Clock Is Ticking For Russian Sub

U.S. Mounts Rescue Effort For 7 Trapped Russian Sailors

(CBS/AP) 
The mini-sub, which became disabled after it was launched from a ship in a combat training exercise, was too deep to allow the sailors to swim to the surface on their own or for divers to reach it, Russian officials said.

Although the Russian navy reportedly ended its deep-sea diving training programs because of funding shortages a decade ago, it does have a device called the Kolokolchik, essentially an updated diving bell, that can be used for some underwater rescues.

However, the mini-sub lies so deep that the device apparently would be useless.

U.S. divers, presumably with better equipment, were rushing to the scene to help if necessary. In Belle Chasse, La., a marine services company loaded sophisticated deep sea diving suits and a diving crew aboard a military plane.

Japan also dispatched a vessel carrying submarine rescue gear and three other ships to join salvage efforts, but they weren't expected to arrive at the scene until early next week.

Navy spokesman Capt. Igor Dygalo initially said on state-run Rossiya television that the sub got trapped when its propeller became entangled in a fishing net Thursday. But Fyodorov later said the sub was stuck on an antenna.

It was unclear where the net would have come from, but scientists say the Pacific is rife with “ghost nets” — sometimes miles-long nets that have detached from fishing trawlers and now drift in the ocean.

The trapped AS-28, which looks like a small submarine, was built in 1989. It is about 44 feet long and more than 18 feet high. A vessel of the same type was used in the rescue efforts that followed the Kursk disaster.

Since Soviet times, the Kamchatka Peninsula has housed several major submarine bases and numerous other military facilities, and large areas of it have remained closed to outsiders.

Although Putin was subject to strong criticism for his slow and seemingly callous response to the Kursk disaster, it did not weaken him politically. He was re-elected in 2004 and his supporters command an overwhelming majority in parliament, making the political fallout of the latest sinking likely minimal.