The Echo class submarines were nuclear cruise missile submarines of the Soviet Navy

Soviet Navy

The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...

 built during the 1960s. Their Soviet designation was Project 659 class for the first five vessels, and Project 675 for the following twenty-nine. Their NATO reporting name

NATO reporting name

NATO reporting names are classified code names for military equipment of the Eastern Bloc...

s were Echo I and Echo II.

Echo I class

The Soviet Echo I class (Project 659 class) were completed at Komsomolsk

Komsomolsk

Komsomolsk may refer to:Places*Komsomolsk-on-Amur, a city in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia*Komsomolsk, Russia, name of several inhabited localities in Russia*Komsomolsk, Ukraine, a city in Poltava Oblast, UkraineOther...

 in the Soviet far east

Russian Far East

Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...

 in 1960 to 1962. The Echo I class were classed as SSGNs armed with six launchers for the P-5 Pyatyorka (SS-N-3C, "Shaddock-B") cruise missile

Cruise missile

A cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...

. The Echo I class had to operate in a strategic rather than attack role because of the lack of fire control and guidance radars.
As the Soviet SSBN

Ballistic missile submarine

A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles .-Description:Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident...

 force built up, the need for these boats diminished so they were converted to the Project 659T SSN's between 1969 and 1974. The conversion involved the removal of the cruise missiles, the plating over and the streamlining of the hull to reduce underwater noise of the launchers and the modification of the sonar systems to the standard of the SSNs.

All the Echo Is were deployed in the Pacific Fleet although K-122 was damaged by a fire in compartment VII during a patrol mission near Okinawa in August 1980 and had to be towed back to Vladivostok

Vladivostok

The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...

 for emergency dry docking (the submarine was removed from active service in October 1985). The last two boats were deleted in the early 1990s.

Ships

Echo I class — significant dates

#	Shipyard	Laid down	Launched	Commissioned	Fleet	Status
K-45	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	December 20, 1958	May 12, 1960	June 28, 1961	Pacific	Decommissioned 1989 for scrapping
K-59	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	September 30, 1959	September 25, 1960	December 16, 1961	Pacific	Decommissioned 1989 for scrapping
K-66	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	March 26, 1960	July 30, 1961	December 28, 1961	Pacific	Decommissioned 1985 for scrapping
K-122	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	January 21, 1961	September 17, 1961	July 6, 1962	Pacific	Decommissioned 1985 for scrapping
K-151	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	April 21, 1962	September 30, 1962	July 28, 1963	Pacific	Decommissioned 1989 for scrapping

Echo II class

The Echo II class (Project 675 class) were built at Severodvinsk

Severodvinsk

Severodvinsk is a city in the north of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located in the delta of the Northern Dvina River, west of Arkhangelsk. Administratively, it is incorporated as a town of oblast significance . Municipally, it is incorporated as Severodvinsk Urban Okrug. The city was founded as...

 (18 vessels) and Komsomolsk

Komsomolsk

Komsomolsk may refer to:Places*Komsomolsk-on-Amur, a city in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia*Komsomolsk, Russia, name of several inhabited localities in Russia*Komsomolsk, Ukraine, a city in Poltava Oblast, UkraineOther...

 (11 vessels) between 1962 and 1967 as anti-carrier missile

Missile

Though a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...

 submarines. The Echo II class carried eight P-6 (SS-N-3a "Shaddock-A") anti-ship cruise missiles mounted in pairs above the pressure hull.
To fire the missiles, the ship had to surface and the missile was elevated to about 25 to 30 degrees. The Echo II class also had fire control and guidance radar. The Echo II class could fire all eight missiles in 30 minutes, but would have to wait on the surface until the missile mid-course correction and final target selection had been sent unless guidance had been handed over to a third party.

From the mid-1970s, fourteen of the 29 Echo II class were converted during overhauls to carry the P-500 Bazalt (SS-N-12 "Sandbox") anti-ship cruise missile

Cruise missile

A cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...

. The conversions could be distinguished by the fitting bulges to each side of the sail.

The Echo II class were divided evenly between the Pacific and Northern Fleets. The boats were obsolete by the mid-1980s, and were deleted in 1989 and 1994.

Ships

Echo II class — significant dates

#	Shipyard	Laid down	Launched	Commissioned	Fleet	Status
K-166	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	May 30, 1961	September 6, 1962	October 31, 1963	Northern	Decommissioned 1989 for scrapping
K-104	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	January 11, 1962	June 16, 1963	December 15, 1963	Northern	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-170 "K-86", "KS-86"	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	May 16, 1962	August 4, 1963	December 26, 1963	Northern	Decommissioned 1991 for scrapping
K-175	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	March 17, 1962	September 30, 1962	December 30, 1963	Pacific	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-184	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	February 2, 1963	August 25, 1963	March 31, 1964	Pacific	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-172	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	August 8, 1962	December 25, 1963	July 30, 1964	Northern	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-47 "B-47"	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	August 7, 1962	February 10, 1964	August 31, 1964	Northern	Decommissioned 1994-5 for scrapping
K-1	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	January 11, 1963	April 30, 1964	September 30, 1964	Northern	Decommissioned 1992 for scrapping
K-28 "K-428"	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	April 26, 1963	June 30, 1964	December 16, 1964	Northern	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-35	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	January 6, 1964	January 27, 1965	June 30, 1965	Northern	Decommissioned 1993 for scrapping
K-189 "K-144"	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	April 6, 1963	May 9, 1964	July 24, 1965	Pacific	Decommissioned 1991 for scrapping
K-74	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	July 23, 1963	September 30, 1964	July 30, 1965	Northern	Decommissioned 1992 for scrapping
K-22	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	October 14, 1963	November 29, 1964	August 7, 1965	Northern	Decommissioned 1994 for scrapping
K-90 "K-111"	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	February 29, 1964	April 17, 1965	September 25, 1965	Northern	Decommissioned 1989 for scrapping
K-31 "K=431"	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	January 11, 1964	September 8, 1964	September 30, 1965	Pacific	Decommissioned 1987 for scrapping
K-116	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	June 8, 1964	June 19, 1965	October 29, 1965	Pacific	Decommissioned 1985 for scrapping
K-57 "K-557"	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	October 19, 1963	September 26, 1964	October 31, 1965	Pacific	Decommissioned 1992 for scrapping
K-125	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	September 1, 1964	September 11, 1965	December 18, 1965	Northern	Decommissioned 1991 for scrapping
K-48	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	April 11, 1964	June 16, 1965	December 31, 1965	Pacific	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-128 "K-62"	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	October 29, 1964	December 30, 1965	August 25, 1966	Northern	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-56	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	May 30, 1964	August 10, 1965	August 26, 1966	Pacific	Decommissioned 1992 for scrapping
K-131 Soviet submarine K-131 K-131 was a Project 675 of the Soviet Navy's Northern Fleet.On 18 June 1984, while under the command of Captain First Rank E. Selivanov, the boat suffered a catastrophic fire... "B-131"	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	December 31, 1964	June 6, 1966	September 30, 1966	Northern	Decommissioned 1994 for scrapping
K-10	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	October 24, 1964	September 29, 1965	October 15, 1966	Pacific	Decommissioned 1989 for scrapping
K-135	SEVMASH, Severodvinsk	February 27, 1965	July 27, 1967	November 25, 1966	Northern	Decommissioned 1988 for scrapping
K-94 "K-204"	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	March 20, 1965	May 20, 1966	December 27, 1966	Pacific	Decommissioned 1992 for scrapping
K-108	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	July 24, 1965	August 26, 1966	March 31, 1967	Pacific	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-7	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	November 6, 1965	September 25, 1966	September 30, 1967	Pacific	Decommissioned 1990 for scrapping
K-23	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	February 23, 1966	June 18, 1967	December 30, 1967	Pacific	Decommissioned 1992 for scrapping
K-34 "K-134"	Leninskiy Komsomol Shipyard, Komsomolsk-na-Amure	June 18, 1966	September 23, 1967	December 30, 1968	Pacific	Decommissioned 1994 for scrapping

Accidents

The submarines of Echo class were involved in several accidents:
20 June 1970

K-108 (Echo II) collided with submarine in the Sea of Okhotsk at a depth 45 metres. The outer hull of K-108 was damaged in the area of compartments VIII and IX, and the conning tower of Tautog was damaged and flooded. There were no fatalities.

14 June 1973

K-56 (Echo II) collided with the Soviet large refrigerating trawler "Akademik Berg". The submarine was holed in the bow, and 27 were killed when compartments I and II flooded.

20 August 1973

K-1 (Echo II) struck Hagua Bank (21.5833°N 80.6667°W) in the Caribbean Sea at a depth of 120 metres at 16 knots (31.4 km/h). The bow were significantly damaged.

28 August 1976

K-22 (Echo II) collided with frigate in the Mediterranean Sea (36.0333°N 20.6000°W), and both ships were seriously damaged. K-22 had damage to missile container No. 1, extension devices and the fin structure, and went to Kithira in the Aegean Sea for repairs. The American frigate was damaged at the stern, and had to be towed to Crete.

24 September 1976

K-47 (Echo II) while in the North Atlantic a fire broke out in compartment VIII (living quarters) due to short circuit. Three were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning.

2 July 1979

K-116 (Echo II) suffered a reactor accident (a leak of core coolant from the port reactor) in the Bay of Vladimir, Sea of Japan. Some of the crew received a large dose of radiation, but there were no fatalities.

21 August 1980

K-122 (Echo I) had a fire in compartment VII (turbo-electric) when 85 miles (136.8 km) to the east of Okinawa. Fourteen dead due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

10 September 1981

K-45 (Echo I) collided with Soviet fishing trawler Novokachalinsk at night. The bow of the outer hull and the sonar system of the submarine was seriously damaged. The trawler sank.

18 June 1984

K-131

Soviet submarine K-131

K-131 was a Project 675 of the Soviet Navy's Northern Fleet.On 18 June 1984, while under the command of Captain First Rank E. Selivanov, the boat suffered a catastrophic fire...

(Echo II) a fire broke out in compartment VIII due to violation of safety methods by an electrician, while in the Barents Sea. Thirteen dead.

10 August 1985

K-431 (ex-K-31) (Echo II) had a reactor explosion while refueling in the shipyard at Chazhma Bay, Sea of Japan. Ten dead (300 men from rescue parties received various doses of radiation, several died later).

November 1986

K-175 (Echo II), while at its homebase (Pacific Fleet), suffered an explosion in the reactor compartment, causing radioactivity discharge and contamination of nearby territory. No fatalities.

26 June 1989

K-192 (ex-K-172) (Echo II) had a reactor accident (a break in the first loop of the starboard reactor) while off Bear Island, Barents Sea. The crew received a dose of radiation, but there were no fatalities.