Power Play

CHAPTER 6 GADZHIYEVO, RUSSIA

Along the curving shoreline of Yagelnaya Bay, with the early morning sun cresting the rocky hills to the east, Captain Second Rank Anatoly Mikhailov strode down the pier toward his submarine. The six-week-long polar night had ended a few months ago and the snowfall had ceased, but his shoes still crunched through the white remnants of the Kola Peninsula’s harsh winter. Tied up alongside the center pier of Gadzhiyevo Naval Base were Russia’s two newest nuclear attack submarines: K-561 Kazan and K-562 Alexander. The Yasen class submarines incorporated cutting-edge technology and were formidable ships. Mikhailov hoped an opportunity would soon arise to test his submarine’s capabilities against his American counterparts.

The sun glinted off the sides of his 140-meter-long submarine, the white uniforms of his men assembled topside contrasting with the ship’s black hull. All appeared ready for Kazan’s sortie to sea this morning. Across the pier, Alexander’s crew was also preparing to get underway. They had disconnected from electrical power and other shore services, and its brow was being lifted away by the nearby crane, swinging it onto the pier.

Mikhailov crossed the brow onto his submarine as the crane swiveled around toward Kazan. After exiting the Murmansk Fjord and entering the Barents Sea, both submarines would return to the same operating area where they had tested the torpedo last week. Technical adjustments had been made, Mikhailov had been told, although the design leads were tight-lipped about what those changes had been. He looked forward to a successful test, with Kazan’s role appropriately recognized.

Mikhailov stopped beside his First Officer, standing before the crew formation. After an update on preparations this morning and satisfied that his submarine was ready, Mikhailov gave the order.

“Station the underway watch.”