned to gradually withdraw these vessels from circulation and replace them with newer models. It is planned to carry out such modernization until the thirties.
The bet is on fourth-generation boats. It is they who are going to replace Los Angeles. These include models such as Virginia and Sea Wolf. The latter was developed back in the nineties. Its construction costs four and a half billion dollars. But the price is justified by technical parameters. It is equipped with a powerful complex of cruise missiles and torpedoes. Also its feature is the low level of emitted noise. With the release of each model, the boat is becoming more perfect. However, a comparison of the submarine fleet of Russia and the USA (2017) gives the right to say that the domestic Ash tree is in no way inferior to the Sea Wolf of the first series.
American advantage
The submarine fleet of the USA and Russia for 2016 differs not only in the quantitative composition, but also in the generations of models. The Virginia submarine was designed much later than the Sea Wolf. But, despite this, in terms of technical characteristics, Sivulf is far ahead of its follower. If we compare both of these American models with the domestic Ashen, then it is somewhere between them. A distinctive feature and advantage of the Russian submarine is the quality of weapons. Caliber cruise missiles are much better than the American Tomahawk in effectiveness.
Among Russian models, at the level of the best American boats, there is only Severodvinsk. But he is only one, although the project provides for the construction of three more. But by the time they are built, America will move to a new stage of development.
