Submarine warfare in the Baltic. Under the waves of the Baltic Baltic submariners attack

In Russia, there is no monument to the “knights of the deep sea” of the times of the First World War

During the First World War, warring humanity mastered another element in which it hoped to win decisive victories - underwater space, hydrospace. In submarines, the age-old dream of military people about an invisibility cap was realized. Which of the commanders did not dream of inflicting formidable blows, remaining unnoticed by the enemy, and therefore invulnerable? So at the dawn of the 20th century, an almost invisible weapon appeared in the history of wars - submarines.

I am standing on an old concrete pier in the Finnish port of Gange. It was from here that Russian submarines went to sea on their very first military campaigns. Then, in 1914, as, indeed, now Gange, known to us thanks to the historic victory of the Russian fleet over the Swedes, as Gangut, was a cozy resort town. And few people knew that the 1st division of submarines was based here, which included quite modern and formidable at that time submarines Bars, Vepr and Gepard. On the other side of the Gulf of Finland, in Revel, there was the 2nd division ("Tiger", "Lioness" and "Panther"). Both divisions were part of the Baltic Sea submarine division, whose main task was to cover the sea approaches to the capital of the empire.

Prior to the start of the World War, none of the maritime powers had real experience in the combat use of submarines. And because the tactics of their actions was very primitive.

With the beginning of the war, it was supposed to withdraw submarines to the Gulf of Finland, place them at anchor in a checkerboard pattern and wait for the enemy to approach. The boat enters the battle, near which the enemy ships will pass.

In fact, it was a kind of mobile minefield stuffed with people and torpedoes.

In 1909, a teacher at the Naval Academy, Lieutenant (later a well-known military theorist, Rear Admiral) A.D. Bubnov wrote that boats in a future war would carry out positional service near their shores, "like a kind of mine banks ... Their only advantage, compared with ordinary mine banks, is that it is almost impossible to remove them from a position before the squadron arrives, but on the other hand, the ship has against their weapons - nets, which it does not have against minefields.

This is how the submariners of the 1st division met the beginning of the war: they went to the Gulf of Finland and anchored, waiting for the enemy. But two years ago, in 1912, Russian submarines took part in naval maneuvers in the Baltic and successfully attacked the patrol of cruisers, breaking through the guard of the destroyers. Nevertheless, at that time almost no one seriously thought about attacking a moving target and about actions against merchant ships. It was believed that at best the submarine would succeed in attacking an enemy ship at anchor. This is how the German submarine U-9 sank three British cruisers in the North Sea in a few hours at once: Hog, Abukir and Cressy. Those were anchored in the open sea without guards. And the German submariners, as in a shooting range, alternately torpedoed all three ships. This was a serious claim that from now on a new formidable weapon appeared in the struggle on the seas - a submarine. Its insidious power was also experienced by Russian sailors in the very first month of the war. On the way to Revel, the cruiser Pallada was torpedoed. The artillery cellars detonated on it and the ship sank in a matter of minutes. No one was left alive. They began to look at submarines as full-fledged warships, and very soon the tactics of waiting for the enemy were changed to active actions: raids on the shores of the enemy and hunting for his ships. So, already on September 7, the Shark submarine under the command of Lieutenant Nikolai Gudim set out on a campaign to Daguerort in search of the enemy. The commander was in no hurry to return to the base and, at his own peril and risk, moved to the coast of Sweden, from where transports with ore for Germany regularly went. The next day, the signalman discovered the twin-tube German cruiser Amazon. It was guarded by two destroyers. Gudim fired a volley from a distance of 7 cables, but the Germans managed to notice the trace of the torpedo and left for the island of Gotska Sande. This is how the first attack of Russian submariners in the Baltic took place.

And if in 1914 Russian submariners managed to complete only 18 campaigns before the winter freeze-up, then in the next year - almost five times more. Unfortunately, it was not possible to open a truly combat account. None of the 1915 torpedo attacks were successful. The fact is that Russian torpedoes could not withstand diving to great depths. However, the submariners captured two enemy ships with cargo.

“The first half of the campaign of 1915,” according to a participant in the events, a combat naval officer, fleet historian A.V. Tomashevich, - is characterized by very active actions of Russian submarines against the German fleet, which had the goal of blocking the exits of the Russian fleet to the Baltic Sea. Russian submarines captured several enemy ships and by their presence had a great influence on the course of operations of the German fleet, thereby disrupting a number of its operations. As a result, the enemy could not deploy the intended plan of operations in the northern part of the Baltic Sea.

It was the year when the commanders of Russian submarines in combat conditions worked out from scratch the tactics of underwater attacks, maneuvering, and reconnaissance. After all, there were no combat documents, except for the positional service instructions. The experience was given by mortal risk and desperate courage.

The watch officer of the Volk submarine, Lieutenant V. Poderny, wrote: “We, officers, seem to be sitting quietly in the wardroom and only occasionally exchanging phrases. Each of us has a thought in the same direction: we want to think everything over, take into account and take into account all kinds of accidents. Everyone offers some combination. We speak in hints, one or two phrases, but the idea becomes immediately clear to everyone. We look at the map, and the commander, collecting all the opinions, does not leave a single one unanalyzed, not subjected to comprehensive criticism. What a wonderful and perfect school! The theory is immediately tested by practice, and what practice! The human mind is refined to the limit. You have to remember that your own and many other lives are at stake. Misfortune can come from the slightest mistake of a person. Needless to say about the mechanisms: their malfunction or simply bad action threatens with serious consequences. And that is why they are subjected to constant inspections and checks.

On April 30, 1915, the Dragon submarine under the command of Lieutenant N. Ilyinsky discovered a German cruiser guarding destroyers. The boat was also discovered and subjected to artillery fire and pursuit. Skillfully evading, the commander of the "Dragon" at that time directed the boat not to take off, but to approach the course, in order to determine the elements of movement of the main target and attack it, for which he managed to raise the periscope several times. He avoided the danger of ramming and at the same time fired a torpedo at the cruiser. An explosion was clearly heard in the boat. After some time, having surfaced again at the periscope depth and finding another cruiser, Ilyinsky attacked it as well. The torpedo passed close to the ship, which forced him to leave the area.

A little later - in May - the news of a daring attack on the German squadron by the Okun submarine spread around the Baltic Fleet. She was commanded by one of the first submarine officers, Lieutenant Vasily Merkushev. While at sea, he met 10 German battleships and cruisers, guarded by destroyers.

It was almost a suicide attack. But Merkushev broke through the guard line and lay down on a combat course, choosing one of the largest ships.

But a periscope was noticed from the battleship and immediately, having given full speed, the heavy ship went to ram. The distance was too short, and the death of the Perch seemed inevitable. Everything was decided by seconds.

"Boatswain, dive 40 feet deep!" As soon as Merkushev had time to give this command, the boat began to fall on board - the battleship crushed it under him. Only the composure of the commander and the excellent training of the crew made it possible to wriggle out from under the bottom of the dreadnought and go to the depths with a bent periscope. But even in this position, the Okun managed to launch two torpedoes, and the explosion of one of them was clearly audible. The German flagship, not wanting to risk large ships, considered it good to return to base. The squadron's exit was thwarted! "Perch" came to Revel with a bent "verb" periscope. But he came. For this dashing attack, Lieutenant Merkushev was awarded the St. George weapon.

So, already in 1915, the headquarters of the commander of the naval forces of the Baltic Sea admitted: "Now, when discussing future operations, the properties of submarines have to be the basis of everything."

But let's go back to Gange... Once upon a time, knights lived in local castles... Centuries later, at the height of the First World War, knights came here again - knights of the deep sea. Most of the officers of this detachment of Russian submariners in the family coats of arms of the nobility actually had knightly helmets, such as, for example, the senior officer of the Volk submarine midshipman Alexander Bakhtin: “The shield is crowned ... with a helmet with a noble Crown on it on the surface, which is visible black eagle's wing…" - says the ancient "Armorial". Or in the family coat of arms of the wife of midshipman Bakhtin - Olga Bukreeva - the shield is crowned with the same crown with an upraised arm, clad in armor. In the hand - a black sword ...

However, even if they did not have these noble regalia (for which they later had to bitterly pay), they were still knights - in their spirit, in their mental disposition ...

When the submarine "Gepard" was leaving for her last trip, the officers presented the wife of their comrade with a basket of white chrysanthemums. “From them you will know that we are alive and everything is fine with us. After all, they will not wither until our return ... ". Chrysanthemums stood for a long time. They did not wither even when all the deadlines for the return of the Gepard had expired. They stood by Olga Petrovna even when, in the order for the division of submarines, the crew of the Gepard was declared dead ... But fate kept Bakhtin, preparing him for glorious deeds.

It was he and his comrades in the Volk submarine who managed to open a combat account of the Baltic submariners, and then, in 1919, a combat account of the Soviet submariners (Bakhtin, a red military commander, then commanded the Panther).

By the beginning of 1916, new torpedoes of improved quality and new submarines entered service with the Russian submarine fleet. On May 15, the Volk submarine set out from Reval to the shores of the "Swedish Manchester" - the port of Norrköping. This was the first trip for the crew, which had never been in combat, and therefore the commander of the ship, Senior Lieutenant Ivan Messer, was extremely strict and cautious.

In the area of ​​​​combat patrols, the Wolf tracked down the German transport Hera, loaded with Swedish ore, and sank it, observing all the norms of the then international law - that is, they surfaced, gave the crew the opportunity to leave the ship on boats, and only then torpedoed.

A little later, Russian submariners stopped another German steamer, the Kalga. Despite the fact that the periscope of an enemy submarine was seen nearby, Senior Lieutenant Messer tried to stop the ship with warning shots from a cannon. But "Kalga", as soon as the shooting stopped, added speed. The torpedo, aptly fired by the "Wolf", hit, as the sailors say, "under the pipe." The ship began to sink, but the crew managed to board the boats. "Wolf" hurried to intercept the third German steamer - "Bianca". Her captain did not tempt fate, quickly fulfilled all the requirements. As soon as the last boat rolled off the side, a torpedo raised a column of water and smoke. The horn jammed on the ship, and the Bianca went under water with a long howl ... The Swedes who approached picked up people from the boats. The Germans delayed the exit of their ships from Swedish ports for a long time. Senior Lieutenant Ivan Messer successfully solved the problem of interrupting enemy communications. So in one campaign, the "Wolf" produced a record tonnage for a year and a half of the war. Where can you find a girl with a pleasant appearance, a good figure, attractive genitals and the absence of complexes - of course, on the Internet, they are aimed at minimizing any negative situations, which fully justifies the presence of only real photos in the profiles.

Here is how Lieutenant Vladimir Poderny describes only one episode of this raid:

“... Having taken the bundles of maps, the German captain rolled off the side and went to us. When he was far enough away from the steamer, we, aiming, fired a mine.

A sharp white stripe immediately appeared on the surface of the water, all growing towards the steamer. The Germans also noticed her and stood up in their boats, watching the last minutes of their ship.

This moment of the approach of the mine to its target is especially exciting and even, I would say, gives some kind of acute pleasure.

Something powerful, almost conscious, expensive and artistic in its execution, rushes at the enemy with terrible speed. Now “it” is already close, but the steamer is still sailing unharmed and serviceable - it is still alive, quite healthy. A precisely fitted car spins in it, steam goes through the pipes, the holds are neatly loaded with cargo, human genius is visible in everything, adapting and subordinating these forces to overcome the elements. But suddenly a terrible explosion of another, even more powerful weapon, invented for the struggle between people - and it's all over! Everything is mixed up: steel sheets are torn, iron beams burst under pressure, a huge hole is formed, and water, reclaiming its rights, finishes off the wounded and absorbs in its abyss the proud work of human hands.

There was an explosion - a column of water and black smoke rose, fragments of various objects flew into the air, and the steamer, immediately sitting astern, began its agony.

I saw how at that moment the German captain, who was on the boat, turned away and covered himself with his hand. Maybe he was afraid that some fragments would fall into him? But no, the boat was far from the ship; we sailors understand what it means to see the sinking of your ship.

Seven minutes after the explosion of the boilers, the steamer, rearing up with its nose up, quickly sank to the bottom. The sea, closing over the place of death, still rippled affably, shining in the sun.

Of course, not always underwater trips were bloodless. Lieutenant Alexander Zernin kept detailed diaries of his campaigns. In the summer of 1917, he wrote in his notebook:

“I woke up from the fact that a teapot, placed by someone on the chart table, poured on my head. Following him, books, a protractor, compasses, rulers and other navigational accessories fell down. I immediately jumped up and, in order to stay on my feet, had to grab hold of the cupboard, from which the loosely fixed dishes were already pouring. The boat with a strong slope on the bow went into the depths. Both doors to the control room swung open on their own, and I saw a cascade of water pouring from the exit hatch through the conning tower into the control room. Behind me, at the opposite door, two captive captains, their mouths open and their faces as pale as a sheet, looked ahead.

— Electric motors full speed ahead! the commander shouted nervously. - Isn't it ready? Hurry!

Several soaked through people jumped down. The entrance cover, overwhelmed, was closed with difficulty when it was already under water. Miners fussed around the diesel engines and, barely maintaining balance, disengaged the clutch that connected the diesel engine with electric motors during charging. At that moment, a strange buzzing swept along the entire boat and, passing over the submerged bow, passed from one side to the other.

- Electric motors full speed ahead! .. - the commander shouted excitedly, and the electricians, who had long clutched the knife switches in their hands, closed them at full speed.

The mine engineer Biryukov, who was standing at the transfer clutch, made her last turn at that moment and wanted to remove the lever from the nest. The disengaged clutch was already spinning on the shaft, and the lever hit Biryukov in the stomach with a swing. He fell before he could shout, but still managed to pull out the ill-fated lever, which, if left in place, could disrupt all movement. The boat, having taken the course, finally leveled off at a depth, and a minute later a German destroyer slipped over our head, seething with propellers.

“Dive to 100 feet,” the commander ordered the horizontal helmsmen. Steering motors howled, and the needle of the depth gauge began to fall down under the eagerly directed eyes of the people crowded in the central post. Having crossed the assigned limit, she slowly returned to the indicated figure and the boat went to a hundred feet deep.

Lying unconscious, Biryukov was transferred to his bunk and examined. By signs that left no doubt, the paramedic determined a hemorrhage in the abdomen, threatening imminent death. Some time later, Biryukov groaned and regained consciousness. The unfortunate man asked for water all the time and really wanted milk. He was bred in water canned, trying to create the illusion of the present. He had the strength to walk several times, hunched over and stumbling, arm in arm with the paramedic into the latrine, but soon fell ill and, groaning for another day, died the next night.

Having wrapped the Andreevsky flag, they left him lying on his bunk, tightening it with a sheet. The commander did not want to take advantage of the right to lower him into the sea, but decided to take him to Revel in order to bury him with all the honors befitting a hero.

Submarine officers of the Black Sea Fleet accomplished many heroic deeds. The submarine "Seal" under the command of Senior Lieutenant Mikhail Kititsyn torpedoed the Austro-Hungarian steamer "Dubrovnik" on April 1, 1916. At the end of May, the same boat, cruising off the Bulgarian coast, destroyed four enemy sailing schooners, and delivered one schooner in tow to Sevastopol. For successful reconnaissance off the coast of Varna and for the totality of all the victories, Kititsyn, the first of the Russian submariners, was awarded the Order of St. George. And then he also received the St. George weapon for the battle with the armed enemy steamer "Rodosto", which he managed to capture and bring to Sevastopol as a trophy.

Mikhail Alexandrovich Kititsyn is recognized as one of the most successful submariners of the Russian Imperial Fleet: he won 36 victories, sinking ships with a total gross tonnage of 8973 gross register tons.

After the revolution, the submarine hero chose the White Fleet. He died in 1960 in Florida.

Following the "Seal" and the submarine "Walrus" captured and brought to the port of Sevastopol the Turkish brig "Belguzar", heading to Constantinople. In the fall, the Narwhal submarine attacked a Turkish military ship with a displacement of about 4,000 tons and forced it to run ashore. Several enemy ships were on the combat account of the Kashalot and Nerpa submarines.

On the evening of April 27, 1917, the Walrus left Sevastopol on its last military campaign. Its commander, Senior Lieutenant A. Gadon, conceived a daring deed: to secretly enter the Bosphorus and sink the German-Turkish battleship Goeben there. However, he failed to do so. The boat was spotted from the Akchakoja coastal battery and fired from guns. Turkish gunners reported seeing a cloud of smoke over the wheelhouse of a Russian submarine. But the exact circumstances of the death of the "Walrus" are still not known. According to one version, the boat was blown up by a minefield in front of the entrance to the Bosphorus. The sea threw out the corpses of several submariners. The Germans buried them on the territory of the dacha of the Russian embassy in Buyuk-Der. (The author of these lines happened to open in the 90s a modest monument to the submariners of the "Walrus" in Istanbul, just opposite the place where the "Goeben" stood in 1917).

According to other sources, the crew of the "Walrus" took the fight with hydroplanes and was sunk by their bombs.

The creation and combat operations in 1915-1917 of the world's first underwater minelayer "Crab", built according to the project of M. Naletov, a truly original ship of the Russian Navy, can be called an epoch-making event in the history of world underwater shipbuilding without exaggeration.

"Crab" under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Leo Fenshaw successfully carried out important combat missions. It is known that in August 1914, German ships arrived in Constantinople - the battlecruiser Goeben and the light cruiser Breslau, which were soon transferred to Turkey and became part of its fleet. When the newly built and still incapacitated Russian battleship Empress Maria was preparing to move from Nikolaev to Sevastopol, it was necessary to cover the battleship from the attack of Goeben and Breslau. It was then that the idea arose to block the exit of these ships to the Black Sea by secretly setting up a minefield near the Bosporus. This task was brilliantly solved by "Crab". Together with the minefields of the ships of the Black Sea Fleet previously laid there, a serious barrier was created to break through the most dangerous German-Turkish ships. At the very first attempt to exit the Bosphorus, the Breslau was blown up by mines and almost died. It happened on July 5, 1915. Since then, neither Breslau nor Goeben have tried to break into the Black Sea.

"Crab" repeatedly performed even more complex minelaying, which was highly appreciated by the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral A. Kolchak: the fulfillment by the commander of the "Crab" of the task assigned to him, despite a number of previous failures, is an exceptionally outstanding feat.

Submarines of the Russian fleet, if we turn to the absolute figures of sunk ships and tonnage, acted less efficiently than the German ones. But their tasks were quite different. And the closed maritime theaters, to which the Baltic and Black Sea fleets were doomed, could not be compared with the ocean ones. Nevertheless, when in 1917 the opportunity presented itself to enter the Atlantic Ocean, Russian submariners did not blunder there either.

So, the small - coastal action - the submarine "St. George", built by Russian order in Italy - made an ocean voyage. It was the first in the history of the domestic submarine fleet. And what a swim!

A dozen sailors led by senior lieutenant Ivan Riznich passed on a fragile submarine from Spezia to Arkhangelsk - across the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, the Arctic Ocean, crossing the combat areas of German and British submarines, risking forever disappearing under water and from enemy torpedoes, and from the stray wave of the autumn storm. Ivan Ivanovich Riznich safely brought "St. George" to Arkhangelsk. September 1917 was already in the yard. Despite the brilliant assessment of this campaign by the Minister of Marine, despite government awards, the fate of the hero turned out to be tragic. In January 1920, Captain 2nd Rank Riznich was shot in the Cheka camp near Kholmogory, along with hundreds of other Russian officers.

"Let's turn the imperialist war into a civil war!" This Bolshevik call, unfortunately, has come true.

The bloody Russian strife for a long time deprived Russia of the submarine fleet. Almost all the submarines of the Black Sea Fleet, together with the legendary "Seal", went to Tunisia, where they ended their journey in Bizerte. For many years, the Baltic "leopards" also rusted in the harbors of Kronstadt and Petrograd. Most of their commanders ended up behind a cordon or behind barbed wire.

Bitter as it may seem, but today in Russia there is not a single monument to the heroes of the submariners of the “forgotten war”: neither Bakhtin, nor Kititsyn, nor Gudyma, nor Riznich, nor Ilyinsky, nor Merkushev, nor Fenshaw, nor Monastyrev ... Only in a foreign land, and even then on tombstones you can read the names of some of them ...

Some of the pioneer commanders remained forever in the hulls of their submarines on the seabed. From time to time, divers find their steel sarcophagi, mapping the exact coordinates of the mass underwater graves. So relatively recently, the Walrus, Bars, and Gepard were discovered ... Nevertheless, the Russian fleet remembers the names of their ships. Today, nuclear submarines "Shark", "St. George", "Gepard", "Bars", "Wolf" carry the same blue-cross St. Andrew's flags, under which Russian submariners bravely fought in the First World War ...

Petersburg-Gange-Tallinn-Sevastopol

Especially for "Century"

When I flew back to Leningrad in November 1942, the city was still in a difficult situation. It was still difficult to get food. Around haggard, pale from malnutrition faces. Leningraders survived so many air raids and artillery shelling that they no longer reacted to the appearance of individual aircraft and almost unabated shell explosions. The city and in the blockade lived an active working life. People now understood that the immediate danger had passed. The city was supplied - albeit to a limited extent - with everything necessary. Listening to reports about the counter-offensive of our troops near Stalingrad, the Leningraders perked up even more. Everyone was waiting for it to start here soon ...

We discussed in detail the results of the past summer campaign with the commander of the fleet and employees of the headquarters and, in general terms, outlined a plan of action for 1943. Particular attention was paid to the submariners, and we listened to reports from the commanders of almost all submarines.

Despite the enormous difficulties, the submariners of the Baltic in 1942 successfully operated on the enemy's sea lanes. They sank in just one summer 56 enemy transports with a displacement of about 150 thousand tons. It was becoming more and more difficult for the Nazis to use sea transportation to supply their troops. Even at the beginning of the war, the German naval command complained to the Fuhrer that naval convoys were being heavily attacked by Soviet naval aviation and ships, suffering heavy losses and the fleet was unable to provide communications and thereby provide the necessary assistance to the ground forces.

To sink even one large loaded transport or tanker is a great thing. Foreign authors (Brodi, Preuss, Kresno and others) have calculated: on 2 transports of 6,000 tons and one tanker of 3,000 tons, it is possible to transport so much equipment in one flight that, after distribution at the front, 3,000 sorties would be required to destroy it. bombers. And to sink these ships at sea, just a few torpedoes are enough ... These calculations may not be entirely accurate, but they are impressive. Launching an enemy ship with weapons, tanks and other property to the bottom is really a significant help to our ground forces.

We took great care of the submarines and tried to use them with maximum efficiency. I remember when a particular threat loomed over Leningrad and even the question of the possible destruction of ships arose, some of the naval comrades suggested using the Sound, the strait connecting the Baltic and North Seas, to transfer part of the submarines to the Northern Fleet. The commander of the detachment that will lead the boats, Hero of the Soviet Union N.P., has already been appointed. Egypt. I reported to the Headquarters about the impending operation (although in my heart I did not quite agree with this plan). I.V. Stalin gloomily listened to me and answered rather sharply, in the sense that this is not what we should think about, we need to defend Leningrad, and for this we need submarines, and if we defend the city, then there will be enough for submariners in the Baltic.

And indeed, in the summer of 1942, the Baltic submariners did a good job, sent dozens of enemy ships to the bottom, paralyzing the enemy’s maritime transport.

VF Tributs in the book "Baltic submariners attack" rightly gives the highest rating to many submarine commanders. He knew them better than I. I personally knew the brigade commander A.M. Stetsenko and who later became the commander of the brigade S.V. Verkhovsky, chief of staff L.A. Kurnikov, head of the political department M.E. Kabanov. They did a lot for the successful operation of the submarines.

I well remember the division commanders V.A. Poleshchuk, G.A. Goldberg, A.E. Orla, D.A. Sidorenko. In the postwar period, many of them commanded large formations, and A.E. For almost ten years Orel headed the twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet.

It was difficult for submariners in the Baltic, especially in the Gulf of Finland. The depths here are small. Therefore, each mine becomes especially dangerous, since the boat cannot go into depth to avoid or at least reduce the likelihood of encountering it. What an advantage in this regard was the Black Sea and northerners! There it was worth moving away from the coast - and the great depths removed the mine danger. In addition, at the shallow depths of the Gulf of Finland, it was easier for the enemy to detect a boat and bombard it both from aircraft and from anti-submarine ships, which were hunting around the clock. Not without reason, according to submariners, there were cases when a boat, forcing a minefield, literally crawled along the ground.

“Until we reach sufficient depths,” one of the commanders told me, “the bottom of the boat is cleaned to a shine.

And yet, the submariners overcame all obstacles, went out to sea and sank Nazi ships.

Our submarines inspired such fear in the enemy that he spared no effort and means to fight them. And the Nazis managed to do a lot. Geography also helped. The Germans blocked the Gulf of Finland at its narrowest point, in the Nargen-Porkkala-Udd area, with powerful anti-submarine weapons. Later we learned that the enemy had set up a double row of anti-submarine nets and dense minefields here. To protect this area, he concentrated 14 patrol ships, more than 50 minesweepers and over 40 various boats. Unfortunately, we found out about it too late. And life punished us for not attaching due importance to the enemy anti-submarine defense.

Of the submarines that tried to break into the expanses of the Baltic in the spring of 1943, some died. The fate of the Shch-408 submarine under the command of Lieutenant Commander P.S. Kuzmin. Her crew persistently searched for a passage in the nets. When the supply of electricity and oxygen was exhausted, the boat was forced to surface. Here she was attacked by boats. The submariners took an unequal battle, they fired until the damaged boat disappeared under water. The entire crew perished, preferring death to the disgrace of captivity.

I was reminded of heated discussions at the Naval Academy in 1929-1930 between supporters of the "mosquito" and the submarine fleet. The first argued that the "mosquito" (boat) fleet is the cheapest and at the same time reliable in the fight on the sea. Submarines, they say, the enemy can block in bases, and boats are not afraid of any obstacles. Supporters of the submarine fleet stated that, on the contrary, you can do little with boats in the open sea, but submarines will go everywhere and solve any problem. The war revealed to both of them the fallacy of their judgments. Just as it is impossible to solve all problems at sea with one "mosquito" fleet, so it is impossible to rely only on submarines. Let's face it: in the spring and summer of 1943, the enemy managed to tie down the actions of our submarines. And we would have had a hard time if we didn’t have a “balanced” fleet, diverse in ship classes. Those combat missions that submarines could not solve at that time were solved by ships of other classes and naval aviation.

Modern nuclear submarines, armed with missiles, equipped with advanced automation and electronics, have been able to stay submerged for a long time, cover practically unlimited distances under water, and at such a speed that it is difficult to keep up with them even for high-speed surface ships. This further enhanced the role of submarines in operations at sea, but by no means eliminated the need for the development of other branches of the navy - surface ships, naval aviation, coastal artillery and missile forces.

So, when in the summer of 1943 the incredible difficulty of bringing submarines into the open sea became obvious, we did not abandon the fight on the enemy's Baltic communications. This task was shifted to mine-torpedo aircraft. Previously approved plans for the use of naval aviation only in a limited area of ​​the Gulf of Finland had to be revised and oriented as many aircraft as possible to operations in the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia. In connection with these new tasks, the People's Commissariat of the Navy turned to the General Staff with a request to limit the use of naval aviation to help the Leningrad Front. Chief of the General Staff A.M. Vasilevsky agreed with this. Since that time, the Baltic aviation assigned no more than 15-20 percent of the total number of sorties to the land direction. The command of the Baltic Fleet was given the opportunity to intensify aviation operations at sea.

The task was difficult and difficult. It is now that our aircraft, with their supersonic speeds, are able to cover huge distances in a short time. And forty years ago, the flight of a twin-engine bomber from Leningrad to the southern part of the Baltic Sea took 7 or even 10 hours. Yes, the return trip was the same. Such a flight in itself required the utmost exertion of moral and physical strength from the aviators. But they had to not only cover this space, but also find enemy ships in the sea, overcome the curtain of fire and unmistakably strike. And to hit a sea moving target is not an easy task. It requires both courage and special skill. Experience has shown that bombing from level flight and from high altitudes is ineffective. For operations at sea, dive aircraft and torpedo bombers began to be used.

The areas of operation of naval aviation were the Baltic Sea, the Gulf of Riga and the Gulf of Bothnia. Our planes were sent here for "free hunting". The length of each route averaged 2.5 thousand kilometers. And almost all this distance had to fly over the territory or waters of the enemy. In accordance with the situation, with the available intelligence data, the pilots either climbed to considerable heights, or went at low level, ready at any moment to either evade enemy aircraft or accept a forced battle. In 1943, 95 such flights were made. As a result, 19 enemy ships with a tonnage of about 39 thousand tons were sunk and 6 damaged. Pilots V.A. distinguished themselves in these flights. Balsbin, Yu.E. Bunimovich, G.D. Vasiliev and many others.

I have repeatedly met with the commanders of aviation formations I.I. Borzov, N.V. Chelnokov, Ya.Z. Slepenkov, A.A. Mironenko, L.A. Mazurenko, M.A. Kurochkin. They brought up wonderful pilots who skillfully beat the enemy both at sea and on land.

On the high seas, mine-torpedo aircraft of the Baltic Fleet operated most of all. She inspired such fear in the enemy that soon, even in the most remote expanses of the sea, he stopped releasing his ships from bases alone. The Nazis here also switched to a system of convoys, although this slowed down the pace of delivery of goods and required the involvement of large security forces. It became even more difficult for our pilots, but they continued to fly out on "free hunting".

In the near areas of the sea - in the Gulf of Finland - mainly dive bombers and attack aircraft operated. Naval pilots achieved impressive success here too: they sank 23 and damaged more than 30 fascist ships.

The large surface fleet of the Baltic was still constrained in action. But minesweepers and various kinds of boats were loaded to the limit with ordinary work: minesweeping, reconnaissance and patrols. A brigade of torpedo boats under the command of Captain 2nd Rank E.V. acted boldly. Guskov. At first, it consisted of 23 boats, during the year another 37 were received. Gumanenko, S.A. Osipov, Lieutenant Commander I.S. Ivanova, A.G. Sverdlov. In the extremely difficult conditions of the naval blockade, they inflicted significant losses on the enemy. According to the Germans themselves - J. Meister, F. Ruge, G. Steinweg and others - from the beginning of the war until the end of 1943, 400 fascist ships were sunk or seriously damaged by all means of our naval weapons (including mines). .

The Baltic Fleet, having survived the blockade of Leningrad, was full of strength, its people were eager for new battles.

In the hall of the Revolution of the school named after M.V. Frunze, submariners and pilots of the Baltic Fleet were awarded. I congratulated my comrades with pleasure and wished them new combat successes. Front commander L.A., who was sitting next to me at the presidium table. Govorov quietly hinted to me that soon the sailors would have the opportunity to distinguish themselves again. I guessed what the general was hinting at: a joint offensive of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts was being prepared with the aim of releasing Leningrad.

Later, already in Smolny, L.A. Govorov specified that he had high hopes for the fleet, and above all for its long-range artillery. Naturally, I replied that all the resources of the fleet that could be used to help the ground forces would be placed at the disposal of the front.

Returning from Leningrad at the end of November, I reported to the Headquarters on the state of the fleet and its actions. He touched upon the events connected with the repulsion of the enemy landing on Sukho Island in Lake Ladoga. Stalin showed an increased interest in this issue, asked to expand the map, and began to ask about the ships of the flotilla and railway artillery in the area. I tried to answer in all detail, understanding what caused this interest: it was about the junction of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts, where troops were already being transported.

Stalin this time did not disclose the details of the upcoming operation. The General Staff acquainted us with them a little later, when preparations for the offensive were in full swing.

From Leningrad, we are with Aviation General S.F. Zhavoronkov flew out under the escort of fighters.

"Let's not risk it," Zhavoronkov decided.

Fighters escorted us to Ladoga, then the plane followed without them. They made their way to Moscow through thick clouds. The pilots again flashed their skill. Admiral L.M., who met me All the way to the people's commissariat, Galler wondered how we managed to land when it was already getting dark, and the clouds hung almost above the ground itself.

The news from the fronts was encouraging. Our troops finished off the encircled army of Paulus. The Nazis began to retreat from the Caucasus.

The headquarters of the Supreme High Command decided to push the enemy along the entire front and thereby deprive him of the opportunity to maneuver forces. The initiative has already completely passed to the Red Army. The time has come for liberation from the enemy of our sacred land.

The Leningrad and Volkhov fronts were given the task of releasing the heroic city on the Neva. The first powerful blow to eliminate the so-called Shlisselburg-Sinyavino ledge of the enemy was to be delivered by the 67th Army of the Leningrad Front with the assistance of artillery and aviation of the Baltic Fleet.

Before starting the offensive, it was necessary to reinforce the 67th Army. The sailors of Ladoga were tasked with ensuring prompt transportation. They began on December 13 and continued until early January, when the lake was already covered with ice. During this short period, more than 38 thousand people and 1678 tons of various cargo were delivered from Kabona to Osinovets. Naturally, the main burden fell primarily on the Ladoga flotilla (commanded by Captain 1st Rank V.S. Cherokov).

Navigation in the 1942 campaign was the most stressful for the Ladoga people.

The ice track in the winter of 1942 played a huge, perhaps decisive, role in saving besieged Leningrad, but water transportation, which began in the spring, was no less important. Naval sailors and rivermen of Ladoga were preparing for them all winter. In the most difficult conditions, they repaired 130 combat and transport ships.

According to Vice Admiral V.S. Cherokov, because of the cold and protracted spring, navigation opened later than usual - on May 22 and closed late - on January 13, when the ice track was already operating in parallel.

Water transportation along Ladoga was directly related to the breaking of the blockade of Leningrad, they acquired an operational character. During the summer and autumn, the ships of the flotilla transferred a huge amount of cargo. The troops of the front and the fleet received more than 300,000 reinforcements. In addition, about 780,000 tons of food and ammunition, 300,000 tons of industrial equipment, 271 locomotives and tenders, and more than 1,600 loaded wagons were transported through Ladoga. This required a great effort from the Ladoga people.

The detachment transports, commanded by captains of the 2nd rank M. Kotelnikov and N. Dudnikov, made a total of 535 flights. It is worth noting especially the detachment of tenders under the command of F. Yurkovsky. These small boats made 13,117 voyages in 1942 and carried 247,000 tons of cargo.

Divisions of gunboats, commanded by Captain 1st Rank N. Ozarovsky and Captain 3rd Rank V. Sirotinsky, provided the necessary operational regime on the lake. And when the enemy, in order to disrupt our transportation, tried to capture the operationally important Sukho Island and land troops there, the Ladoga flotilla dealt a crushing blow. The enemy landing was defeated, our sailors captured several fascist ships.

The ice and water routes across Ladoga, complementing each other, helped Leningrad withstand the blockade and contributed to the breakthrough of the enemy ring.

The road of life was also a front line. There were continuous battles on the ice, on the water, in the air over the lake. The enemy threw considerable forces to cut the only path connecting the heroic city with the country, but could not do it.

When the question arose of destroying enemy defenses, the command of the front and navy again made full use of long-range naval artillery concentrated on ships and coastal batteries. Distances to enemy positions were relatively short. Therefore, the fleet could aim guns with a caliber from 305 to 100 millimeters at the enemy.

In the days of breaking the blockade of Leningrad, naval artillery fired 29,101 shells at the enemy. Marshal L.A. highly appreciated her actions. Govorov. He praised the naval officers for skillful fire control, the ability to quickly hit targets.

Again, our coastal artillery said its weighty word. Our concerns about its creation and development in the pre-war years were justified. Sometimes it arose before the fleets. In the early thirties, when new fleets were created in the Far East and North, the first echelons were sent there not by ships - they did not exist yet - but by coastal batteries: stationary, railway, tower, open.

Even then, coastal defense has become a full-fledged branch of the naval forces. A strong cadre of specialists has grown up here. The Department of Coastal Defense was headed by I.S. Mushnov, who had vast experience in the construction and combat use of coastal batteries. It was a caring owner. Even before the war, he accumulated so much ammunition in his warehouses that they were enough for a relatively long time, and large-caliber shells - until the end of the war. These reserves were very useful to us in the defense of the blockaded cities - Odessa, Sevastopol and Leningrad.

During the war, armaments were dealt with by my deputy Admiral L.M. Haller. Sometimes one had to wonder how he managed to provide all the naval artillery with the necessary ammunition. After all, a huge amount of shells was required.

The most active part in the battles to break the blockade was taken by the gunners of the destroyers "Svirepy" and "Watchdog", the gunboats "Oka" and "Zeya", the 301st separate artillery battalion, and the naval training ground. Special skill in fire control was shown by Major V.M. Granin, Major D.I. Vidyaev, captain A.K. Drobyazko. I would also like to mention the commanders of the ships, captains of the 2nd rank L.E. Roditsva (destroyer "Svirepy") and V.R. Novak (the destroyer Sentry), who made excellent use of their artillery. On January 16, 1943, the sailors, one might say, rescued our troops when the enemy unexpectedly launched a powerful counterattack against units of the 67th Army. The combined arms command noted that the enemy onslaught was repulsed mainly by powerful naval artillery fire. An avalanche of shells hit the enemy. About 2 thousand soldiers and officers then lost the Nazis.

The Marines deserve high praise. Most of them were part of the assault groups of the 67th Army. It was they who had to cross the Neva first. As part of the same army, the 55th rifle brigade under the command of Colonel F. Burmistrov led the offensive. It was formed mainly from the Red Navy units and ships of the fleet. With a decisive throw, the brigade crossed the Neva and captured the first and second enemy trenches. The commander of the regiment of heavy tanks assigned to the brigade wrote in a report to the army headquarters: “I have been fighting for a long time, I have seen a lot, but I meet such fighters for the first time. Under heavy mortar and machine-gun fire, the sailors went on the attack three times and still knocked out the enemy.

The 73rd Marine Rifle Brigade under the command of Colonel I. Burakovsky operated as part of the Volkhov Front.

The Baltic pilots fought selflessly, commanded by General M.I. Samokhin. Aviators had to fly in very difficult conditions - in a snowstorm, poor visibility. As always, the pilots of the guards mine and torpedo regiment of Major I.I. Borzov and the 73rd Bomber Aviation Regiment, Colonel M.A. Kurochkin.

... And then the day came when the two fronts joined, the soldiers happily hugged each other. This meant that the blockade had been broken.

Nazi Germany actively used aerial bombs to inflict maximum damage on the Baltic Fleet, but having failed to destroy the large ships of the fleet with the help of aerial bombs, the Nazis decided to achieve this goal with other weapons.

Mining of rivers and canals

When the ice began to break and move on the Neva and clear water appeared in the bay, enemy planes alone and in groups, under the cover of night darkness, began to drop hundreds of different mines into the river and the Sea Canal. They also mined the Kronstadt Bay. The greatest danger was bottom mines, with new secret fuses - acoustic, magnetic, inertial and others.

The Baltics prepared in advance to fight this insidious weapon and had some kind of “antidote” in their possession. Basically, trawl barges filled with empty barrels and various scrap metal were used. They moved in tow behind a demagnetized boat. Such a barge acquired a significant magnetic field, which caused the mine to explode. Then vibrators of various power were installed on these barges, which created an acoustic field that acted on the fuse.

The ingenuity of Russian soldiers

On their own initiative, sailors, foremen and officers invented other ways to deal with the insidious mines of the enemy. Folk wisdom and wisdom helped to find a way out.

The command of the fleet always paid attention to the proposals of its subordinates, strongly supported their initiative, gave the go-ahead to bold, often risky undertakings.

So it was with the introduction of a rifle grenade launcher developed by naval officers N. G. Panov and F. D. Zhilyaev in the late autumn of 1941 in Kronstadt.

The grenade launcher was tested at the forefront at the Pulkovo Heights. He showed himself well - he threw grenades up to 100 meters, right into the trenches of the Nazis. During the entire blockade, the grenade launchers of naval engineers were also used by the troops of the front.

So it was with the searchlights that were installed in the Oranienbaum area. For a long time they did not find a way to disguise the Sea Canal from Hitler's observations, along which the ships went from Leningrad to Kronstadt. Smoke screens in strong winds did little to help.

Once someone suggested turning on powerful spotlights with diffusers that form a wall of light from Oranienbaum towards Strelna.

The commander of the fleet, Tributs, liked this proposal. They tried and made sure - the Nazis could not see what was happening behind this wall of light.

When the problem of combating new types of enemy mines became acute, enthusiasts were again found. Once such a “thing” fell on a building along the 17th line of Vasilyevsky Island. The parachute caught on the chimney, a whole mine lay on the roof.

Naval officers Fyodor Tepin, Mikhail Mironov and Alexander Goncharenko undertook to disassemble and find out her secret. They managed to gut the mine completely. An hour later, together with their trophies (instruments and devices), they were in the office of the fleet commander.

Tributs meticulously questioned the daredevils, examined the trophies, and here in the office he awarded all three with orders of the Red Star. And he kissed Fyodor Tepin three times when he found out that he still served in the Baltic as a mine non-commissioned officer, was awarded four St. George's crosses, and then participated in the civil and Soviet-Finnish wars. The miners made it possible for Soviet engineers and scientists to find effective ways to deal with enemy innovations.

Submarines of the Baltic Fleet

The spring of 1942 came. As planned, the KBF submarines went to sea in three echelons. Each campaign was accompanied by great difficulties and dangers. Not all boats later returned to Kronstadt. But they caused an excellent commotion in the camp of the enemy. The Nazi fleet was missing many transports and warships.

From May until late autumn, the Nazis rushed around the Baltic in search of Soviet submarines. But transports loaded with Swedish ore, fuel tankers, ships with military equipment and ammunition destined for Army Group North sank one after another.

36 submarines made trips to the Baltic. They sank about 60 Nazi transport ships with a total displacement of 132,000 tons and several warships.

The strikes of the Baltic submariners caused a noticeable political resonance in the world. Newspapers were full of reports that the assurances of the Nazi leaders that the Baltic Fleet "had been destroyed long ago" turned out to be a bluff. Sweden and other countries began to show caution, a chill appeared in their relations with Germany.

The alarmed Nazis decided to block the Gulf of Finland with steel anti-submarine nets. Having spent huge amounts of money and material resources, the Nazis realized their plan in 1943.

From the island of Naissaar, which lies at the entrance to the Gulf of Tallinn, and to the Finnish peninsula of Porkkala Udd, they set up two lines of nets woven from steel ropes throughout the entire depth of the Gulf of Finland. The nets were filled with mines and signaling devices, they were guarded by special groups of ships and aircraft.

Baltic sailors tried to break through these barriers, but to no avail. Boat trips in 1943 were temporarily suspended. But it was not in the nature of Tributs and the Baltic sailors to sit with folded arms.

The pilots of the Baltic already had the skills of flying torpedo bombers into the open sea to search for and destroy enemy transports. The military council of the fleet took measures to disseminate experience. In groups and alone, with a torpedo suspended under the fuselage, IL-4s left to search for the enemy in the central Baltic.

Pilots called such flights “free hunting”. The Nazis in 1943 lost another 46 transports and warships from the strikes of the Baltics.

Do not give the enemy a minute to swim freely in the Baltic! - Vladimir Filippovich Tributs followed this motto.

And at the headquarters of the Baltic Fleet they were already preparing a strike against the enemy from the sea. Three echelons of submarines - 33 submarines - went hunting to the shores of the Baltic and Germany.

The Germans felt completely safe in the Baltic. Their ships, illuminated by all the lights, calmly cruised between ports. The German command believed that the Soviet fleet was tightly locked in besieged Leningrad and would not be able to break out. Hitler's artillery, located in the captured Peterhof, essentially controlled the Sea Canal. Therefore, even the transition from Leningrad to Kronstadt was difficult and dangerous. Behind Kronstadt, minefields began - not hundreds, but tens of thousands of mines. Finnish and German boats and anti-submarine ships lurk in the skerries off the coast of Finland. But all this enemy power was powerless against the determination and courage of our sailors.

SAFE FAIRWAY

To break into the Baltic, it was not necessary to remove all minefields. With the beginning of spring, our minesweepers cleared the fairway, removing about four hundred mines. From that moment on, our aviation began to control the waters of the Gulf of Finland in order to prevent the installation of new mines. The Baltic Fleet had one more serious advantage. During the winter battles in the Baltic, two islands, Lavensaari and Seskar, were saved, where bases for submarines were established. These islands were a hundred miles from besieged Leningrad, it was incredibly difficult to keep in touch with them, to provide them with everything they needed. But behind them the open sea began.

The transfer of submarines went like this. They left Leningrad on the surface: the Sea Canal is shallow, you can’t hide here under water. But in order not to allow the enemy to conduct aimed fire, escort ships put up smoke protection. Further from Kronstadt they headed for Lavensaari. On the island, submarine commanders received the latest information about the situation and began to carry out a combat mission.

LEGENDARY L-3

The campaign of the L-3 submarine became a legend. In 1942, this submarine, under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Pyotr Grishchenko, made a raid not just behind enemy lines, but to the coast of Germany, reaching Szczecin.

The writer Alexander Zonin went on a campaign together with the submariners. Thanks to the book he wrote, we know many details of this heroic voyage.

The purpose of the campaign was reconnaissance. Went past the coast of Sweden. There are narrow straits, a busy area, in which Swedish and Danish coasters, as well as fishing boats, darted. Therefore, in order not to reveal themselves, they refused to sail on the surface.

Alas, near Visby, a Swedish port city on the island of Gotland, a boat was spotted from a fishing boat. And the fishermen of a neutral country betrayed our sailors by broadcasting a message about their presence. The hunt began for the boat. The Germans sent a destroyer to search. L-3 commander Grishchenko ordered to lay low. Zonin explained the behavior of the captain in his book: “In another area of ​​the sea, Grishchenko would have decided to attack the destroyer. But close to the position, such a strike would make the enemy’s anti-submarine defense more vigilant ... And therefore it was necessary to stoically endure the annoying movement of the Nazi destroyer on the heels ... hot food."

The tactics paid off. The German ship, believing that the Swedes had too much imagination, fell behind. And our submarine, having freed itself from persecution, entered the expanses of the Pomeranian Bay - into the very lair of the enemy, on the meridian of Berlin. But the submariners again had to be patient. Zonin noted: "Everything around called for revenge - and the fact that all the lights were on, and that the steamers went without blackout, and that new enemy submarines and surface ships were engaged in combat training with impunity."

For three days the submariners conducted reconnaissance. Grishchenko all this time only kept repeating: “I would like to hunt here!” Finally the task was completed. With a sigh of relief, the team began their war. Leaving the bay, the submarine laid mines. It is reliably known that two German transports and the schooner Flederveen were blown up and killed on them.

SENSE OF DEPTH

In those days, the L-3 made a lot of noise in the Baltic. Grishchenko did not want to hide, the boat surfaced before each attack. There was a little bravado in this, but also a sober calculation. In the surface position, it was possible to aim more accurately. The spectacular appearance of our submarine from the depths of the sea came as a complete surprise to the enemy. L-3 sank four German ships.

Having recovered, the Nazis began a new hunt for the L-3. But, as the commander of the Baltic Fleet, Admiral Vladimir Tributs, later emphasized in his memoirs, each of our experienced submariners had a special sense of depth. Grishchenko also had this feeling. Upon his return to Kronstadt, having reported on his seven victories, the L-3 commander, usually silent and tongue-tied, still could not resist and explained how he got away from the chase: “The enemy had a strong anti-submarine defense - boats, mines, nets, but depths allowed to maneuver. The ship loves water ... "

On the Great Kronstadt roadstead, despite the rain, L-3 staged a solemn meeting. But what struck the Kronstadters in blockade most of all? Appearance of submariners. All were shaved, uniforms ironed. They went ashore not exhausted and tired, but real dandies.

It turns out that, again, thanks to the testimony of the writer Zonin, Pyotr Grishchenko did not want to imitate some of his comrades-in-arms, who considered beards and thick hair to be chic. The crew of the boat made a decision: we will not return to Kronstadt until each sailor puts himself in order. The boat even lingered in the roadstead.

MAXIMUM DAMAGE TO THE ENEMY

According to official data, in 1942, Soviet submariners destroyed about sixty enemy ships in the Baltic with a total tonnage of up to 150,000 tons. Is it a lot or a little? A transport with a displacement of 10,000 tons could carry two hundred tanks, or two thousand soldiers with weapons and ammunition, or a six-month supply of food for an infantry division. So the order of the command to inflict maximum damage on the enemy was carried out. But we also suffered losses. In 1942 we lost 12 of our submarines.

The threat of our submarine attacks alarmed the German command so much that it decided to close the exit from the Gulf of Finland - to its entire width and depth - with several rows of steel nets. The Nazis went to enormous expense. At some stage, they achieved their goal. But in 1943, the blockade of Leningrad was broken, and the city began to prepare for the complete removal of the enemy siege. And by 1945, our submariners again became full masters in the Baltic.