Doomsday Torpedoes: Live Testing of Soviet Naval Nuclear Weapons, 1954-1962

n the aftermath of the Second World War, relations between the Soviet Union and its former Western allies rapidly deteriorated into the Cold War. At sea, the USSR faced a glaring disadvantage. To redress the balance, it armed many of its warships with nuclear weapons ranging from torpedoes to ballistic missiles. Doomsday Torpedoes explores the history of these weapons and their live testing during one of the most dangerous decades of the Cold War.

The US Navy’s vast carrier fleet posed a formidable threat, capable of encircling the Soviet Union and striking from multiple directions with nuclear-armed aircraft. Soviet planners sought ways to counter this menace with a single devastating blow. Nuclear-armed torpedoes and anti-ship missiles seemed to offer just such a capability.

This book examines their development, testing, and deployment in detail, alongside the parallel evolution of Soviet submarines—the primary launch platforms for naval nuclear weapons.