The K-3 Leninsky Komsomol, Project 627, was the first nuclear-powered submarine in service with Soviet Union Navy. It was launched on August 9, 1957 and it was commissioned the following year, on June 4, 1958. It was phased out in 1989. However, it was saved from being scrapped as it is a museum ship today. It was known as "Kit", which means 'whale'.
The K-3 Leninsky Komsomol was the first Soviet submarine to sail under the icecap of the North Pole, surfacing in July 1962. In 1967, there was a technical malfunctioning and fire broke out in the hydraulic compartment. They had a hard time to put out the fire. As a result, 39 sailors lost their lives. However, this Soviet submarine never had any problem with its nuclear reactors.
Specifications
Type: attack submarine
Length: 107.4 m
Beam: 7.9 m
Displacement: 4,750 tons (submerged)
Draft: 5.6 m
Power Plant: two water-cooled reactors, each with steam generators and steam turbines; two diesel AC generators.
Maximum Speed: 30 knots
Range: unlimited (stopped for supplies)
Armament: eight 533-mm bow torpedo tubes, with twenty torpedoes.
Below, the bow of the K-3 Leninsky Komsomol submarine, which has just been restored and is ready to be exhibited in the Russian naval museum
Historical pictures of the Project 627 taken around 1962.
