Among the many hundreds, and maybe thousands of different names that people throughout the history of navigation have given their ships and vessels, there are those few that have become a legend forever. The ink with which these names are inscribed on the tablets of world history has already become beyond the control of the most severe judge - time. Among such legends, the name of the Nautilus submarine occupies a special place: the fictional one, revived under the pen of the great novelist Jules Verne, and the real one - the world's first nuclear submarine, which not only revolutionized submarine building and military affairs, but was also the first to conquer the North pole. Even under water. The next anniversary of the nuclear submarine "Nautilus" was celebrated on January 21 - 60 years of launching.
Nuclear submarine "Nautilus" on sea trials. US Navy photo
Move ships
December 1945. Only four years have passed since the day when the armada of Japanese torpedo bombers and bombers, sowing death and destruction, fell on the Pearl Harbor naval base, but during this very short time by the standards of world history, truly great events took place. An entire era has changed.
The world map has been mercilessly redrawn. Another revolution in military affairs took place, giving life to completely new, hitherto unseen models of weapons and military equipment, capable of wiping entire cities off the face of the earth in a matter of seconds, incinerating tens of thousands of people in the blink of an eye. Atomic energy, bursting out like a genie from a magic lamp, became a real "joker" in the political deck of cards - the owner of nuclear weapons could dictate his will to those who did not have one.
However, on December 14, 1945, the influential New York Times published an article entitled "Atomic Energy - a find for the Navy," which summarized the contents of a report by Ross Gunn, senior expert physicist at the US Navy Research Laboratory, at a meeting special committee of the US Senate. The article did not become a sensation - after all, nothing was said about a new type of super-destructive weapon. On the contrary, Ross Gunn argued: "The main job that nuclear energy has to do in the world is to turn wheels and move ships."
And although the idea of creating a nuclear power plant was by no means new, it was openly expressed in the United States for the first time. American naval historians are even more interested in this seemingly inconspicuous article due to the fact that Hyman Rikover, the future "father of the American atomic fleet", has probably read it. At least, American naval historians are absolutely sure of this, although the admiral himself, as far as is known, never mentioned this.
As a result, as we know, it was Rikover who played the role of a locomotive in promoting the idea of equipping submarines with a nuclear power plant (AEU), which literally "upside down" turned the methods and methods of conducting submarine warfare. The term "unlimited submarine warfare" acquired a completely different meaning - a nuclear submarine did not need to constantly float up to charge storage batteries, and nuclear reactors did not need those tons of fuel that were consumed by voracious diesel engines. In addition, the powerful nuclear power plant made it possible to increase the size and displacement of the submarine, which made it possible to significantly increase the ammunition of torpedoes, etc.
Captain Elton Thomson (center), commanding officer of the first crew of the Ohio SSBN, gives explanations to Admiral Hyman Rickover, then Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy for the Navy's Reactor Program, and Vice President George W. Bush (right) during an introductory tour of the missile carrier after the ceremony entering it into the combat composition of the fleet. November 11, 1981 US Navy photo
"Russian roots" of the atomic fleet of America
It is noteworthy that, as in the case of "Russian roots" in the history of American helicopter engineering - in the person of the Russian immigrant Igor Sikorsky, such roots also exist in the history of the world and nuclear submarine fleet. The fact is that the future "father of the nuclear submarine fleet" Admiral H. Rikover was born in 1900 in the town of Makow Mazowiecki, which today belongs to the Polish Mazovian Voivodeship, but before the October Revolution was located on the territory of the Russian Empire. The future admiral was taken to America only in 1906, in 1922 he graduated from the Naval Academy, majoring in mechanical engineer, and then - Columbia University.
Apparently, the first years of childhood, spent in a very difficult environment of the then Russian Poland, laid the foundations of that unyielding character and iron will that were inherent in Rickover throughout his career in the navy. Careers in which events have taken place so dramatic that the other person might break down and break.
Take, for example, the appointment of Rickover in late 1947 as Assistant Chief of the Shipbuilding Administration, Vice Admiral Earl W. Mills, for nuclear power. On the one hand, it seems like a promotion, but on the other hand, the future "father of the nuclear submarine fleet" received … as a study. the former ladies' room, which was then still in the stage of "transformation"! Eyewitnesses claim that when he saw his "workplace", on the floor of which there were still spots - the places where the toilets were located before, and parts of the drain pipes remained in the corners, Hyman Rikover was in a state close to shock.
However, all these were "little things", most importantly, Rikover was not "thrown out" from the nuclear program, and he could continue to work, and in February 1949 he was appointed director of the Nuclear Reactor Design Division at the Atomic Energy Commission, while retaining his post at the Office of Shipbuilding. Rikover's dream came true - he became the sovereign "owner" of the program and now, as a representative of one agency, he could send a request to another organization (UK Navy) and, as a representative of the latter, give an answer to his own request "in the right way."
A reproduction of a commemorative photo from the laying ceremony by President Truman of the first American nuclear submarine "Nautilus". The autograph left by Truman in the photograph is clearly visible. US Navy photo
Operation "Save Rickover"
Or another example - the almost successful attempt, as they say, of individuals to "squeeze" Rickover into retirement, not letting him into the admiral's cohort. The fact is that according to the provisions of the Naval Personnel Act of 1916 and the Officer Personnel Act of 1947, the assignment of the rank of Rear Admiral in the Navy The United States took place with the participation of a council of nine officers - they considered the candidates for the new rank from among the captain and then voted. In the event that the captain was presented for the rank of Rear Admiral for two years in a row, but did not receive it, he had to retire in a year at the most. Moreover, by the 1950s, the Americans introduced three officers of the naval engineering corps to the commission without fail - they had to approve the "nomination" of each engineer specialty, and only if at least two of them voted for the candidate, the rest of the commission members approved this decision.
Rikover planned to get a rear admiral in July 1951, or a year later at the very least. He was one hundred percent sure that he would receive the admiral's title "father of the nuclear fleet" - after all, he headed one of the most important programs of naval development. However, Rickover's 32 captains were not among the "promoted" in 1951 to rear admirals. Why - we probably won't know: the voting of the commission took place behind closed doors and no records were made, so even American naval historians cannot with a high degree of probability explain certain decisions of the commission and its officers.
On July 7, 1952, Rickover received a call and was told that he was being summoned by the Minister of the Navy Dan E. Kimball, but the reason for the call was not given, and Rickover decided to take with him, just in case, a simplified model of a nuclear-powered ship with a cut out section, in the place where the nuclear power plant is located. for a visual demonstration. Entering the reception room, Rickover was confronted by numerous reporters and photographers, in front of whom Kimball announced that, on behalf of the President of the United States, he was presenting Captain Rickover with the second gold star of the Legion of Honor (the first such order was received by Rickover at the end of World War II), for grandiose efforts and invaluable contributions to the Mark I prototype programs and the first nuclear submarine, which was recently laid on the slipway - ahead of the original schedule. It was then that the famous photograph was taken in which Rikover and Kimball were bent over a model of a nuclear-powered ship.
And the next day, a "personnel" commission gathered at the meeting - to select new rear admirals of the US Navy. On July 19, the results of the meeting were announced to everyone - among the 30 newly minted rear admirals of the American fleet, including four naval engineers, the name of Rikover was not listed. It was impossible to inflict a bigger blow to the "father of the atomic fleet" then - since he completed his studies at the Naval Academy in 1922, no later than September 1953 he had to leave the service.
The decision shocked many leaders directly involved in the implementation of the program for the development of the ship's nuclear power plant and the design of a nuclear submarine. I had to carry out a special operation "Save Rickover".
On August 4, 1952, issue 60 of Time published an article signed by Ray Dick, who severely criticized the US Navy for short-sightedness in personnel policy and hindering the promotion of technical specialists. Moreover, he emphasized that it "will cost the navy the officer who has created the most important new weapon since the end of the Second World War." The information reached Republican Carl T. Durham, Senator from North Carolina who chaired the Joint Atomic Energy Committee, who was rather "surprised" that a naval commission cut short the career of an officer who had done so much for the US Navy's nuclear shipbuilding program. and to whom the committee has expressed its gratitude on many occasions. On December 16, 1952, he sent a letter to the Minister of the Navy, in which he asked - why the Navy was going to fire the officer who will own all the laurels on the day the first American nuclear submarine is launched? “The Navy probably has an officer who can replace him and continue to work with the same efficiency,” Senator Durham asked in the letter. "If so, then I don't know him."
Over the next months, a real battle unfolded over the Admiral's stars of Rickover, including even congressional hearings. On January 22, 1953, Republican Sydney Yates spoke to the House of Representatives on the issue, and then set out his views in the pages of Congressional Records, emphasizing that in the age of the atom, Navy officials simply do not have the right to decide alone the fate of an excellent specialist, and even more so - the head of an important program for the future of the American fleet, and of all the US Armed Forces. In conclusion, Yates noted: the fact that the command of the US Navy one day awards Rickover, and the next day he is actually dismissed by the commission, requires careful consideration at a meeting of the Senate Armed Forces Committee. A little later, on February 12, Yates spoke at a parliamentary meeting, stating: the procurement and supply programs of the Navy are being implemented very badly, and the personnel policy is even worse, due to which “the admirals are dismissing a naval officer who, in fact, is the best nuclear power specialist in the Navy. And then he completely proposed to reform the system of conferring higher officer ranks.
On February 13, 1953, the Washington Post published an article "Refusal to Promote Rickover Assailed", the Washington Times - Herald published an article "Yates again accuses the Navy of the Yates Blasts Navy Again on Capt. Rickover, in the New York Times - the article "Navy Rules Scored in High Promotions, the Boston Herald - Forced Retirement of Expert on Atomic Subs Held 'Shocking', and finally The Daily World of Tulsa, Oklahoma, published an article titled "Naval Scientist's Retirement Brings Charges of 'Waste'" Fired. All of them quoted Yeats as saying that the process of selecting candidates for inclusion in the admiral's cohort was too high secrecy: "Only one God and nine admirals know why Rikover did not receive a promotion." In general, having "crushed" Rickover, the command of the Navy "itself erected itself on the scaffold."
As a result, Rickover's supporters managed to first achieve a delay in his dismissal for a year, and then - the holding of the next "admiral" commission. The commission, which met in July 1953, consisted of six shipboard and staff officers and three engineers. The latter had to choose three officers-engineers for promotion to rear admiral, and one of them, as prescribed by the instructions of the US Secretary of the Navy, was to be a specialist in atomic energy. It seems incredible, but the naval engineers did not support their colleague and did not choose Rickover! And then the other six officers had to vote unanimously for the candidacy of Captain Hyman Rickover in order to avoid another submission of the Rickover case to congressional hearings.
On July 24, 1953, the US Department of the Navy announced the next promotion of officers to admiral positions - the first in the list of captains to be awarded the rear admiral rank was the name of Hyman George Rickover. Meanwhile, in Groton, work was already in full swing on the world's first submarine, which was supposed to move the energy of the atom conquered by man.
Submarine Hyman Rikover (SSN-709). US Navy photo
Decision is made
The official decision to build the first nuclear submarine was made by the chief of naval operations, in our terminology the commander, of the US Navy, Admiral of the Fleet Chester W. Nimitz made on December 5, 1947, 10 days before his retirement, and the Minister of the Navy, John Sullivan, on December 8, approved him, having appointed the Shipbuilding Directorate responsible both for work in this direction, and for cooperation with the Atomic Energy Commission. It remained to choose a shipyard for the construction of the lead nuclear-powered ship.
On December 6, 1949, Hyman Rikover held negotiations with the general manager of the private shipyard "Electric Boat" O. Pomeroi Robinson, who gladly agreed to take on a contract for the construction of a nuclear-powered ship - during the war the enterprise launched a submarine every two weeks, but now she was almost out of work. A month later, on January 12, 1950, Rickover, along with James Dunford and Louis Roddis, who were still part of the Rickover group during their work in Oak Ridge, and the general manager of the Bettis Laboratory, Charles H. Weaver, arrived at the Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth to explore the possibility of involving her in the nuclear submarine program. The head of the shipyard is Captain Ralph E. McShane was ready to join the project, but one of the factory officers present at the meeting spoke out against - they say they are too busy with contracts for the modernization of diesel-electric submarines. McShane agreed with his subordinate and refused Rickover's offer, who immediately - leaning across the table - picked up the phone and called Robinson, asking if Electric Boat would take up the contract for the second submarine. Robinson agreed without hesitation.
The very same "Nautilus" was included in the shipbuilding program of the US Navy for 1952 - at number four out of 26 ships listed in it. Following congressional approval, President Truman approved it on August 8, 1950. A month earlier, on July 1, 1950, the Atomic Energy Commission had awarded Westinghouse a contract to design and build a prototype pressurized water reactor, designated Submarine Thermal Reactor Mark I or STR Mark I). Subsequently, after the approval of the unified classification of nuclear reactors and nuclear power plants of the US Navy, this reactor received the designation S1W, where "S" is "submarine", that is, nuclear reactor for a submarine, "1" is the first generation core developed by this contractor, and "W "Is the designation of the very contractor, that is, Westinghouse.
The construction of the reactor was to be carried out on the territory of the State Center for Testing Nuclear Reactors, owned by the said commission, located in the state of Idaho between the cities of Arco and Idaho Falls (today it is the Idaho National (Engineering) Laboratory), and its important feature was to become the maximum approximation to the mass-dimensional characteristics of the nuclear power plant of the submarine. In fact, in Idaho, a ground-based model of such a power plant was built as part of the reactor itself and a steam-generating plant, and the steam turbine plant was presented in a simplified way - the power of the steam obtained with the help of nuclear energy drove the propeller shaft into rotation, which rested on a special nozzle - there was no propeller, and at the end of the shaft a water brake was installed. Moreover, this entire structure was built inside a stand simulating the reactor compartment of the Nautilus nuclear submarine - a metal cylinder with a diameter of about 9 meters, surrounded by a pool of water (through the latter, excess heat was also removed from the reactor installation). Rikover initially wanted to entrust the Portsmouth Naval Yard with making the "hull", but, not agreeing with its leadership on a number of issues, he transferred the order to the "Electric Boat".
Captain Hyman Rikover and Navy Secretary Dan Kimball are exploring a conceptual model of a nuclear powered submarine. US Navy photo
Truman lays down a nuclear-powered ship
In August 1951, the command of the US Navy officially announced that it was ready to sign a contract with the industry for the construction of the first nuclear submarine. Having learned about the admirals' decision to build the first nuclear submarine, a young correspondent for the magazines "Time" and "Life" Clay Blair decided to prepare material on this topic. During the war, the 25-year-old journalist served as a sailor on a submarine and took part in two military campaigns. Blair was fascinated by the idea of a nuclear powered submarine, but he was even more impressed by the personality of the program manager, Rickover.
Blair's material appeared in magazines on September 3, 1951. "Life" illustrated its article with a photograph of Rickover in a civilian suit, a bird's eye view of the Electric Boat and, most importantly, a drawing depicting the world's first nuclear submarine - naturally, this was an artist's fantasy based on the submarine models. Blair, who "traced" Captain Rickover from Washington Station to the Groton shipyard in his reportage, noted with surprise that Rickover was extremely negative towards the naval officers, who he considered "the father of the nuclear fleet.", in those years they "took a breath after the war ended more than prepared for a new war." Rikover has declared "war on naval indifference," the journalist wrote.
Finally, on August 20, 1951, the US Navy signed a contract with Electric Boat to build a nuclear submarine that was named Nautilus. The actual cost of building the ship at that year's prices was $ 37 million.
On February 9, 1952, Captain Rickover, summoned by President Truman, who was closely monitoring the progress of the fleet's nuclear program, arrived at the White House, where he and the rest of the program leaders were to give a briefing to the president. Rikover brought with him to the White House a model of a nuclear submarine and a small piece of zirconium. "The man who ordered the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki now had to see for himself that nuclear power can also power machines," wrote Francis Duncan in his book Rikover: The Battle for Supremacy.
In general, Truman was pleased with the work of Rickover and other specialists, and Rickover himself decided that Truman should definitely speak at the ceremony of laying the Nautilus. Having no direct access to the president, Rickover asked Truman to persuade chairman of the Senate Joint Atomic Energy Committee, Brin McMahon, which he successfully did. For such an event, a significant day for Americans was chosen - Flag Day - June 14, 1952. However, the event almost turned into another trouble for Rickover.
The fact is that a few days before the ceremony of laying the Nautilus on the slipway, Robert Panoff and Ray Dick arrived at the Electric Boat to resolve the last issues. And then they discovered with indescribable surprise that the "father of the nuclear fleet" had not been included in the list of persons invited to the ceremony of laying the foundation for the first nuclear-powered ship in America!
Panoff and Dick approached the US Navy officers assigned to the shipyard, but they refused to deal with the problem. Then they went to the management of the shipyard itself - the shipbuilders advised "to contact the command of the Navy," but Panoff and Dick insisted that since the receiving party is the shipyard, then its management should make a decision. Finally, on June 8, Rickover received a telegram signed by O. Pomeroy Robinson, General Manager of the Electric Boat, inviting the Captain and his wife to the Nautilus laying ceremony and a subsequent reception on the occasion. Moreover, the invitation was sent to the head of the nuclear reactors department for the fleet of the "civilian" Atomic Energy Commission, and not to the US Navy officer who heads the nuclear power plant department of the US Navy's Shipbuilding Directorate.
And then came June 14, 1952. By noon, more than 10 thousand people had gathered at the southern shipyard of the Electric Boat company. The high-ranking executives of the host company, as well as representatives from other firms involved in the program, stood in front of the crowd on a high platform: Westinghouse, Bettis Laboratory and General Electric. They were accompanied by the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, Gordon E. Dean, Secretary of the Navy Dan Kimball and other representatives of the Navy command, as well as Captain Hyman Rikover, albeit in civilian fashion. Nearby, among the crowd, were his wife Ruth and son Robert.
In his welcoming speech, Kimball noted that the nuclear power plant was "the greatest breakthrough in ship propulsion since the Navy moved from sailing to steam powered ships." In his opinion, many worthy people have contributed to the creation of such a miracle of engineering, but if only one person needs to be identified, then, as Kimball said, "the laurels and honors can only belong to Captain Hyman Rickover."
Truman, in turn, expressed the hope that the day will never come when the atomic bomb will be used again, and the Nautilus will never have to engage in a real battle. Then, at his signal, the crane operator picked up a section of the hull and put it on the slipway, the president went up to it and wrote his initials “HST” in chalk, after which a worker came up and “burned” them into the metal.
"I declare this keel well and correctly laid," Truman proclaimed after that, and a little later, during a gala reception at the officers' club, he said: "You can call today's event an epoch-making, this is an important milestone on the historical path of the study of the atom and the use of it energy for peaceful purposes”. And just a few years ago, the same man without hesitation gave the order to subject the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to atomic bombing …
Mark I nuclear reactor prototype (top view). US Navy photo
Virtual transatlantic crossing
In late March 1953, Rickover arrives at the Mark I nuclear reactor site, where the first self-sustaining chain reaction is being prepared. It was possible to carry out the reaction at the Mark I reactor at 23 hours 17 minutes on March 30, 1953. It was not about generating a large amount of energy - it was only necessary to confirm the efficiency of the nuclear reactor, to bring it to the level of criticality. However, only bringing the reactor to its rated (operating) power could prove the possibility of using the Mark I nuclear reactor as part of a nuclear power plant capable of "moving ships".
Radiation safety worried the specialists involved in the program so much that initially it was planned to control the process of bringing the Mark I reactor to nominal power from a distance of almost 2 km, but Rickover crushed the proposal as too complicated for practical implementation. Just as he refused to carry out control from a post outside the steel cylindrical "sarcophagus" simulating the submarine compartment, firmly insisting on doing this only in the immediate vicinity of the nuclear reactor. However, for greater safety, a control system was installed that made it possible to shut down the reactor in literally a matter of seconds.
On May 31, 1953, Rickover arrived at the site with the Mark I nuclear reactor to oversee the process of bringing the reactor to rated power, and with him Thomas E. Murray, a professional engineer appointed to the Atomic Energy Commission in 1950. President Truman, and now in charge. Rickover informed his Mark I representative, Commander Edwin E. Kintner, that it was Thomas Murray who had the privilege of opening the valve and letting the first working volume of nuclear-generated steam into the turbine of the ship's nuclear power plant prototype. Commander Kintner was opposed, "for security reasons," but Rickover was adamant.
Rickover, Murray, Kintner and several other specialists entered the "submarine hull" and, from the control room of the Mark I reactor plant equipped there, began the important planned process. After several attempts, the reactor was brought to rated power, then Murray turned the valve and the working steam went to the turbine. When the installation reached several thousand hp, Rikover and Murray left the "hull", went down to the lower level and went to the place where the shaft line painted in red and white stripes was mounted, which rested against a special device with a water brake … Rickover and Murray looked at the rapidly rotating shaft line and, pleased with the first "breakdown of atomic energy", left the hall.
However, it should be noted here that the Mark I did not become the first nuclear reactor from which working energy was removed. These laurels belong to the experimental nuclear breeder reactor (breeder) designed by Walter H. Zinn (Walter H. Zinn), from which on December 20, 1951 at the experimental site and was removed 410 kW - the first energy obtained from a nuclear reaction. However, the Mark I was the first reactor that managed to obtain a truly working volume of energy, which made it possible to propel such a large object as a nuclear submarine with a total displacement of about 3,500 tons.
The next step was to be an experiment to bring the reactor to full power and maintain it in this state for a sufficiently long period of time. On June 25, 1953, Rikover returned to the Mark I and gave permission for a 48 hour test, enough time to gather the necessary information. And although the specialists managed to remove all the necessary information after 24 hours of operation of the installation, Rikover ordered to continue working - he needed a full check. In addition, he decided to calculate how much energy the nuclear power plant must generate in order to "transport" an atomic submarine across the Atlantic Ocean. Especially for this, he took a map of the ocean and plotted on it the course of an imaginary nuclear-powered ship - from Canadian Nova Scotia to the coast of Ireland. With this card, the "father of the atomic fleet" intended to put on the shoulder blades "these naval scoundrels" from Washington. Any skeptics and opponents of the nuclear submarine fleet and Rickover himself could not say anything against such a visual demonstration.
According to Rickover's calculations, after 96 hours of operation, the Mark I had already brought the nuclear submarine to Fasnet, located on the southwest coast of Ireland. Moreover, the ship made about 2000 miles of passage at an average speed of just over 20 knots, without stopping or surfacing. However, during this virtual transatlantic passage, several times there were malfunctions and breakdowns: after 60 hours of operation, the autonomous turbine generators of the installation were practically out of order - the graphite dust formed during their wear settled on the windings and reduced the insulation resistance, the cables of the reactor control system were damaged - the specialists lost control above the parameters of the core (AZ) of the nuclear reactor, one of the circulation pumps of the primary circuit began to create an increased noise level at high frequencies, and several tubes of the main condenser began to leak - as a result, the pressure in the condenser began to increase. In addition, during the "transition" the power of the installation uncontrollably decreased - twice to the level of 50% and once to 30%, but, it is true, the reactor installation still did not stop. Therefore, when 96 hours after the "start" Rickover finally gave the command to stop the experiment, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Nautilus submarine commander Commander Eugene Wilkinson (right) and Lieutenant Dean. L. Aksin on the navigating bridge of the nuclear-powered ship (March 1955). After Commander Yu. P. Wilkinson was appointed the first commander of the world's first nuclear submarine "Nautilus", friends began to call him "Captain Nemo". US Navy photo
Crew selection
Rikover began the selection of officers and sailors for the first crew of the Nautilus even before the YR Mark I was brought to operating capacity. At the same time, the "father of the atomic fleet" took on the heavy burden of developing technical documentation and operating instructions for all new systems that received registration on a nuclear submarine - those regulatory documents that were developed by specialists of the Navy, laboratories and contractor companies turned out to be so inept and impractical that it was simply impossible to learn anything from them.
All the sailors selected by Rikover for the first crew of the Nautilus underwent a one-year training and education course at the Bettis Laboratory, acquiring additional knowledge in mathematics, physics and the operation of nuclear reactors and nuclear power plants. Then they relocated to Arco, Idaho, where they underwent training on the prototype shipyard YAR Mark I - under the supervision of specialists from Westinghouse, Electric Boat, etc. It is here, in Arco, located about 130 km from Idaho -Fols Westinghouse production site, the first Naval Nuclear Power School was formed. Officially, the reason for such a remoteness of the site with the prototype boat nuclear reactor from the city was the need to maintain an appropriate secrecy regime and reduce the negative impact of radiation on the city's population in the event of an accident at the reactor. The sailors among themselves, as some members of the first crew of the Nautilus later recalled, were so simply convinced that the only reason for this was the desire of the command to minimize the number of casualties in the explosion of the reactor, in which case only the sailors on the site and their instructors would have died.
The officers and sailors who were trained at Arco took the most direct part in bringing the Mark I to operating and full capacity, and several were even transferred to the Electric Boat shipyard, where they took part in the installation of a serial Mark-type nuclear-powered submarine intended for the lead nuclear submarine. II, later designated S2W. It had a power of about 10 MW and was structurally similar to the Mark I nuclear reactor.
It is interesting that for a long time it was not possible to find a candidate for the position of commander of the first crew of the first nuclear submarine in the world. To the officer - a candidate for such a position - the requirements were so high that the search for the right person could not but drag out. However, Rickover, as he later repeatedly stated in interviews, already knew from the very beginning who he would prefer to see as commander of the Nautilus, his choice fell on Commander Eugene P. Wilkinson, an excellent officer and highly educated person., "Free from ossified traditions and prejudices."
Wilkinson was born in California in 1918, graduated from the University of Southern California twenty years later - received a bachelor's degree in physics, but after a year with a little work as a teacher of chemistry and mathematics, he enters the US Navy Reserve in 1940, receiving the rank of ensign (this is the first in US Navy officer rank, which theoretically can be equated with the Russian rank of "junior lieutenant"). Initially, he served on a heavy cruiser, and a year later he switched to a submarine and completed eight military campaigns, rose to the rank of senior assistant ship commander and was promoted to lieutenant-commander (corresponds to the Russian military rank "captain 3rd rank").
Wilkinson was in command of the Tang-class submarine USS Wahoo (SS-565) when he received a letter from Rickover on March 25, 1953, inviting him to take up the vacant post of commander of the Nautilus nuclear submarine. And Rikover asked him to hurry up with the answer, and not "be lazy as usual." However, Wilkinson's candidacy caused strong opposition in the US Navy's submarine forces: firstly, because he was not a graduate of the Naval Academy, the "forge" of the American navy elite; secondly, he did not command a submarine during the war; third, "Rickover himself chose him." The latter was probably the most powerful argument against Wilkinson's candidacy for such a truly historically significant position. In addition, for many years the command of the submarine forces of the Atlantic Fleet had the privilege of appointing officers to new submarines - and then Rikover came and everything went to pieces …
In August 1953, everything again, as it should be in America, spilled out onto the pages of the press. An article in the Washington Times Herald stated that Wilkinson was chosen because he was originally trained as a "scientist" and was a "technical group." However, the author continued, many career naval officers opposed this candidacy, arguing that "a nuclear power plant is just an ordinary steam turbine plant" and that "you cannot command a submarine if you have formed your worldview in the engine room." They believed that the commander of the Nautilus nuclear submarine should be Commander Edward L. Beach (Cmdr. Edward L. Beach), who was called "commander-submarine No. 1". However, Edward Beach later became the commander of the equally unique nuclear submarine "Triton" (USS Triton, SSRN / SSN-586).
The godmother of the Nautilus, First Lady M. Eisenhower, smashes a traditional bottle of champagne on the side of the ship. Behind her is Captain Edward L. Beach, naval adjutant of President Eisenhower, who later became the commander of the nuclear submarine "Triton" and made a round-the-world diving trip on it. US Navy photo
Such a different press …
The theme of the creation of the first nuclear submarine was then so popular in America, downright "hot" that the famous publishing house "Henry Holt and Company" placed an advertisement in the New York Times on December 28, 1953 about the forthcoming January 18 1954 of Clay Blair Jr. The Atomic Submarine and Admiral Rickover. Moreover, the advertisement categorically asserted: “ATTENTION! The Navy won't like this book!"
Blair collected information for his book carefully and everywhere. For example, he visited the Office of Naval Information, which was then headed by the famous submariner Rear Admiral Lewis S. Parks. There, among other things, he spoke several times with Parkes' subordinate, Commander Slade D. Cutter, head of public relations.
Blair sent part of his manuscript to Rickover, who, along with other engineers, studied it thoroughly and generally approved, although he considered it "overly flashy and flamboyant" and "too often pressing on anti-Semitism." the author decided to “cheer up” him and put on the surface such inappropriate behavior to some opponents of the “father of the US nuclear fleet”).
But Rickover allocated an office to Blair and allowed access to unclassified information, adding Luis Roddis, who was previously a member of the already mentioned Rickover group, as an assistant. Interestingly, Rickover showed the manuscript of Blair's book to his wife, Ruth, who read it and was shocked. In her opinion, such a presentation could harm her husband's career and, together with Blair, they "tweaked the style." In early January 1954, the first printed copies of the new book were already "walking" in the offices of the Pentagon, and a few days later the launch of the Nautilus was expected. But then the press intervened again, almost inflicting a "fatal blow" on one of the most important programs in the history of the US Navy.
The culprit of the almost ready-to-play tragedy and the next "black streak" in the life of Hyman Rikover was the Washington Post military columnist John W. Finney, who, after Clay Blair, also decided to "earn extra money" on an attractive topic for the common man. in the world of a nuclear submarine.
Unlike his more enthusiastic and romantic colleague, Finney immediately understood that the best way to demonstrate to the public the unique capabilities of the new ship would be as detailed a comparison of the tactical and technical elements of nuclear and conventional diesel-electric submarines as possible. However, Commander S. D. Cutter literally told him the following: there is no significant difference in the design of a conventional diesel-electric submarine and a promising nuclear-powered submarine, moreover, the large displacement and main dimensions of the Nautilus may become a disadvantage in battle. Having no deep knowledge of shipbuilding and naval tactics, Finney left the commander's office, being firmly convinced that the main task of the Nautilus would be to test the ship's nuclear power plant.
On January 4, 1954, the Washington Post published an article by Finney entitled A Submarine Held Unfit for Battle Now. It argued that, in the opinion of high-ranking naval officers, the US Navy is not yet ready to create a nuclear submarine that can be effectively used in battle. It was argued that the Nautilus is too large in size and displacement, and its torpedo armament is installed on the ship just in case, therefore, as one of the officers told the newspaper columnist, “This is an experimental submarine, and I doubt that the ship will at least once perform torpedo shooting at a real enemy”. Another publication, Washington News, only added fuel to the fire by placing on its pages a note under the simply deadly heading: "Nautilus Already Obsolete". And then it began …
President Eisenhower called Defense Secretary Charles E. Wilson and asked: why should his wife be the godmother of an experimental submarine? Then two more calls followed: from the chairman of the Joint Atomic Energy Committee, Congressman W. Sterling Cole, who remained unhappy with Finney's article, and from Lewis L. Strauss, the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, who proposed call a press conference immediately. The Minister immediately summoned his Deputy Roger M. Kyes, Nuclear Assistant Robert LeBaron, Navy Secretary Robert B. Anderson, and Parks and Cutter. …
The minister believed that holding a press conference was not handy, since secret information could "float out", and the most acceptable option would be to postpone the launching of the Nautilus. At the meeting, it suddenly turned out that some of the quotes in Finney's article are identical to the remarks Cutter, which he set out in his numerous memoranda addressed to Parks. Thus, it became clear - Finney outlined in the article the thoughts that his interlocutors told him. It also turned out that no secrets had emerged - "and thank God," the audience counted.
The conversation then turned to Rickover and directly to the Nautilus. The Minister of Defense asked Le-Baron about the quality of Rickover's work - he replied that everything was going well, although Rickover had amassed many "oppositionists" for himself. When asked by Kais about who Rickover was still working for - the Navy or Westinghouse, Le Baron answered - to the Fleet and the Atomic Energy Commission. Wilson also wondered if the funds for the Nautilus were being spent correctly, and Le-Baron replied that everything was in order. After that, the Minister of Defense, not without some hesitation, nevertheless made a decision: not to postpone the launch of the nuclear-powered submarine and carry it out according to the previously approved work schedule. Rickover and Nautilus were lucky again …
The moment of launching the nuclear submarine "Nautilus". January 21, 1954, Electric Boat. US Navy photo
"I call you" Nautilus"
January 21, 1954, Groton shipyard. Cold, cloudy day of the next working Thursday. Nothing, at first glance, not remarkable. Nothing, except that it was on this day in the annals of the history of naval shipbuilding that the Americans should have made a record in gold - to launch the world's first submarine with a nuclear power plant. That is why, from early morning, workers, sailors and numerous guests came and went to the shipyard in an endless stream. As journalists later calculated, 15 thousand “spectators” arrived at the launch of the Nautilus at the Electric Boat enterprise, an absolute record of that time! And even now, probably, few ships launched into the water can boast of such attention from various segments of the population. Although, of course, most of this crowd of thousands saw little - they were too far away.
Moreover, the nuclear-powered ship standing on the slipway was painted in a peculiar and unusual way for modern submarines: the upper part of the hull to the waterline was olive green, and below the waterline the outer part of the hull was painted black.
The launching of the ship was planned to be carried out during the highest point of high tide, which, according to the sailing directions, in this area should have taken place at about 11 o'clock in the afternoon. As eyewitnesses later recalled, half an hour before the appointed time, as if by magic, a light breeze blew, which managed to disperse the fog. And then metal began to play in the sun, flags unfurled in the wind - as they say, life became more fun. And after a while, the main characters appeared on the stage - the first lady, acting as the godmother of the nuclear-powered ship, and her escort. Eisenhower's wife immediately went up to the podium erected next to the Nautilus, where the company's management and high-ranking representatives of the fleet were already eagerly awaiting her.
A few minutes before the appointed time, Mamie Eisenhower climbed onto a small platform, pushed almost to the very hull of the nuclear-powered ship, from which she was supposed to smash a traditional bottle of champagne on it exactly at 11:00. One of the reporters for the local newspaper New London Evening Day wrote in a note from the scene that day: then he joined a small group of a select few who stood behind the first lady during the launch of the ship. " It was about Hyman Rikover - probably, the struggle for the promotion of atomic energy to the Navy, for the Nautilus and, finally, for himself cost him such nerves that at the climax of the long-term epic of the forces of the "father of the US atomic fleet" emotions are simply not remained.
Finally, the worker who was below with a "light movement of his hand" freed the submarine's multi-ton hull, the first lady smashed the bottle on the hull with a firm hand and clearly said in the silence hanging over the shipyard: "I christen Nautilus", which can be translated as "I call you" Nautilus ". The bottle shattered, and the firstborn of the nuclear submarine shipbuilding slowly moved along the launching slip towards the water, which will become his native element for decades. It is still afloat - as a museum ship.
Nuclear submarine "Nautilus" on trials. During the day, the ship performed 51 dives / ascent. US Navy photo
The Nautilus nuclear submarine, already decommissioned, is being re-equipped as a museum ship. US Navy photo
