Interesting article on Ivy Bells

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/security/a25857/operation-ivy-bells-underwater-wiretapping/

Secrets haunt the still-classified Operation Ivy Bells, a daring Cold War wiretapping operation conducted 400 feet underwater.

I'll admit I read BMB and was entertained by it. I obviously do not condone the release of things like that, and even this Popular Mechanics article leaves a bad taste. Like you, I just had it DRILLED into me to not speak of things, even thengs that are no longer classified, ever. At least they get enough wrong to make it sadly humorous.

Edited by gerry - 01 Apr 2017 at 11:39am

Weird. It got an extra space in it. 

I guess the writer of the below snippet never heard of the USS Nautilus (SSN-571), the first nuclear submarine or the USS George Washington (SSBN-598) the first nuclear ballistic missile submarine, or any of the later class boats.  Larger does not mean better. I would take an American made submarine over a Russian submarine of any type or class anytime.  For safety, reliability and operational capacity there is nothing better than "made in the USA".

Project 941 Akula (NATO Typhoon) The Typhoon class SSBNs are among the most iconic military weapons to come out of the Cold War and had a wider-reaching impact than almost any other submarine during the period.  The largest submarine ever built, the Typhoons contributed to the giant leap in capability of Soviet submarines that happened in the early 1980s.  They also had serious economic and political implications for the USSR.

Great question, actually. We're talking about two different designators here. One is the NATO designator, with which all of us are familiar, the other is what the Russians themselves call their sub classes.