K-77 status and some interior pics

[Darrin]

All,
it is my sad duty to inform you that the K-77 will be going to be scrapped, she is just too far gone to be saved. When the Navy left they had to leave behind barges to help keep her stern afloat and her still dedicated volunteers earlier this week found one of their compartments aft hadn't been completely dewatered and it had a couple of feet of water still in it, once the water was pumped out it raised the stern 1 foot. up to that point her stern would not stay afloat on it's own and no one wants to take the chance to see if she will float now that it is higher out of the water.

Her career may not have been as interesting as other museum boats but she by far has had the most interesting decommed after life of any submarine that I know of... After being decommed by the Russians she was bought and then taken to (I think Canada) where she was opened as a floating resteraunt and when that venture failed she was brought to the US and starred in the movie K-19 Widowmaker starring Harrison Ford and then sadly she sank during a storm last year and layed on the bottom of the Providence R.I harbor where the Navy divers tried unsuccessfully to raise her and this year a joint Army/Navy dive operation was able to refloat her, it was the first time in many many years that any submarine had been raised for training and the FIRST time that the US raised a Russian submarine in memory.

Sadly enough she sank here in the US during a storm she provided the military dive community the most unique diving and rescuing operation of their carrers and her legacy will live on in the dive community for many many years to come.

May we never have to use the knowledge that they gained from having to raise her.

Here are a few of the pics that I was given (these are also down on the K-77 link on this bbs)

[Lance Dean]

As far as I know, he (don't Russians call their subs "he"?) was the only submarine museum boat to ever be put up for sale on eBay!

[Darrin]

didn't know that "he" was put on ebay.... when did that happen???

[Gil Bohannon]

Courtesy of Google and Wikipedia:

"Komulainen did not want to repeat the nerve-wracking trans-Atlantic tow, and instead tried at least twice to auction the submarine on eBay — auctions #222791130, ending on 20 December 1999, and #270148521, ending on 7 March 2000. In each case, bidding was to start at US$1 million. No bids were received."

[Lance Dean]

Amazing eh?  Just imagine, you could have owned it for one million dollars!

[JohnG]

That would have looked good in my backyard. And it's Russian (xoxoxoxoxo)

Hey Rick....we could always use a new project at the Park....I could head this one up for ya and it's only a million bucks.
Please?

[Paul Farace]

In fact the history of the K-77 is even more colorful than you know!

Before it came across the Atlantic (as an attraction) it was a RESTAURANT in Helsinki, Finland! It was purchased by a restauranteur who tore out the considerable battery space and made a bar (saw pictures of it on a web site that might still be active) and talked to several Fins who visited it! Also got to discuss our mutual love of the Leningrad Cowboys, Finland's answer to the Beatles! But that is off topic.

Stan Sherman (not well liked in sub museum circles) was part of the consortium who purchased these Russkie Rustbuckets (and for nowhere NEAR a Million dollars I might add) to use as tourist attractions. He got a Foxtrot into Vancouver (becasue the USCG gave him the finger when he first attempted to dock it in Seattle)... after a few years in Canada, he got permission to tow it to Seattle, where it drew a dedicated group of US bubbleheads... then with the USCG breathing down his back and growing unrest among the sub vets, he towed it out of Seattle to San Diego, leaving the vets in the lurch!  They wanted to lynch Mr. Sherman.  Now that DOLPHIN is headed to San Diego, the Foxtrot there will be scrapped!  Strike TWO Stan!!!

He brought the K-77 to St. Petersburg, FLA, USA where it literally began dissolving like AlkaSeltzer in the warm salt water.  The USCG dusted off their manual on keel hauling procedures to force him to remove the public and navigational hazzard (at this point I think he put the sub up on eBay).  The movie folk smaking K-19 heard of it and jumped on it, towing it to Nova Scotia (Halifax, I believe) where it was given minor repairs and modifications to make it look like a Soviet SSN.  After filming the movie folks got a big tax break by donating it to the USS SARATOGA Association as a money maker until they got their aircraft carrier. It made sense in that this boat was built to KILL our carriers. You know the rest.

It had horrible maintenance problems, I am told, by the owners. That Russkie steel was almost complete gone in some areas and the rubber coating was all that kept some of the crew from falling through!  Sad to see what happened to this uinque vessel. Take some comfort in that she has a sister Julliet-Class sub in Peenemunde, Germany (yes, just a mile or so from where the Nazi's tested their V-2 rockets). Found it on Google Earth. Find it for yourselves! 

Paul 

[Darrin]

I was pretty sure of most of her story but it's a moot point, the hack that you refered to if I remember correctly the volunteers on both of the Ruskie boats called him sawzall because he chopped up a LOT of piping on the boat and then sold it for scrap. part of the piping was for the trim and drain lines and blow lines.

[Lance Dean]

... Now that DOLPHIN is headed to San Diego, the Foxtrot there will be scrapped! ...

Aww c'mon Paul.  The B-39 may not be scrapped.  Here is the exact quote of what I was told by someone "in-the-know":

"The Foxtrot here in San Diego will be here until at least 2011 and then it will be looking for a new home."

I'm sure if the sub is in movable condition someone else might want it.  Why not move it on up to Long Beach and join the B-427 there?

[Paul Farace]

I heard what I heard at a cocktail party with some bigwhigs from the San Diego Maritime Museum... They see it as a liability now that the initial interest and visitorship has dwindled. I do not agree with the idea, but a lot of folks see these boats as commodities, trade in them, trade up with them, and then cash out.

PF

[Lance Dean]

I totally understand.  2011 isn't too far away ya know.