Key Points and Summary – In 1992, USS Baton Rouge collided with Russia’s B-276 Kostroma in the Barents Sea during a covert patrol, a Tom Clancy–style episode that ignited headlines and diplomacy.
-Both subs survived; Russia claimed bragging rights and repainted Kostroma, while the U.S. scrapped Baton Rouge rather than fund a costly refuel.
Sierra II-Class Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Sierra-Class-Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
-The scrape exposed post–Cold War realities: risky close-in surveillance, cable-tap controversies, and propaganda battles.
-It also showed how quickly “peacetime” cat-and-mouse can veer toward crisis. As U.S.–Russia undersea competition resumes amid advanced sensors and seabed targets, a repeat incident remains plausible—making restraint, communication, and crisis management as critical as stealth and steel.
Spy Games Undersea: How a U.S. Submarine Bumped Russia’s
A Maryland-based insurance agent named Tom Clancy burst on the scene with a military-technology thriller called The Hunt for Red October in 1984.
Originally seen as a niche book released by a small, navy-related publishing house, the novel became a sensation that even President Ronald Reagan enjoyed reading.
The Hunt for Red October had such detail and authenticity that people in the Department of Defense believed Clancy must have had access to top-secret material.
However, the intrepid author conducted open-source research par excellence.
Clancy later published 16 other novels and sold 100 million copies of his books.
Sometimes, real life imitated Clancy’s work to show just how realistic and genuine the author was.
The Hunt for Red October later became a movie, and this only catapulted Clancy to greater fame.
Did the Russians Lose Another Submarine?
However, there was one line in the film that revealed the Soviet Union’s naval power was slipping, which caught the audience’s attention and led them to conclude that the Russian sailors were having a difficult time with their ships and submarines.
241204-N-VW723-2064 PACIFIC OCEAN (Dec. 4, 2024) The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Greeneville (SSN 772) transits the Pacific Ocean while supporting a distinguished visitor embark, Dec. 4, 2024. Greeneville is one of four Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines assigned to Commander, Submarine Squadron 11. These submarines are capable of supporting various missions, including: anti-submarine warfare; anti-ship warfare; strike warfare; and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Keenan Daniels)
The Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Philadelphia (SSN 690) arrives in Souda harbor for a routine port visit to Greece’s largest island. Philadelphia is homported in Groton, CT and began a scheduled six-month deployment in June 2005.
Commissioned June 25, 1977, USS PHILADELPHIA is the third LOS ANGELES-class attack submarine and the first ship in her class built by Electric Boat. U.S. Navy photo by Paul Farley
This scene from the movie was particularly jarring. In the exchange from the Soviet ambassador to the U.S. national security advisor, the American asked the Russian, “You’ve lost another submarine?” Ouch. That comment resonated because of what happened in real life several years later.
USS Baton Rouge Versus the B-276 Kostroma
In 1992, the U.S. Navy’s Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine named the USS Baton Rouge was sneaking around the Barents Sea about 12 miles from the coast. While creeping close to monitor the Russian naval base at Severomorsk, the Baton Rouge crashed into the B-276 Kostroma Sierra-class titanium-hulled submarine.
There were no casualties but it raised the question about the downfall of Russia’s naval power. The line from the movie was apropos.
The Department of Defense decided to publicly admit that the accident happened, even though it produced no casualties, and both subs were damaged but intact.
This was unusual as the naval brass never wanted the outside world to know that U.S. submarines were patrolling that close to Russian naval bases.
Sending In Diplomatic Reinforcements
The Americans knew that there would be diplomatic fallout, and the best negotiator in the George HW Bush administration, the silver-tongued Secretary of State James A. Baker, was sent to have a sit-down with Russia’s President Boris Yeltsin.
What was Baker going to say? An apology was in order, but the Baker did not want to give Yeltsin that satisfaction.
Yeltsin was puzzled that the U.S. Navy was spying on the motherland, considering that the Cold War was over.
Baker also wanted to maintain the secrecy of an effort by the United States that enabled the Americans to snoop on Russian networks by tapping into communication cables during Operation Holy Stone. Baker’s mission was going to be complicated, and Yeltsin wanted answers immediately.
This Jumped Up on the Media’s Radar
Then the media entered the fray. The American press thought that the Navy sub was spying on Russia.
The Moscow propaganda organs were describing how the Kostroma had discovered the American sub playing shenanigans and was tracking it closely. This was intended to give the Russians a public relations boost, showing that their navy was still a deft and skilled player in protecting its home shores.
Russian news outlets concluded that the Los Angeles-class submarines were vulnerable and overrated.
The American submarine received severe damage to its ballast tank and sustained scratches on its single hull. If the ballast tank had been destroyed, the accident could have been catastrophic.
The Russian boat had significant damage to its sail but could still maintain seaworthiness and dive. Both submarines made it back home.
Was This Incident About Peace or War?
The Russians were still incensed and demanded to know why the Americans were still spying. Baker was going to have to admit something and give Yeltsin at least the partial truth that the Russians had discovered an American sub trying to enter into a game of subterfuge and rehearsals for warfare, even though both countries were supposed to be having peaceful relations. Baker and the Americans likely emphasized that this was an accident that could have occurred anywhere and pointed out that Baton Rouge had even attempted to offer assistance after the collision.
There is no record of the conversation between Baker and Yeltsin; however, the Russians were relieved to know that the Americans would no longer tap undersea communications cables and send submarines so close to Russian naval bases.
The Russians Scored A ‘Kill’
The Kostroma went home, was repaired, and returned to active duty. Baton Rouge had an unlucky fate. Since it was already slated for a refueling that would have been a time and money sucking experience, the Navy decided to scrap it.
The Russians declared they won the entire encounter and even placed a “kill” sticker on the Kostroma’s conning tower. The Russian navy was back in the game, and Americans tried to forget the entire episode.
Although Clancy often wrote about combat between the Russians and Americans, he did not live to see the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the overall invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
He would not have been surprised to see the sinking of the Moskva flagship by Ukrainian Neptune missiles in the Black Sea at the beginning of the war. Clancy tragically died in 2013.
Submarine Smash: Could It Happen Again?
History may always repeat itself, as the Americans and Russians undoubtedly still play cat and mouse games under the sea. Accidents and miscalculations can be a part of these rehearsals for real battle. It is not certain what President Donald Trump or his Secretary of State Marco Rubio would say to Vladimir Putin if the Kostroma-Baton Rouge crash were to be repeated.
Let’s just hope that if that happened, there would be no one killed or injured, which would create an international incident, hurting relations between the two nuclear powers.
About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood
Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for US Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former US Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
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