The purpose of The Arkhipov Project is to make 27 October
Vasily Arkhipov Day
The world should remember the Man Who Saved Us All
Vasily Arkhipov was second-in-command aboard the Soviet submarine B-59 which was patrolling near Cuba during the 1962 missile crisis. The submarine was armed with a nuclear-tipped torpedo.
On 27 October, US Navy ships – unaware that B-59 carried nuclear weapons – began dropping practice depth charges to force it to the surface. Inside B-59, conditions were dire: no contact with Moscow, extreme heat, low oxygen, and high stress. The crew feared that war between the USA and the USSR might have already have begun.
The sub’s captain, Valentin Savitsky, believed they were under attack and wanted to launch the nuclear torpedo and attack the USS Randolph, an Essex-class aircraft carrier that was the flagship of the US antisubmarine task group. According to Soviet navy protocol, all three senior officers on board had to agree before firing. If B-59 had attacked Randolph with its nuclear torpedo, all-out nuclear war and global holocaust would undoubtedly have followed.
Alone of the three officers, Vasily Arkhipov refused to consent. He argued for surfacing and awaiting orders instead of firing. His calm but firm stance persuaded the others to stand down.
The world was saved.
Everybody alive today owes their existence to that one man.
What the story of Vasily Arkhipov means for the world
Date – 27 October – Vasily Arkhipov Day – The Man Who Saved the World
One person can make the difference between life and death for the planet. Thank you, Vasily.
If it hadn’t been for Vasily Arkhipov, none of us would be here today.
Never forget how close we came.
Everybody who understands war knows that mistakes happen all the time – whether through misunderstanding, miscommunication, technical failure or sheer idiotic blunder.
With luck, such mistakes may not be fatal – though they often are. With nuclear weapons, however, a single mistake can annihilate the human race and end the world.
The threat is really imminent, it only has to happen once.
“At the end we lucked out. It was luck that prevented nuclear wars….
Robert S. McNamara
Robert S. McNamara:
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The story of Vasily Arkhipov is more important than ever
Nuclear holocaust by mischance may be closer today than at any time in the last 60 years.
The menace grows every day while national leaders routinely brandish threats of annihilation like children in the playground
It’s as if they have forgotten how close we came to extinction on 27 October 1962.
The world must never forget.
