Shch-402

Shch-402 (Senior Lieutenant N.G. Stolbov) met the beginning of the war on the slipway of the Murmansk plant of the People's Commissariat of the Fishing Industry. On July 10, the boat headed for Cape Nordkin, and four days later, its commander reported that the combat score of the SF submarine brigade was open - "402nd" sank a large transport in the roadstead of Honningsvåg. Although in the following days Stolbov missed several potential targets for attack, on his return to Polyarnoye on July 24 he was greeted as a triumph. Only after the war did it become clear from enemy documents that only one of the two torpedoes fired by the boat exploded, and even then when it hit a rock, while the target - the German Hanau steamer - remained unharmed. In all likelihood, the cause of the miss was a violation of the mode of motion of torpedoes fired from a distance of 14-15 kbt. Nevertheless, Shch-402 immediately found itself in good standing with the command, which subsequently helped Stolbov more than once in difficult situations.

So, for example, in the second campaign (August 7 - 16, 1941) in Varanger Fjord, the commander twice failed to launch an attack on German destroyers, and in the first case (on the morning of August 10, a few hours after our patrol ship was sunk at the mouth of the Kola Bay "Fog"), the Germans themselves almost shot the "pike" that was on the surface. On the 15th, Stolbov discovered that water was getting inside the boat through the shutdown of the diesel gas outlet and decided to return to the base without permission. To top it all, when returning, the navigator made a mistake in the reckoning of 29 miles, as a result of which the boat almost came under fire from its own patrols and coastal batteries. This case even fell into the directive of the head of the Political Directorate of the Navy I.V. Rogov, but everything went without consequences. Between August 24 and September 10, 1941, the submarine operated near the North Cape, where it made three unsuccessful torpedo attacks. September 7-8 "pike" got into a strong storm. Due to the splashing of electrolyte, the battery shorted to the case. And this time, Stolbov returned to the base ahead of schedule, although on other boats in such situations they limited themselves to thorough washing and alkalizing of the pits. The commander was again reproached, but no organizational conclusions were made. 3 - 10/28/1941 Shch-402 operated in the Lopp Sea - this is how our submariners used to call the vast bay between the islands of Sere, Loppa and Fuglö in the western section of the German coastal communications. After several attempts, Stolbov managed to launch a torpedo attack, and, firing at point-blank range with the new “English” (that is, salvo, with a time interval) method, smashed the Norwegian coastal steamer Vesteraalen (682 brt) to pieces. Unfortunately, there was no military cargo on the ship, and all 60 dead (crew and passengers) were purely civilians. The fourth trip - to the Kongsfjord area (13.11 - 12.6.1941) - turned out to be inconclusive. The enemy convoy was discovered only once, and even then at a very long distance. After repairs Shch-402 again went to sea (21.2 - 14.3.1942). On February 27, the boat twice secretly attacked convoys, and in the second case she managed to destroy the German patrol ship"Vandal" (24 crew members died). On the evening of March 3, the “pike” attacked two minesweepers, which in fact turned out to be submarine hunters. As a result of an hour-long pursuit, Shch-402 was hit by 42 depth charges, which severely battered the light hull. Three days later, the submarine received the task of moving to the position of covering the allied caravan, but when it arrived in the assigned area on the evening of March 10, it turned out that there was almost no solarium left on the ship - it leaked into the sea through the burst seams of fuel and ballast tanks. After the transfer of fuel and oil from K-21 Shch-402 on March 13, it arrived at the base, and on April 3 news came that the boat had been awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

After repairs and replacement of the battery, Shch-402 left for a position north of Kildin Island to hunt enemy submarines (4 - 7.5.1942). Already on the second day of the trip, when surfacing to inspect the horizon, the boat collided with a large drifting ice floe, causing damage to the anti-aircraft periscope and antennas. Having failed to complete the task, the ship returned to the base. The subsequent two accesses to communications (May 29-June 15, 1942 to the Varde area and July 21-26, 1942 to the Varangerfjord) were also unsuccessful. Stolbov attacked three times (2.6, 22.7 and 25.7), but due to the long distance he never hit the target (however, during the war years, all these attacks were considered successful).

On August 11, the submarine went on its tenth combat campaign and arrived at the position two days later. On the night of the 14th, when she was charging the batteries, the watch officer of the central post, foreman of the 2nd article Alekseev, received a message from the 5th compartment that there was a strong smell of acid there. Knowing that little hydrogen had accumulated in the pits of the 2nd and 3rd compartments, Alekseev, with the permission of the commander of the watch, Lieutenant Zakharov, in violation of all instructions, switched the blower fan from the battery pits to the ventilation of the 5th compartment. Alekseev did not take into account that at the end of the charge, hydrogen is released especially intensively, and when, after 28 minutes, he tried to switch back to the ventilation of the pits, an accidental spark caused a volumetric explosion. A powerful blast wave arched the bulkheads, damaged the lines of various systems and moved many instruments and mechanisms from their places. The door between the central post and the 3rd compartment jammed. They tried to get into the accident area through the 1st compartment. Its upper hatch was peeled off, but the fire resumed from the influx of fresh air. It became clear that all 19 crew members who were in two compartments were killed. Among them were Stolbov, military commissar N.A. Dolgopolov, assistant K.N. Sorokin and navigator A.Ya. Semenov. The command of the boat was taken over by the mechanic captain-lieutenant A.D. Bolshakov, who managed to start the diesel engines and, guided by the magnetic compass, bring the boat to the base. The commission investigating the causes of the accident concluded that the incident on Shch-402 was the result of a gross violation of the rules of operation, technical illiteracy and negligent performance by the crew of their duties.

The new commander of the "pike" was Lieutenant Commander A.M. Kautsky, who was previously an assistant on the Shch-421 (in this position he participated only in the last trip of the boat). The baptism of fire of the renewed crew took place in January (17.1 - 3.2.1943), and the campaign was provided by division commander Kolyshkin. The boat twice managed to go on the attack on the surface, but in the conditions of a storm and the polar night, the torpedoes missed. The Germans recorded both attacks, but their attempts to strike back were also unsuccessful. In the spring (10 - 26.3.1943 and 7 - 23.5.1943) the submarine twice patrolled in the Varde area. The enemy attacked the "pike" several times, three times the boat touched the minreps. Kautsky managed to go on the attack only once - on March 20.

1.5 minutes after the release of three torpedoes from a distance of 8-10 kbt, the hydroacoustic heard two explosions, which, as it became known from intelligence data, sank two transports with flour and building materials. Although foreign researchers still do not comment on the results of this attack, the possibility of sinking two ships when firing one at a time is highly doubtful. Nevertheless, on July 25 Shch-402 was awarded the title of Guards, thus becoming the only "pike" - the owner of two highest military awards. The next (2.9 - 5.10.1943) submarine trip to the Kara Sea to the area east of Cape Zhelaniya did not bring encounters with the enemy. After arriving in Polyarnoye, the boat went into medium repair, according to experts, "its material part fell into exceptional disrepair." Through the efforts of workers and personnel, Shch-402 was put into operation by the summer of next year. By that time, the command of the BPL and the Northern Fleet had switched to using submarines according to the “overhanging curtain” method, the essence of which was to deploy submarines seaward of the line of minefields and point them at convoys according to aerial reconnaissance. It is obvious that Shch-402 - the only combat-ready "pike" - was not very suitable for this: its 11.5-nodal "ceremonial" course was even smaller in practice due to the deterioration of diesel engines and the removal of breakwater shields of torpedo tubes. The participation of the boat in the operation "RV-5" (campaign 10 - 26.7.1944) was reduced to seven unsuccessful attempts to intercept convoys, the speed of which each time turned out to be higher. Despite this, on the evening of September 17, the 402nd went on its last - 16th - military campaign. On the morning of September 21, the Boston torpedo bomber of the 36th Mining and Torpedo Regiment of the Northern Fleet Air Force flew out on a “free hunt” to the area west of Mageryo Island. Before reaching the search area, under the shore near Cape Sletnes, the gunner-radio operator discovered the cabin of a submarine. The crew commander, Captain Protas, without hesitation, described a wide combat turn and dropped a torpedo, which instantly hit the target. When developing a film loaded into a photo-machine gun, specialists from the headquarters of the Air Force and the BPL unanimously declared that a "pike" was captured in the pictures taken seconds before the hit. In the ensuing proceedings, it turned out that the order of setting a combat mission was grossly violated at the headquarters of the air regiment, as a result of which the pilot was not notified of the prohibition of attacks by any submarines in the area between Varde and Cape Nordkin. But here the question arises: for what purpose was the boat in a positional position at a distance of only a couple of miles from the enemy’s coast during daylight hours in conditions of good visibility? Since Kautsky did not get in touch with a message about combat damage or an accident, it remains to be assumed that the cause of this was a gross navigational error or ... "Boston" nevertheless attacked a German submarine, and Shch-402 died at another time in a completely different way reason. Not so long ago, while searching for the German transport Curitiba sunk in the Gamvik area, a private Norwegian company discovered the skeleton of a submarine at the bottom. Since Shch-401, K-2 and S-55 also died somewhere in this area, the final identification of the find is possible only after a deep-sea diving survey.

Marine Guard of the Fatherland Chernyshev Alexander Alekseevich

Guards Red Banner Submarine Shch-402, Series X

Guards Red Banner Submarine Shch-402, Series X

Laid down on December 4, 1934 in Leningrad at Plant No. 189 (Baltic Plant) under the designation "Shch-314", launched on June 28, 1935. September 29, 1936 became part of the KBF.

Surface displacement 590 tons, underwater - 707.8 tons; length 58.7, width 6.2 m, draft 4.3 m; diesel power 1600 hp, electric motors - 800 hp; maximum surface speed 13.6 knots, underwater - 8.7 knots; cruising range surface 6500 miles, underwater 108 miles; maximum immersion depth 90 m; autonomy 40 days. Armament: six (4 bow and 2 stern) 533 mm torpedo tubes, two 45 mm guns and two 7.62 mm machine guns. Crew of 40 people.

On May 16, 1937, the boat was given a new designation - Shch-402, and on May 28 she began moving north along the White Sea–Baltic Canal. June 30, 1937 the boat became part of the Northern Fleet.

On June 22, 1941, Shch-402 met N.G. Stolbov as part of the 3rd division of the submarine brigade in Murmansk on the slipway of the plant.

Having gone on the first trip, on July 11, the boat took up a position in the Porsanger Fjord area, but, not finding the enemy, on July 14 penetrated the roadstead of the port of Honningsvåg and attacked the transport anchored there. The torpedo passed the ship and exploded on the shore.

In the second campaign on August 7–16, 1941, the commander failed to go on the attack twice. On August 16, the boat returned to the base ahead of schedule, since, according to the commander, it could not be in position due to the passage of water through the rivet of the diesel gas outlet. At the same time, when approaching the shore, it turned out that the submarine had a discrepancy in its place of 29 miles and instead of Cape Kildin-Vostochny ended up at Cape Sharapov, which could lead to shelling of its coastal defense artillery. When inspecting Shch-402, the base came to the conclusion that it could well have been in position with such a malfunction, it was just an excuse for an early return from the sea. By order of the commander of the fleet, the commander of the ship was arrested for 10 days in the performance of his duties.

Having put to sea on August 24, Shch-402 again returned to base ahead of schedule on September 10, this time due to splashing of electrolyte.

From October 3 to October 28, 1941, the boat operated in the area of the islands of Loppa, Sere and Fuglö. This time, on October 17, she managed to sink the Norwegian steamer Vesteraalen (628 brt). The fourth campaign on November 13 - December 5 turned out to be inconclusive.

After repairs, the boat went to sea on February 21, 1942. On February 27, she attacked an enemy convoy (5 transports) leaving the Porsanger Fjord. According to not entirely reliable data, transport was sunk (8000 tons). On the same day, Shch-402 discovered a convoy (6 transports, 4 minesweepers, 2 patrol boats). She attacked the largest transport, but the torpedo hit the Vandal patrol ship. March 3, 1942 at the entrance to the Porsanger Fjord, Shch-402, after being attacked by a PLO ship, was pursued and damaged by close explosions of depth charges. March 10 at 22.11, due to an error in measuring the presence of fuel in tanks, the boat was left without a course 30 miles from the North Cape. On March 11, at 02.10, the D-3 submarine, located 40–60 miles northwest of it, was sent to help Shch-402, and at 18.45 K-21 left Polyarny at full surface speed. To reduce the transition time to the Shch-402 area, she was assigned a route only 25 miles from the enemy coast. At 6.47, being 22 miles from the coast of the enemy, the Shch-402 successfully launched a diesel engine in oil diluted with kerosene, and the boat began moving to the base at 4 knots. On March 12, at 1300, K-21 arrived in the area, but Shch-402 did not find it and began searching for it in a square with a side of 40 miles. On March 13, at 5.45, Shch-402 ran out of oil and the boat again drifted. The commander, not knowing what measures had been taken to assist his ship, decided to get in touch with the coastal command post without any restrictions and thus bring on the enemy forces in order to inflict maximum damage on him in battle. However, having received updated data on the location of "Shch-402", at 11.53 "K-21" found at a distance of 40-50 cab. the silhouette of the submarine, which turned out to be Shch-402. At 12.45, the transfer of 8 tons of fuel and 120 liters of oil began. All the weapons of both boats were ready for immediate action, and men with axes stood at the mooring lines to ensure an urgent dive. At 13.43, the transfer of fuel was completed, and both boats, after trimming in turn, headed for the base, where they arrived on March 14.

The next three campaigns "Shch-402" were unsuccessful, although N.G. Stolbov went on the attack three times, but because of the long distance did not hit the target.

On August 11, the boat went on another trip. On August 14, during the ventilation of the batteries, an explosion occurred in the second and third compartments. Of the sailors who were in the bow of the submarine, one torpedo pilot survived in the first compartment, who was able to be taken to the upper deck through the hatch. The door from the fourth compartment to the third jammed, a fire raged in the second compartment. In total, 19 people died, including the commander, military commissar, assistant commander and navigator. The crew managed to repair the main damage and bring the boat to Polyarny the next day.

On August 14, the captain-lieutenant (later captain of the 3rd rank) A.M. was appointed commander of Shch-402. Kautsky.

January 17, 1943 the boat went on another campaign. Being in position off the coast of Norway, she ensured the passage of the RA-52 convoy. She twice managed to go on the attack on the surface, but in the conditions of a storm and the polar night, the torpedoes missed the target. After the attack on February 2, the boat was pursued for three hours by an enemy anti-submarine ship, which dropped 20 depth charges to no avail. Breaking away from the enemy, the next day the boat returned to the base.

In the spring, the boat twice (March 10-26 and May 7-25) went to the Varde area. On March 20, while in position at the entrance to Sylte Fjord, Shch-402 in the area of Cape Harbacken discovered a convoy en route from Varanger Fjord, which consisted of six ships and vessels. Having launched an attack on transport with a displacement of about 6 thousand tons, the "pike" fired three torpedoes. The acoustician heard two explosions.

July 25, 1943 "Sch-402" was awarded the title of "Guards". Thus, she became the only "pike", Guards and Red Banner.

In September-October 1943, Shch-402 went to a position east of Cape Zhelaniya to cover our Arctic communications. After returning to Polyarny, the boat went into medium repair. But even after it, the speed of the "pike" remained low - less than 11 knots.

From July 10 to July 26, 1944, Shch-402 went into position on enemy communications off the coast of Northern Norway. However, all attempts to attack the convoys were unsuccessful due to the low speed of the boat.

September 17, 1944 "Shch-402" went to sea to act on enemy communications, this campaign was the last. On September 2, three Soviet torpedo bombers flew into the same area, one of which found a submarine without a course on the approaches to the village of Gamvik and attacked it with a torpedo, as a result, Shch-402 was sunk. She became the last dead submarine of the Northern Fleet.

Shch-402 made 16 military campaigns, 11 torpedo attacks, as a result of which 3 ships and 1 ship were sunk.

From the book Naval Guard of the Fatherland author Chernyshev Alexander Alekseevich

Guards red banner submarine "D-3" ("Krasnogvardeets") of the 1st series Laid down on March 5, 1927 at shipyard No. 189 (Baltic Plant) in Leningrad. July 12, 1929 launched and November 14, 1931 became part of the MSBM. Surface displacement 932.8 tons, underwater - 1353.8 tons; length 76.0 m,

From the author's book

Guards submarine "K-22" XIV series Laid down on January 5, 1938 in Leningrad at Plant No. 196 (New Admiralty), launched on November 3, 1938. August 7, 1940 became part of the KBF. Displacement: surface 1490 tons, underwater 2104 tons; length 97.65 m, width 7.41 m, draft 4.06 m;

From the author's book

Guards submarine "M-171" XII series Laid down on September 10, 1936 in Leningrad at Plant No. 196 (New Admiralty) under the letter designation "M-87". July 10, 1937 launched, and December 11, 1937 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. Surface displacement 206.5 tons, underwater - 258.1 tons;

From the author's book

Guards submarine "M-174" XII series Laid down on May 29, 1937 in Leningrad at Plant No. 196 (New Admiralty) under the letter designation "M-91". On October 12, 1937, the boat was launched, and on June 21, 1938, it became part of the KBF.TTE - see M-171. On May 19, 1939, M-91 left for

From the author's book

Guards submarine "Sch-205" ("Nerpa") V-bis 2nd series Laid down on January 5, 1934 in Nikolaev at Plant No. 200 named after. On the 61st Communard on November 6, 1934, she was launched and on September 2, 1936 became part of the Black Sea Fleet.

From the author's book

Guards submarine "Sch-303" ("Ruff") III series Laid down on February 5, 1930 in Leningrad at Plant No. 189 (Baltic Plant), launched on November 6, 1931 and November 25, 1933 became part of the MSBM .Displacement surface 578 tons, underwater - 704.5 tons; length 57.0 m, width 6.2 m, draft 3.8 m;

From the author's book

Guards submarine "Sch-309" ("Dolphin") V-bis 2nd series Laid down on November 6, 1933 in Gorky at Plant No. 112 ("Krasnoe Sormovo"), April 10, 1934 launched. On November 20, 1935, it became part of the KBF.TTE - see Shch-205. Shch-309 participated in the Soviet-Finnish War on November 29

From the author's book

Guards submarine (underwater minelayer) "L-3" "Frunzevets" 2nd series Laid down on September 6, 1929 in Leningrad at Plant No. 189 (Baltic Plant), March 8, 1931 launched. November 9, 1933 became part of the MSBM. Displacement surface 1051 tons, underwater - 1327 tons;

From the author's book

Guards submarine "M-35" XII series Laid down on February 22, 1939 in Gorky at Plant No. 112 "Krasnoye Sormovo", was launched on August 20, 1940 and became part of the Black Sea Fleet on February 24, 1941. TTE - see "M-171". June 22, 1941 "M-35" met under the command of a senior lieutenant

From the author's book

Guards submarine "Shch-422" X series December 15, 1934 in Gorky at Plant No. 112 ("Krasnoe Sormovo"), the assembly of the hull of the boat under the designation "Shch-314" was started, from parts manufactured at the Kolomna Machine-Building Plant. Kuibyshev, April 12, 1935 the boat was

From the author's book

Guards Red Banner submarine "M-172" XII series Laid down on September 17, 1936 in Leningrad at Plant No. 196 (New Admiralty) under the letter designation "M-88". July 23, 1937 launched, and December 25, 1937 became part of the KBF.TTE - see "M-171". May 19, 1939 boat

From the author's book

Guards submarine "Sch-215" X series Laid down on March 27, 1935 in Nikolaev at Plant No. 200 (named after 61 Communards). January 11, 1937 launched. On April 10, 1939, it became part of the Black Sea Fleet.TTE - see Shch-402. On June 22, 1941, Shch-215 met under the command of Lieutenant Commander V.Ya.

From the author's book

Guards submarine "M-62" XII series Laid down on January 20, 1938 in Gorky at Plant No. 112 ("Krasnoye Sormovo"), launched on October 5, 1939 and became part of the Black Sea Fleet on August 31, 1940. TTE - see "M-171". On June 22, 1941, "M-62" met under the command of Senior Lieutenant A.A.

From the author's book

Guards submarine "S-33" IX-bis series Laid down on November 16, 1937 in Nikolaev at Plant No. 198 (named after A. Marty), launched on May 30, 1939 and December 18, 1940 became part of the Black Sea Fleet .Displacement surface - 856 tons, underwater -1090 tons; length 77.75 m, width 6.4 m, draft 4.0 m; power

From the author's book

Guards Red Banner submarine "S-56" IX-bis series Laid down on November 24, 1936 in Leningrad at Plant No. 194 (Admiralteysky), and then transported in sections to Vladivostok to Plant No. 202 (Dalzavod), where it was assembled. December 25, 1939 the boat was launched on

From the author's book

Guards nuclear submarine with cruise missiles "K-22" (since 1993 - "B-22") pr. 675 It was laid down on October 14, 1963 at the Northern Machine-Building Enterprise. October 22, 1964 the boat was awarded the Guards rank, she inherited the Guards Naval Flag

I hope readers will forgive me that I allow myself to begin immediately with a digression in my direction. Because it will be easier in the future to understand my personal (and it will be here) attitude towards these people. In my military biography there have been a few occasions when I have had the opportunity to try parties not related to my military specialty. That is, I jumped with a parachute, once I piloted the An-24 military transport version for 10 minutes (I turned out to be no pilot, so upon landing I had an unpleasant conversation with the rest of the passengers, turning into a friendly scuffle. Moreover, the conversation lasted much longer than I piloted ). While serving in the Far East, I managed to get drunk with a senior lieutenant, the commander of a minesweeper, and drunk to accept an invitation to "go to sea" to check the engines. I was even entrusted with holding the helm (but, remembering my sad experience as a pilot, I did it purely symbolically), and as soon as we left the bay, I concluded that a sailor was about me like a pilot. The rest of the time I was checking, I was throwing up like a clockwork toy.

And, on Navy Day, when all sailors swell with importance and become kind and condescending towards land rats (and by that time I had already more than recommended myself, but I treated this with humor, which was appreciated by swimmers and walkers), several volunteers were allowed on board the Chita submarine. It was an event that made an indelible impression on me. I have a very good fantasy, so when I imagined myself in this ship, when there was a hundred meters of water above you ... For some reason, I immediately wanted not just to go up, but even to land. But, having given myself the appropriate instructions, I withstood the entire excursion with honor, listening in good faith to the foreman-guide and hitting my head against a variety of horseradish and mechanisms.

Forgive me, submariners, I never had the courage to ask what must be in the brain in order to voluntarily go on board this embodiment of a claustrophobic nightmare and not only live on it, but also work on it. You can't live there, that's my established opinion. I am not claustrophobic, I myself was used to working in a limited space by that time, but it was too much. It's one thing when there are three of us in a can of kunga, and a submarine is quite another thing.

The foreman who took us around the compartments (damn, they also run between them on alarm !!!), noticed that on modern atomic ones, of course, the places are bigger, brighter, and in general ... But he said this somehow without envy at all. This alerted me, and I asked, what, are there more pluses here? And then this little man, scratching his mustache, answered like this: “you know, the elder, if anything, we are here once - and that’s it. And they will sink there for a long time. A very long time". I didn’t ask any more questions… And when the epic with the Kursk began, I remembered this elderly foreman.

But back to the main theme of my story.

1941 Northern Fleet.
Numbers first.
By the beginning of the war, the submarine forces of the Northern Fleet consisted of 15 submarines.
By 1945 there were already 42.
Losses during the war amounted to 23 submarines, of which 13 were missing.
Here they are.

Guards Red Banner submarine "D-3" "Krasnogvardeets".

"D-3" was the first ship of the USSR Navy, which simultaneously achieved the Guards rank and became Red Banner.
Launched and November 14, 1931 became part of Naval Forces the Baltic Sea.
In the summer of 1933, the boat as part of EON-2, along the newly built Belomoro-Baltic Canal, made the transition from the Baltic to the North, becoming the core of the nascent Northern Fleet. September 21, 1933 "Red Guard" became part of the Northern military flotilla.
8 military campaigns.
First: 06/22/1941 - 07/04/1941
Last: 06/10/1942 - ?

Result:
According to official Soviet data, the "D-3" accounted for 8 enemy ships sunk with a total displacement of 28.140 gross tons and damage to one transport of 3.200 gross tons.
The success of any attack is not confirmed by the enemy.

On June 10, 1942, the Guards Red Banner submarine D-3 entered its last combat campaign. By this time, the boat had a fully decorated crew, mainly consisting of candidates or members of the CPSU (b). More "D-3" did not get in touch and did not return to the base. Together with the boat, 53 members of her crew were killed.

Submarine "K-1"

K-1 was laid down on December 27, 1936 at plant No. 194 “Im. A. Marty" in Leningrad. The launch took place on April 28, 1938, K-1 was included in the 13th division of the submarine training brigade Baltic Fleet. December 16, 1939 the boat entered service.
On May 26, 1940, K-1 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, in the summer of the same year, K-1, together with the K-2 of the same type, the destroyer Stremitelny and several other ships, proceeded through the White Sea-Baltic Canal. On August 6, she became part of the Northern Fleet, enlisted in the 1st division of the submarine brigade of the Northern Fleet with a base in Polyarny.

The boat made 16 military campaigns total duration 196 days, made one torpedo attack with two torpedoes and 10 mine laying, in which she set 146 mines. A torpedo attack from a distance of 10-11 cables was unsuccessful, although according to official Soviet data of that time, it was believed that K-1 sank the transport. According to verified post-war data, 5 ships and 2 warships were killed on exposed mines.

November 8, 1941 - transport "Flottbeck", 1 930 brt;
December 26, 1941 - transport "Kong Ring", 1,994 brt, 257 vacation soldiers died;
April 8, 1942 - transport "Kurzsee", 754 brt;
May 23, 1942 - Asuncion transport, 4,626 brt;
September 12, 1942 - transport "Robert Bormhofen", 6 643 brt;
December 6, 1942 - patrol ships V6116 and V6117
The total tonnage of the lost ships is 15,947 brt.

The boat went missing in 1943 during the last campaign in the area of Novaya Zemlya.
There were 69 sailors on board in the last trip.

Submarine "K-2"

Laid down on December 27, 1936 at plant number 194 in Leningrad. April 29, 1938 the boat was launched and May 26, 1940 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. Soon "K-2" was transferred to the North and on July 18, 1940 became part of the Northern Fleet.

7 military campaigns:
First: 08/07/1941 - 08/31/1941
Last: 08/26/1942 - ?

Results:
4 unsuccessful torpedo attacks, 9 torpedoes fired
3 artillery attacks (49 shells), resulting in damage to 1 transport.
2 minelayings (33 mines), which presumably killed 1 enemy ship.

On August 26, 1942, K-2 entered its last combat campaign. On September 7, according to the plan to cover the convoy "PQ-18", the boat was ordered to change position, but the prearranged signal about the transition from the "K-2" was not received. Further attempts to establish contact and search for the boat by planes did not lead to anything. Presumably, "K-2" died on a mine in early September 1942.
There were 68 sailors on board the "K-2" in her last trip.

Submarine "K-3"

She was laid down on December 27, 1936 under slipway number 453 at plant number 194 in Leningrad and launched on July 31, 1938. November 27, 1940 "K-3" entered service and December 19, 1940 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet.
The boat was preparing in Kronstadt for the transition to the Northern Fleet as part of EON-11 and arrived in Belomorsk on September 9, 1941.

9 military campaigns

First: 07/27/1941 - 08/15/1941
Last: 03/14/1943 -?

Destroyed 2 large hunters, 1 Norwegian transport (327 brt), damaged 1 German transport (8116 brt).

12/03/1941 BO "Uj-1708", artillery.
01/30/1942 TR "Inge" (327 brt), mine.
02/05/1943 BO "Uj-1108", artillery.
02/12/1943 Föchenheim TR (8116 brt) - damaged.

K-3 went on its last combat campaign on the night of March 14, 1943. In the future, she did not get in touch and did not return to the base at the appointed time. On April 14, the autonomy of the submarine expired. There were 68 sailors on board.

Guards submarine "K-22"

Laid down on January 5, 1938 at the plant N196 (Sudomekh) Leningrad. November 3, 1939 launched. On July 15, 1940, she entered service, and on August 7, 1940, she became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet.
On August 4, 1941, passing through the White Sea-Baltic Canal, the boat arrives in Molotovsk (now Severodvinsk) and on September 17 is transferred to the Northern Fleet.

8 Combat campaigns:
First: 10/21/1941 - 11/18/1941
Last: 02/03/1943 - 02/07/1943

Results:
5 transports sunk, drifterboat and barge. In total, more than 8.621 brt.

artillery: more than 1.463 brt
09.12.1941 TR "Weidingen" (210 brt)
12/11/1941 drifterboat and barge
01/19/1942 TR "Mimona" (1.147 brt)
01/19/1942 Trawler "Vaaland" (106 brt)

minami: 7.158 brt
12/09/1941. TR "Steinbeck" (2.184 brt)
03/15/1942. TR "Niccolò Siaffino" (4.974 GRT)

At the end of January 1943, "K-22" together with the submarine "K-3" on the Kildin reach held joint exercises in order to work out joint action using sonar equipment "Dragon-129". On February 3, 1943, the boats went on a military campaign, from which the K-22 did not return.
On February 7, at 19.00, the boats exchanged messages via sound-conducting communication. The "K-3" speaker heard four loud clicks, after which the "K-22" did not get in touch anymore. Presumably, at that moment the boat died as a result of an accident, since no one heard the explosion on the K-3, although it is possible that the K-22 died on a mine.
77 sailors died on the submarine.

Submarine "K-23"

Laid down on February 5, 1938 at the plant number 196 (New Admiralty) in Leningrad.
April 28, 1939 the boat was launched and October 25, 1940 "K-23" became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet.
September 17, 1941 the boat was enrolled in the Northern Fleet.

5 military campaigns:
First: 10/28/1941 - 10/30/1941
Last: 04/29/1942 - 05/12/1942?

Results:
2 torpedo attacks with the release of 6 torpedoes and 1 unauthorized torpedo launch by crew error. No results.

3 minelayings (60 min) that killed
11/08/41 TR "Flotbek" (1931 brt) - most likely died on mines "K-1"
12/26/41 TR "Oslo" (1994 brt) - possibly killed by mines "K-1"
15.02.42 TR "Birk" (3664 grt)

3 artillery attacks, resulting in sunk
01/19/42 TR "Serey" (505 brt)

On April 29, 1942, K-23 entered its last combat campaign. May 12, 1942 "K-23" attacked the enemy convoy as part of the transports "Karl Leonhard" (6115 brt) and "Emeland" (5189 brt) guarding the patrol ships "V-6106", "V-6107" "V-6108 "and submarine hunters "Uj-1101", "Uj-1109" and "Uj-1110". The torpedoes did not hit the target, and one of them went along the surface, and at the end of the distance surfaced. The ships stalled and began to lift the torpedo out of the water. Suddenly, the K-23 suddenly rose to the surface and opened inconclusive artillery fire on the convoy escort ships, to which they also responded with fire from 88-mm guns, firing a total of more than 200 shells. The boat received hits and tried to leave, but was attacked by a Ju-88 aircraft, sank, and the hunters began to search and pursue the submarine, which lasted more than 3 hours. Gadzhiev (commander of the submarine division) reported on the radio that as a result of a torpedo attack, a transport was sunk, and during an artillery battle two enemy patrol ships were sunk, the K-23 was damaged and needed immediate help. The command gave the go-ahead to return, but the K-23 did not return to the base. Together with the ship, its crew of 71 people also died.

Submarine "S-54"

Laid down November 24, 1936 at the plant number 194 (named after Marty) in Leningrad. Sections by railway submarine delivered to Far East, where at the plant number 202 (Dalzavod) in Vladivostok, its final assembly was carried out. November 5, 1938 the ship was launched. On December 31, 1940, the submarine entered service, and on January 5, 1941, it became part of the Pacific Fleet.

The beginning of the Great Patriotic War the ship met as part of the 3rd division of the 1st brigade of the Pacific Fleet submarine in Vladivostok.

On October 5, 1942, S-54 began an inter-naval transoceanic transition from Pacific Ocean to the Northern Fleet through the Panama Canal. January 10 "S-54" arrived in England. She had her battery replaced at Rosyth, while Porsmouth carried out maintenance and installation of sonar and radar. At the end of May, the S-54 left Lervik, and on June 7, 1943, arrived in Polyarnoye, where on the same day it was enrolled in the 2nd division of the SF brigade.

5 military campaigns

First: 06/27/1943 - 07/11/1943
Last: 03/05/1944 - ?

1 unsuccessful torpedo attack. There are no victories.

The S-54 went on its last campaign on March 5, 1944. The submarine did not return to base. There were 50 people on board the S-54 at the time of its death.

Submarine "S-55"

Laid down on November 24, 1936 at plant No. 194 in Leningrad under slipway number 404. The submarine was transported in sections by rail to the Far East, where it was finally assembled at plant No. 202 in Vladivostok. On November 27, 1939, the S-55 was launched, on July 25, 1941 it entered service, and on August 22, 1941 it became part of the Pacific Fleet.

On October 5, 1942, together with the S-54, the submarine began moving to the North along the route: Vladivostok - Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky - Dutch Harbor - San Francisco - Coco Solo - Guantanamo - Halifax - Reykjavik - Greenock - Portsmouth - Rosyth - Lervik - Polar. On March 8, S-55 arrived in Polyarnoye and on the same day was enlisted in the 2nd division of the brigade of the submarine of the Northern Fleet.

4 military campaigns:

First: 03/28/1943 - 04/03/1943
Last: 12/04/1943 - +

Result: 2 transports sunk (6.089 brt)

04/29/1943 TR "Sturzsee" (708 brt)
10/12/1943 TR "Ammerland" (5.381 brt)

On the evening of December 4, S-55 set out on its last campaign. On the morning of December 8, at the mouth of the Tanafjord, an unexploded torpedo hit the stern of the Norwegian ship Valer (1016 brt). The escort ships of the convoy did not leave their place in the order, since the attack of the submarine was discovered too late. Further actions of the "S-55" are unknown, the submarine never got in touch, she did not respond to the order to return given to her on the evening of December 21.
It is possible that the wreck of a submarine discovered in 1996 at the bottom near Cape Sletnes is a mass grave for 52 crew members of the S-55.

It was laid down on December 4, 1934 at plant No. 189 (Baltic Plant) in Leningrad under slipway number 253 as Shch-313. On June 28, 1935, the submarine was launched, on July 17, 1936 it entered service and became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. In the summer of 1938, the submarine crossed the North through the White Sea-Baltic Canal and on June 27, 1937 became part of the Northern Fleet.

7 military campaigns
First: 06/22/1941 - 07/02/1941
Last: 04/11/1942 -?

Result: 1 ship sunk (1.359 GRT)
04/23/1942 TR "Shtensaas" (1.359 brt)

Shch-401 went on its last campaign on the night of April 11, 1942. On April 18, by order of the command, she moved to the North Cape. On the afternoon of April 19, off Cape Omgang, the Forbach tanker was subjected to an unsuccessful attack by a submarine. The minesweepers M-154 and M-251 accompanying the convoy conducted an anti-submarine search and dropped 13 depth charges at the supposed location of the submarine. The second time “Sch-401” declared itself on the morning of April 23, when, as a result of a torpedo hit, the Norwegian transport “Shtensaas” (1359 brt) mobilized by the Germans sank near Cape Sletnes with a cargo of military equipment for Kirkenes. April 23 "Sch-401" got in touch with a report of two attacks using all the torpedoes in the bow torpedo tubes.

This was the last report from the Shch-401. She did not respond to further calls with an order to return.

Together with Shch-401, 43 sailors died.

Guards Red Banner submarine "Sch-402"

The submarine was laid down on December 4, 1934 at the Baltic Shipyard No. 189 in Leningrad (serial number 254). Launched June 28, 1935. Should have received given name"Tiger". October 1, 1936 became part of the ships of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet under the number Shch-314.
In May 1937, the boat was placed in a floating dock to prepare for the transition to the Barents Sea.
On May 16, 1937, she was assigned to the 2nd division of the submarine brigade of the Northern Fleet under the number Shch-402.
On May 28, 1937, she left Leningrad, passed through the White Sea-Baltic Canal, and in September 1937 arrived at the port of the city of Polyarny.

June 22, 1941 was included in the 3rd division of the submarine brigade of the Northern Fleet.

During the first military campaign on July 14, 1941, the Shch-402 penetrated the Porsangerfjord and from a distance of 14-15 cable torpedoes anchored in the port of Honningsvåg, the German steamship Hanau with a displacement of 3,000 tons, the first of the Northern Fleet submarines, successfully attacked enemy transport.
During the war years, the boat made another 15 military campaigns, sank the German patrol ship NM01 "Vandale" and the coastal steamer "Vesteraalen" with a displacement of 682 tons.

On the evening of September 17, 1944, she left the base for her last combat campaign.

On September 21, 1944, at 06:42, the crew of the Boston torpedo bomber of the 36th mine-torpedo aviation regiment of the Northern Fleet attacked and sank a surface object with a torpedo. After analyzing the photographs of the photo machine gun, it was concluded that he mistook the Shch-402, which was on the surface of the sea, for an enemy boat and, in violation of the order forbidding aviation to attack any submarines, dropped a torpedo from a distance of 600 meters, as a result of which explosion it sank, the entire crew (44 sailors) died.

Submarine Shch-403

The boat was laid down on December 25, 1934 at the plant number 189 "Baltic Plant" in Leningrad under construction number 261 and the name Shch-315, launched on December 31, 1935. It was supposed to assign the name "Jaguar". September 26, 1936 entered service and became part of the Baltic Fleet of the USSR Navy.
On May 16, 1937, the ship was named Shch-403, in May-June it was transferred via the White Sea-Baltic Canal to the Northern Fleet, and on June 19 it became part of the 2nd division of submarines of the Northern Fleet.

In total, during the war years, Shch-403 made 14 combat campaigns, spending 165 days in them, carried out 11 torpedo attacks with the release of 37 torpedoes, but did not achieve targets.

10/13/1943 unsuccessfully attacked a convoy at Cape Mackaur, after which the boat did not get in touch.

43 sailors died with the boat.

Red banner submarine "Sch-421"

It was laid down on November 20, 1934 at plant No. 112 (Krasnoye Sormovo), Gorky, from parts manufactured at the Kolomna Machine-Building Plant named after. Kuibyshev under the designation "Sch-313". Launched May 12, 1935. December 5, 1937 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. On May 19, 1939, through the White Sea-Baltic Canal, she began the transition to the Northern Fleet, and on June 21, 1939 she became part of it.

6 military campaigns
First: 06/22/1941 - 07/08/1941
Last: 03/20/1942 - 04/09/1942

Results:
sunk 1 transport (2.975 brt)
02/05/1942 TR "Consul Schulze" (2.975 brt)

At 20.58 on April 3, 1942, when Shch-421 was in the Lakse fjord area at a depth of 15 meters, the boat hit a mine. The boat surfaced, the wheelhouse hatch was opened and the horizon was examined. An attempt to give "Sch-421" a move was not successful. After making sure that the boat could not be launched, the commander decided to ask the base for help. Submarines "K-2" and "K-22" were sent to the place of the accident. "Shch-421" inexorably demolished to the enemy's shore. Then, at the suggestion of the assistant commander A.M. Kautsky, two canvas covers from diesel engines were raised like sails on periscopes. By morning, visibility improved, and the sails had to be removed, and the boat moved to a positional position, since there were only 8 miles to the enemy’s shore. In the event of the appearance of the enemy, "Sch-421" was prepared for the explosion, but at about 11 o'clock on April 9, "K-22" discovered an emergency boat. Attempts to tow the Shch-421 were unsuccessful: the towing lines were torn, the bollards were torn out, and an attempt to tow the boat sideways also did not lead to success. At 13.34 an enemy aircraft appeared, which noticed the boats and began to drop flares. In order not to put people at unnecessary risk, the crew was removed from Shch-421, and the boat itself was sunk by a torpedo from K-22 at 70.12 N; 26.22 st. 12 seconds after the torpedo hit, Shch-421 disappeared under water. The crews saw off the boat with bare heads.

Guards submarine "Sch-422"

The boat was laid down on December 15, 1934 at the plant number 112 "Krasnoye Sormovo" in Gorky from parts manufactured at the Kuibyshev Kolomna plant under construction number 84 and the name Shch-314, launched on April 12, 1935. On December 5, 1937, she entered service, on December 6 she became part of the Baltic Fleet of the USSR Navy. In May-June 1939, it was transferred via the White Sea-Baltic Canal to the Northern Fleet, on June 17, 1939 it was named Shch-422, and on June 21 it became part of the 3rd division of submarines of the Northern Fleet.

During the Great Patriotic War, Shch-422 made 15 military campaigns, spent 223 days at sea, made 18 torpedo attacks with the release of 42 torpedoes. On July 25, 1943 she was awarded the title of Guards.

On September 2, 1941, the German transport "Ottar Jarl" (1459 brt) was sunk by a single torpedo.
On September 12, 1941, a single torpedo hit the anchored transport "Tanahorn" and did not explode.
On January 26, 1942, the crew of a Norwegian motorboat was captured, the abandoned ship was sunk by artillery.

Shch-422 went on its last campaign on June 30, 1943. Didn't get in touch.
Together with the boat, 44 sailors were killed.

Submarine B-1
(former British "Sunfish")

The submarine was laid down on 22 July 1935 at the Chatheim Dock Yard in Chatham, UK. On September 30, 1936, the submarine was launched, entered service on March 13, 1937, and on July 2 became part of the British Navy under the name "Sunfish".

According to the agreements in Tehran at the end of 1943, the Sunfish is intended to be transferred to the Soviet Union on account of the division Italian Navy. April 10 (according to other sources March 9), 1944, the submarine was enlisted in the Navy of the USSR under the designation "B-1". On May 30, 1944, a solemn ceremony of handing over the ship to the Soviet crew took place in Rosyth, which arrived in the UK as part of the RA-59 convoy, and was formed from the sailors of the L-20 submarine.

On July 25, the submarine arrived at Lervik, from where it left for Polyarnoye in the evening of the same day, but did not arrive there.

According to the main version of the death of the "B-1", it is believed that the submarine deviated from the recommended course and became the victim of an erroneous attack by the Liberator aircraft of the 18th Air Group of the RAF Coastal Command on the morning of July 27, 1944, 300 miles north of the Shetland Islands (64 ° 34 "N/01°16"W, according to other sources 64°31"N/01°16"W).
51 people died with the ship.

Submarine "M-106" "Leninsky Komsomol"

Laid down at plant number 112 (Krasnoye Sormovo) in Gorky (Nizhny Novgorod) on October 29, 1940 under slipway number 303. On April 10, 1941, the ship was launched. In early December 1942, the submarine moved to Polyarnoye and was included in the Separate Training Division, where it was completed, carried out acceptance tests and worked out combat training tasks. On April 28, 1943, the M-106 entered service and on May 11 became part of the 4th division of the Northern Fleet submarine. Since the completion of the ship was carried out with funds raised by Komsomol members and youth of the Chelyabinsk and Sverdlovsk regions, by order of the People's Commissar of the Navy dated 04/28/1943 "M-106" was given the name "Leninsky Komsomol".

3 military campaigns:
First: 05/13/1943 - 05/16/1943
Last: 06/30/1943 - +

The third military campaign was the last for the M-106. On the afternoon of June 30, the submarine went on a mission, did not get in touch and did not return to the base. Together with the submarine, 23 sailors were killed.

Submarine "M-108"

She was laid down on October 30, 1940 at plant No. 112 (Krasnoye Sormovo) in Gorky (Nizhny Novgorod) under slipway number 305 and launched on April 16, 1942. On November 21, 1942, the ship was loaded onto a railway transporter and sent to Murmansk, where it arrived on November 29. January 9, 1943 the submarine was launched a second time. August 24, 1943 "M-108" officially became part of the Northern Fleet.

3 military campaigns:
First: 12/29/1943 - 01/06/1944
Last: 02/21/1944 -?

1 unsuccessful torpedo attack.

The M-108 went on its last combat campaign on the night of February 21, 1944. She did not get in touch and did not return to the base. On the M-108, 23 crew members went to sea on her last trip to the sea.

Submarine "M-121"

Laid down on May 28, 1940 at plant No. 112 (Krasnoye Sormovo) in Gorky (Nizhny Novgorod) under slipway number 290. On August 19, 1941, the submarine of the year was launched; but fitting-out work on the ship was stopped, since from the 1st of July the plant, by the decision of the State Defense Committee, the plant completely switched to the production of T-34 tanks. Having a high degree readiness, the submarine was transferred to Astrakhan before freezing, and then to Baku, where at the plant. The Zakfederation carried out the final completion of the ship.

In the spring of 1942, the M-121 entered service, and on April 10, 1942, it became part of the Caspian military flotilla. Already in May 1942, the submarine was being prepared for shipment to the Northern Fleet and transferred back to Gorky. There, the submarine was installed on a railway transporter and sent to Molotovsk on June 12, where the M-121 arrived safely on June 18, 1942. On June 30, when the submarine began to be launched, due to the imperfection of the launching device, it left the skids and stopped with a large roll. It was only on the third attempt that the M-121 was launched on July 15. On August 12, 1942, the M-121 entered service for the second time and was assigned to the 4th division of the submarine of the Northern Fleet.

September 30 "M-121" moved from Arkhangelsk to Polyarnoye. After completing a combat training course on the evening of October 14, the M-121 went on its first combat campaign.

2 military campaigns.
14.10.1942 – 21.10.1942
07.11.1942 – ?

There are no victories.

The second military campaign was the last for the M-121. On the afternoon of November 7, the submarine left Polyarnoye. Subsequently, the submarine did not get in touch and did not return to the base; On November 14, she did not respond to an order to return.
On the M-121, 21 people died.

Submarine "M-122"

Laid down on May 28, 1940 under slipway number 291 at plant number 112 (Krasnoye Sormovo) in Gorky (Nizhny Novgorod). On February 12, 1941, the submarine was launched, but in connection with the outbreak of war in September 1941, work on it was stopped, and before freezing it was transferred to Baku for completion (according to other sources, to Kamyshin). In May 1942, the submarine was again transferred to Gorky to prepare for shipment to the Northern Fleet and on June 15 was sent by rail to Plant No. 402 in Molotovsk (now Severodvinsk), where it arrived safely on June 23. On August 1, 1942, the M-122 was launched a second time, and on November 25, 1942, it became part of the Northern Fleet.

4 military campaigns

First: 03/13/1943 - 03/17/1943
Last: 05/12/1943 - 05/14/1943.

3 torpedo attacks. (launched 6 torpedoes).
03/16/1943. TR "Johanisberger" (4467 brt), heavily damaged, soon sank.

On the evening of May 12, "M-122" went on its last combat campaign. On the morning of May 14, when moving from a position to a maneuvering base in Tsyp-Navolok Bay to charge the M-122 batteries, at the point 69 ° 56 "N, 32 ° 53" E. was attacked and sunk by bombs from two Fw-190 aircraft from 14 / JG5 (according to other sources, it was attacked by three Bf-109 fighter-bombers). Three hours later, the patrol boats "MO No. 122" and "MO No. 123" that approached the place of the submarine's death picked up the corpse of the assistant commander, senior lieutenant I.I. Ilyin with a shrapnel wound to the head and arm.
On the M-122, 22 crew members died.

Guards Red Banner submarine "M-172"

Laid down on June 17, 1936 under slipway number 89 at plant number 196 in Leningrad as "M-88". On July 23, 1937, the submarine was launched, on December 11, 1937 it entered service, and on December 25, 1937 it became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet.

On May 19, 1939, the submarine left along the White Sea-Baltic Canal to the North. On June 16, the ship was assigned the designation "M-172" and on June 21 it became part of the Northern Fleet.

20 military campaigns.
First: 07/11/1941 - 07/20/1941
Last: 01.10.1943 - +

13 torpedo attacks, 1 TFR sunk.
02/01/1943 TFR "V-6115".

The submarine headed for its last combat campaign on the evening of October 1, 1943. It should operate in the Varanger Fjord in tandem with the M-105, replacing it in positions on even numbers. More "M-172" no one saw.
23 sailors died on board.

Submarine "M-173"

Laid down on June 27, 1936 under slipway number 90 at plant number 196 in Leningrad as "M-89". On October 9, 1937, the submarine was launched, on June 22, 1938 it entered service and on the same day became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. On May 19, 1939, the ship left along the White Sea-Baltic Canal to the North. On June 16, the submarine was assigned the designation "M-173", and on June 21 it became part of the 4th division of the submarine brigade of the Northern Fleet.

13 military campaigns:

First: 08/04/1941 - 08/05/1941
Last: 08/06/1942 - +
4 torpedo attacks.

04/22/1942 sunk TR "Blankensee" (3236 brt)

On the evening of August 6, "M-173" went out for action in the area northwest of Vardø. On the evening of August 14, they were waiting for her in Polyarny, but the submarine did not respond to the order to return, transmitted the day before. On August 16, the receiving radio center of the Northern Fleet noted signs of operation of the "baby" transmitter, but the text of the message could not be deciphered. On August 16 and 17, the aircraft flying along the route of the probable return of the submarine did not find anything, on August 17 the submarine's fuel autonomy expired.
Together with the submarine, 21 members of its crew remained forever at sea.

Guards submarine "M-174"

Laid down on May 29, 1937 under slipway number 105 at plant number 196 in Leningrad as "M-91". On October 12, 1937, the submarine was launched. On May 19, 1939, the submarine left along the White Sea-Baltic Canal to the North. On June 16, the ship was assigned the designation "M-174" and on June 21 it became part of the Northern Fleet.

17 military campaigns.
First: 07/01/1941 - 07/12/1941
Last: 10/14/1943 -?

3 torpedo attacks. Sunk 1 German transport (4301 brt).
12/21/1941 TR "Emshern" (4301 brt)

August 12, 1943 "M-174" entered service after emergency repairs. On the evening of October 14, she again went to the position in the Varanger Fjord and went missing.
25 sailors died on the submarine

Submarine "M-175"

Laid down on May 29, 1937 at the plant number 196 (Sudomekh) in Leningrad under slipway number 106 as "M-92". Launched on October 12, 1937; On June 21, 1938, the submarine became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, and officially entered service on September 29, 1938. On May 19, 1939, the submarine began moving along the White Sea Canal to the North, and on June 21 became part of the Northern Fleet under the designation M-175.

In the Great Patriotic War 5 military campaigns

First: 07/06/1941 - 07/20/1941
Last: 01/08/1942 - +

On the morning of January 8, 1942, she went on her last campaign. On the morning of January 10, she became a victim of torpedoes from the German submarine "U-584" (commander Lieutenant Commander Joachim Decke) in the area north of the Rybachy Peninsula, at the point 70 ° 09 "N / 31 ° 50" E.

"M-175" became the first submarine of the Northern Fleet that did not return from the military campaign of the Great Patriotic War.
Together with the submarine, 21 crew members of the submarine were killed.

Submarine "M-176"

Laid down May 29, 1937 at the plant number 196 (New Admiralty) in Leningrad under slipway number 107 as "M-93". On October 12, 1937, the ship was launched, and on June 21, 1938, it became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet.

On May 19, 1939, the M-93 began crossing the White Sea-Baltic Canal to the North, and on June 21, 1939, it became part of the Northern Fleet. As early as June 16, the ship received the designation "M-176".

During the Great Patriotic War "M-176" made 16 military campaigns:
First: 06/22/1941 - 07/01/1941
Last: 06/20/1942 - +

7 inconclusive torpedo attacks (12 torpedoes fired)

On the afternoon of June 20, 1942, the M-176 set out on its last campaign. On June 28, she did not respond to orders to return to base. The circumstances of the death of the boat have not yet been clarified.
Together with the M-176, her entire crew, 21 people, also died.

I deliberately did not give the names of the captains. The sea equalized everyone: officers, foremen, sailors. And boats with crews look like soldiers: someone managed to kill the enemy before death, someone did not.

War is a terrible thing. It's scary for everyone. An infantryman to attack towards the roaring barrels of machine guns, an artilleryman catching enemy tanks in the scope and realizing that this is the last shot, a gunner in an airplane looking through the scope at the attacking enemy fighters, an anti-aircraft gunner directing the barrel of an anti-aircraft gun towards the diving Junkers, a tanker, attacking enemy positions under fire from anti-tank guns ... But each of the fighters listed has at least a ghostly chance of surviving in the event of an enemy defeat. A wounded infantryman can take cover behind a fold in the terrain, a pilot can use a parachute, an anti-aircraft gunner has a gap ... And everyone can count on the help of his comrades. Even an infantryman killed in the attack, a burned-out tanker could count on the fact that the surviving comrades would inform their relatives that "Your son died in battle ..."

The submariners did not even have a ghostly chance. The rescued crew from Shch-421 is the rarest exception. The rest had to die in the cramped dark compartments flooded with icy Arctic water, trying to stop this flow until the last second, in an attempt to push another breath of life-giving air into the lungs burned by battery acid fumes. Knowing they won't help. mass grave polar cold waters became for divers. Somewhere out there, beyond the horizon. Even their memory is denied in many ways. They do not half-mast flag ships, they do not give horns, they do not throw wreaths into the dark waters. Because the sea, unfortunately, knows how to keep its secrets.

It may seem to some that the list of victories of the submariners of the lost boats is more than modest. Moreover, many did not win a single victory at all. But it seems to me that this is not just a difficult matter - in fact, blindly (10 degrees of periscope viewing), taking into account a bunch of components, hit a moving (and probably maneuvering) ship with a torpedo. in arctic conditions. It's not just difficult. Nevertheless, they went and did their job. Some are better, some are worse. And this did not always depend on the rank and rank of commanders. Gadzhiev and Fisanovich were Heroes Soviet Union by the most experienced sailors. What is done is done. Thank them. And we are left with only memories.

I don’t know how anyone, but all this is beyond my personal understanding. I can’t sensibly imagine what kind of person you have to be in order to go on assignments like them, perfectly understanding everything. Suicide bombers? I don't know... In my opinion, the penalty box had more chances. So all I can do is to remind them, to express my deepest admiration for all submariners, both the dead and the survivors. Which is exactly what I do.

Sources of information:
http://www.town.ural.ru
http://www.forum-tvs.ru

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Laid down on December 4, 1934 in Leningrad at the plant number-189 under the designation Shch-314, factory number-254. June 28, 1935 launched. September 29, 1936 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. May 16, 1937 assigned the designation Shch-402. On May 28, 1937, the transition to the North began along the White Sea-Baltic Canal. June 30, 1937 became part of the Northern Fleet. On June 22, 1941, she met under the command of a senior lieutenant (later lieutenant commander, captain of the 3rd rank) N.I. Stolbov as part of the 3rd division of the Submarine Brigade in Polyarny. On July 11, she took a position in the Porsangerfjord area, but, not finding the enemy, on July 14 she penetrated the roadstead of the port of Honningsvåg and attacked transport there. On July 15 and 16, the commander refused to attack single transports, suspecting that these were trap ships. On August 16, she returned to the base ahead of schedule, since, according to the commander, she could not be in the mine due to the passage of water through the rivet of the diesel gas outlet. At the same time, when approaching the shore, it turned out that the submarine had a discrepancy in its place of 29 miles and instead of Cape Kildin-Vostochny ended up at Cape Sharapova, which could lead to shelling by coastal defense artillery. When inspecting Shch-402, the base came to the conclusion that it could well have been in position with such a malfunction, and this was just an excuse for an early return from the sea. In the order of the commander of the fleet, the commander of the submarine was arrested for 10 days with the performance of his duties, and the military commissar senior political officer A.B. Kochergin was severely reprimanded. On August 27, a new military commissar, political instructor N.A. Dolgopolov, was appointed to Shch-402. On September 10, she again returned to the base ahead of schedule, but this time due to splashing of the electrolyte.

On March 3, 1942, after the attack of the ship, the PLO was pursued and received damage from close explosions of depth charges, including fuel and ballast tanks. To prevent the occurrence of an unmasking trail due to fuel leakage, it was blown overboard from the ballast tanks. On March 10, at 22.11, due to an error in measuring the presence of a solarium in the main fuel tanks, it was left without a course 3 miles from the North Cape. On March 11, at 02.10, D-3, located 40-60 miles northwest of it, was sent to help Shch-402, and at 18.45 K-21 left Polyarny at full speed on the surface, to reduce the transition time, she was assigned a route of only 25 miles from the coast of the enemy. At 06.47 Shch-402, being 22 miles from the coast, successfully launched a diesel engine in oil diluted with kerosene, and at 4 knots began to move to the base. On March 12, at 1300, K-21 arrived in the area, but Shch-402 did not find it and began searching for it in a square with a side of 40 miles. March 13 at 05.45 ran out of oil, the submarine lay adrift. Having received updated data on the location of the emergency submarine, she again lay down in a drift. Having received updated data on the location of the emergency submarine, at 11.53 K-21 discovered a silhouette of a submarine at a distance of 40-50 kb, which turned out to be Shch-402. At 12.45 the transfer of 8 tons of fuel and 120 liters of oil began. At 13.43, the transfer of fuel was completed, and both submarines, after trimming alternately, headed for the base. On April 3, she was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

On May 5, despite the commander's prohibition, the watch officer surfaced to a depth of 7 meters, and Shch-402 collided with an ice floe. As a result of this incident, the anti-aircraft periscope was broken and the antenna poles were cut off, the submarine returned to the base. On August 14, an explosion occurred in the 2nd and 3rd compartments due to a violation of the AB ventilation rules in Tana Fjord. Of those who were in the bow of the submarine, only one torpedo pilot survived in the 1st compartment, who could only be taken to the upper deck through the hatch: the door from the 4th compartment to the 3rd jammed, a fire raged in the second compartment. A total of 19 people died, including: commander, military commissar, assistant commander and navigator. The submarine returned to the base under the command of the commander of the warhead-5, lieutenant commander A.D. Bolshakov. On August 14, captain-lieutenant (later captain of the 3rd rank) A.M. Kautsky was appointed commander.

July 25, 1943 was awarded the title of "Guards". In August, deployed to the east of Cape Zhelaniya to cover Arctic communications. In April 1944, she received the Dragon-129 GLS. September 17 went to sea for action on the communications of the enemy. On September 17, 1944, Shch-402 entered its last 16th military campaign. On the morning of September 21, the Boston torpedo bomber of the 36th mine-torpedo regiment of the Air Force of the Northern Fleet flew out on a “free hunt” to the area north of Magere Island. Before reaching the search area, under the shore near the village of Gamvik, the gunner-radio operator discovered the cabin of a submarine. The crew commander, Captain Protas, without hesitation, described a wide combat turn and dropped a torpedo, which instantly hit the target. When developing a film loaded into a photo-machine gun, specialists from the headquarters of the Air Force and the BPL unanimously declared that Shch-402 was captured in the pictures taken seconds before the hit. A call to communications from submarines made immediately after this event showed that Shch-402 was indeed not responding. In the ensuing proceedings, it turned out that the order of setting a combat mission was grossly violated at the headquarters of the air regiment, as a result of which the pilot was not notified of the prohibition of attacks by any submarines in the area between Varde and Cape Nordkin.

After all of the above in the history of the death of the Shch-402, one can put an end to it, but I would like to look at the situation with an open mind, and it becomes clear that the established version of the death of the Shch-402 looks far from being as convincing as it seemed to the headquarters of the Northern Fleet.

Judging by the descriptions made by Protas of photographs (not preserved), it turns out that the submarine was in an intermediate position between submerged and positional. If we assume that the submarine jumped to the surface while moving at periscope depth, then it is not clear why the watch did not do anything to drive the submarine to the depth during the rather significant period of time that the aircraft observed it? After all, the submarine was in sight from the German coastal batteries with good enough weather conditions. Secondly, why did the submarine not have a move? Shch-402 had a depth stabilizer without a stroke (Sprut system), but in the event of its failure, the submarine would hardly have jumped to the surface on its own - its buoyancy would have been close to zero, and would not have acquired a positive value. Jumping to the surface, on the contrary, is more likely when observing through the periscope on the move, if the helmsman on the horizontal rudders made a mistake. But the object captured in the pictures was in a drift and did not raise periscopes. Taking into account the fact that coastal batteries did not fire at it, and the object itself did not try to leave the observation zone, it remains to be assumed that it was a Norwegian fishing boat. It was not the first time that our pilots reported on attacks by enemy submarines, which, in fact, could not have been in this area at that time. The main thing is that Shch-402 was not sent by the command to the Gamvimka area, but to the Kongs-fjord area, where several of our submarines had previously gone missing. The distance between the named geographical points - about 35 miles - is too large to attribute it to a navigational error when arriving at the position, because the crew had almost two days with good visibility, during which they could easily clarify their position using coastal landmarks. Submarines were allowed to enter foreign positions in case of pursuit of an enemy convoy, but the latest data on convoys was sent to boats on the evening of the 19th, and from that time their commanders were obliged to search independently within their positions. Apparently at that moment Shch-402 was blown up on the NW-30 anti-submarine minefield, secretly set up by the enemy in the summer of 1943.

Submarine Shch-402 became the last submarine of the Northern Fleet to die.

The term of military service is 39 months (06/22/41 - 09/21/44). 16 military campaigns (232 days). 14 torpedo attacks, as a result of which 1 ship and 1 ship were sunk.

In order to perpetuate the memory of the fallen submariners of the Navy, the Naval Assembly of Kherson (chaired by captain 1st rank reserve N.I. Sribny) decided to install a memorial plaque to A.M. Kautsky on the house where he lived. The initiator and creator of the commemorative plaque was a veteran submariner of the Navy, captain of the 2nd rank, retired V.M. Golubev.

October 26, 2010 at 10 o'clock on Podpolnaya St. in Kherson at the house where Captain 3rd Rank Alexander Moiseevich Kautsky was born and lived from 1906 to 1928, in the presence of veterans of the Russian and Ukrainian Navy, Chairman of the Naval Assembly N.I. Sribny , Chairman of the Russian Cultural Center in Kherson N.E. Batarova, Rector of St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral Father Vasily (who later consecrated commemorative plaque), the media of Kherson, a memorial plaque was installed.

At the request of veteran submariners of Kherson, I created the “Book of memory of submariners of the Navy, natives of Kherson and the region, who died during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945”, which was published by that time. The presentation of the book took place on the same day in Museum of Local Lore Kherson.

Laid down on December 04, 1934 in Leningrad at the plant number-189 under the designation Shch-314, factory number-254. June 28, 1935 launched. September 29, 1936 became part of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet. May 16, 1937 assigned the designation Shch-402. On May 28, 1937, the transition to the North began along the White Sea-Baltic Canal. June 30, 1937 became part of the Northern Fleet. On June 22, 1941, she met under the command of a senior lieutenant (later lieutenant commander, captain of the 3rd rank) N.I. Stolbov as part of the 3rd division of the Submarine Brigade in Polyarny.

On July 11, she took a position in the Porsangerfjord area, but, not finding the enemy, on July 14 she penetrated the roadstead of the port of Honningsvåg and attacked transport there. On July 15 and 16, the commander refused to attack single transports, suspecting that these were trap ships. On August 16, she returned to the base ahead of schedule, since, according to the commander, she could not be in the mine due to the passage of water through the rivet of the diesel gas outlet. At the same time, when approaching the shore, it turned out that the submarine had a discrepancy in its place of 29 miles and instead of Cape Kildin-Vostochny ended up at Cape Sharapova, which could lead to shelling by coastal defense artillery.

When inspecting Shch-402, the base came to the conclusion that it could well have been in position with such a malfunction, and this was just an excuse for an early return from the sea. In the order of the commander of the fleet, the commander of the submarine was arrested for 10 days with the performance of his duties, and the military commissar senior political officer A.B. Kochergin was severely reprimanded. On August 27, a new military commissar, political instructor N.A. Dolgopolov, was appointed to Shch-402. On September 10, she again returned to the base ahead of schedule, but this time due to splashing of the electrolyte.

Judging by the descriptions made by Protas of photographs (not preserved), it turns out that the submarine was in an intermediate position between submerged and positional. If we assume that the submarine jumped to the surface while moving at periscope depth, then it is not clear why the watch did not do anything to drive the submarine to the depth during the rather significant period of time that the aircraft observed it? After all, the submarine was in sight from the German coastal batteries under fairly good weather conditions. Secondly, why did the submarine not have a move? Shch-402 had a depth stabilizer without a stroke (Sprut system), but in the event of its failure, the submarine would hardly have jumped to the surface on its own - its buoyancy would have been close to zero, and would not have acquired a positive value. Jumping to the surface, on the contrary, is more likely when observing through the periscope on the move, if the helmsman on the horizontal rudders made a mistake. But the object captured in the pictures was in a drift and did not raise periscopes. Taking into account the fact that coastal batteries did not fire at it, and the object itself did not try to leave the observation zone, it remains to be assumed that it was a Norwegian fishing boat. It was not the first time that our pilots reported on attacks by enemy submarines, which, in fact, could not have been in this area at that time. The main thing is that Shch-402 was not sent by the command to the Gamvimka area, but to the Kongs-fjord area, where several of our submarines had previously gone missing. The distance between the named geographical points - about 35 miles - is too large to attribute it to a navigational error when arriving at the position, because the crew had almost two days with good visibility, during which they could easily clarify their position using coastal landmarks. Submarines were allowed to enter foreign positions in case of pursuit of an enemy convoy, but the latest data on convoys was sent to boats on the evening of the 19th, and from that time their commanders were obliged to search independently within their positions. Apparently at that moment Shch-402 was blown up on the NW-30 anti-submarine minefield, secretly set up by the enemy in the summer of 1943.

Submarine Shch-402 became the last submarine of the Northern Fleet to die.

The term of combat service is 39 months (06/22/41 - 09/21/44). 16 military campaigns (232 days). 14 torpedo attacks, as a result of which 1 ship and 1 ship were sunk.

After the unveiling of the plaque

October 26, 2010 at 10 o'clock on Podpolnaya St. in Kherson at the house where Captain 3rd Rank Alexander Moiseevich Kautsky was born and lived from 1906 to 1928, in the presence of veterans of the Russian and Ukrainian Navy, Chairman of the Naval Assembly N.I. Sribny , Chairman of the Russian Cultural Center in Kherson N.E. Batarova, Rector of the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral, Father Vasily (who later consecrated the Commemorative Plaque), the Kherson mass media installed a Commemorative Plaque.

Vladimir Boyko

Guards Red Banner Submarine Shch-402, Series X

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