Blind Man’s Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage by Sherry Sontag and Christopher Drew. Public Affairs, 250 West 57th Street, Suite 1825, New York, New York 10107, 1998, 352 pages, $25.00.

A chapter of the cold war that few people knew existed, Blind Man’s Bluff is an account of the war beneath the waves and the heroism of America’s submariners. Every chapter details exploits that could come only from a Tom Clancy thriller. But this is not fiction—the men and technology are all real. Beginning with the prenuclear submarines, the book takes the reader to a world of cramped spaces and early snorkel technology that allowed subs to skim the surface of the water and monitor Soviet nuclear developments. However, the Russians would play a deadly game with American submariners, chasing them off with depth charges and causing the destruction of the USS Cochino (SS-545). Luckily, a sister submarine, the USS Tusk (SS-426), was on hand to rescue survivors. Diesel submarine crews would continue to provide surveillance of Soviet naval activity even with the advent of the first nuclear submarines. Nuclear subs were viewed as too high priced to risk on such dangerous missions. The authors tell the tale of other prenuclear subs like the USS Gudgeon (SS-567) and USS Growler (SSG-577) as they tangle with Soviet surface combatants off the coast of Vladivostok. More than the mission is the authors’ ability to convey to the reader the sense of peril these American sailors endured with every depth charge and sonar ping designed to make these early subs surface. In one vivid account, a sub skipper watches the suffering of his crew as they are pinned by the Russians and unable to surface to exchange toxic gas for fresh air. Finally, the sub arms its torpedoes and takes an offensive posture, surfacing and threatening the Russian naval vessels with destruction—a gamble that saved the crew.

More than the espionage missions and technology is the description of the people who served aboard subs and developed the technology to make such missions more efficient—for example, Dr. John Craven, pioneer of the deep submersibles and deep-sea cameras that would explore sunken Soviet subs. Craven was a master not only in designing these craft but also at manipulating the law of probability to locate sunken submarines. He located the USS Scorpion (SSN-589), which had sunk with all hands lost. A chapter is devoted to Capt James Bradley, who one early morning in the Pentagon came up with the idea to tap into Soviet undersea communications cables after reminiscing about boyhood experiences along the Mississippi, where he saw signs indicating cable ahead. Bradley argued that finding the Russian variant of these warning signs in the Sea of Okhotsk would locate the Russians’ undersea communications cables. A submarine would prove him right. Others include the colorful Whitey Mack, commander of the USS Lapon (SSN-661), who trailed a new Russian Yankee-class sub for 47 days in 1969 without being detected. This would set the standard for submariners wishing to detect new classes of submarines, taking in information on acoustics, maneuvers, and tactics. Some of these trailings would lead to disastrous collisions—for example, the one between the USS Tautog (SSN-639) and a Soviet Echo II–class sub. Recently, the USS Grayling (SSN-646) collided with a Soviet Delta II in the Barents Sea in 1993.

Readers will enjoy the chapters on the refitting of the USS Halibut (SSGN-587) with the latest oceanographic technology. This sub’s first success was the detection of a Soviet Golf-class sub in 1968 with all hands aboard. The Glomar Explorer, a salvage vessel the size of three football fields, would be designed and built to resurrect part of that sub.

The book contains 47 photographs, two maps, and two appendices. The first is a brief description of every submarine believed to have collided with another sub. The second appendix details the views of the Soviet side, which were recently declassified with the collapse of the USSR. Blind Man’s Bluff is a truly remarkable book that readers will not be able to put down.

Lt Youssef Aboul-Enein, MSC, USNR
Fort Sheridan, Illinois

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.

Book Reviews | Home Page | Feedback? Email the Editor