SOME QUESTIONS REGARDING COORDINATION OF THE HYDROGRAPHIC SERVICES OF THE NAVIES

Document Type: 
Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 
0001482732
Release Decision: 
RIPPUB
Original Classification: 
U
Document Page Count: 
8
Document Creation Date: 
June 19, 2017
Document Release Date: 
June 19, 2017
Sequence Number: 
Case Number: 
SC-2007-00006
Publication Date: 
February 24, 1975
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At'5'21 APPROVED FOR RELEASE CIA HISTORICAL RELEASE PROGRAM JUNE 2017 Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 0* ?liff6-BeetiMeNT-4021-?18T?K?REKOM693? CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20.505 24 February 1975 MEMORANDUM FOR: The Director of Central Intelligence SUBJECT : WARSAW PACT JOURNAL: Some Questions Regarding Coordination of the Hydrographic Services of the Navies AR 70-14 1. The enclosed Intelligence Information Special Report is part of a series now in preparation based on articles from a SECRET Soviet publica- tion called Information Collection of the Headquarters and the Technical Comilli;tee of t4e CaMbined Armed Forces. This article concerns a proposal that the hydrographic services ot the 'Warsaw Pact navies coordinate efforts to support combined operations. This would include cooperating in theater studies and the production of navigational materials, and could extend to assigning hydrographic units to coalition naval formations. This journal is published by Warsaw Pact headquarters in Moscow, and it consists of articles by Warsaw Pact officers. This article appeared in Issue No. 2 which was published in 1971. 2. Because the source of this report is extremely sensitive, this document should be handled on a strict need-to-know basis within recipient agencies. For ease of reference, re orts from this publication have been assigned the Codewor lam . e ?n Deputy Director for Operations TS #207016 Copy Page 1 of 8 Pages 7151N4E, Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 ityp-secaz Distribution: The Director of Central Intelligence The Joint Chiefs of Staff The Director, Defense Intelligence Agency The Assistant to the Chief of Staff for Intelligence Department of the Army The Assistant Chief of Naval Operations (Intelligence) Department of the Navy The Assistant Chief of Staff, Intelligence U. S. Air Force Director, National Security Agency Deputy Director of Central Intelligence Deputy Director for Intelligence Deputy Director for Science and Technology Deputy Director of Central Intelligence for National Intelligence Officers Director of Strategic Research Director of Scientific Intelligence Director of Weapons Intelligence Page 2 of 8 Pages --Tel?"-rafiCREL Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 TS #2070I6 Copy COUNTRY DATE OF INFO. Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Intelligence Information Special Report Page 3 of 8 Pages USSR/WARSAW PACT September 1971 SUBJECT DATE 24 February 1975 WARSAW PACT JOURNAL: Some Questions Regarding Coordination of the Hydrographic Services of the Navies SOURCE Documentary Summary: The following report is a translation from Russian of an article from a SECRET Soviet publication called Information Collection of the Head- oparters and the Technical Committee of tie Combined Armed Farces. This journal is published-by Warsaw Pact Headquarters in Moscow, and it consists of articles by Warsaw Pact officers. This article was written by Engineer Captain 1st Rank K. F. Smirnov. This article deals with the organization of hydrographic support to the combined operations of Warsaw Pact navies. The author proposes that the efforts of the individual hydrographic services be coordinated in volume, location and time, and that these services cooperate in theater studies, cartographic production and preparation of operating instructions to provide a common system of navigational and hydrographic support. The hydrographic services are required to maintain high combat readiness, and standard support variants should be worked out in advance. Subunits of these services could be assigned to coalition naval formations without losing internal organization and control. This article appeared in Issue No. 2 which was published in 1971. End of Summary Comment: There is no information in available reference materials which can be firmly associated with the author. The names of authors are given in Russian transliteration. TS #207016 fnM^SECW. Copy # Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Page 4 of 8 Pages Some Questions Regarding Coordination of the Hydrographic Services of the Navies by Engineer Captain 1st Rank K. F. Smirnov The hydrographic services of the navies of the Warsaw Pact member states perform the tasks of organizing and carrying out navigational- hydrographic and hydrometeorological support for the combat training and daily activity of the navies of these countries and for overall sea navigation. Navigational-hydrographic and hydrometeorological support is known to be one of the most important forms of special support to naval operations. This is corroborated by the experience of World War II and naval combat training, which shows that not one modern operation can be carried out successfully at sea without reliable navigational-hydrographic and hydrometeorological support. When a navy is constantly being fully equipped with new weapons and technical means, the role of navigational-hydrographic and hydro- meteorological support increases even more. The demand for this support increases as to both volume and quality. When organizing navigational-hydrographic and hydrometeorological support for an operation of naval forces,while they are carrying out combined tasks in naval theaters, coordiflation of the efforts of the hydrographic services of these navies, i.e., organization and implementation of combined activity by these services, will also be required. In this connection it should be noted that, in our opinion, coordination may occur both among the hydrographic services as a whole and among their units and subunits. The essence of combined activity by the hydrographic services of allied navies is coordination of the activities of the forces and means of navigational-hydrographic and hydrometeorological support (in volume, location, and time) in order that the combined operations of the naval forces may be carried out successfully. This coordination includes optimum distribution of the forces, means, and efforts of the hydrographic services TS #207016 Copy # -10P-SECALf Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Ti Page 5 of 8 Pages of the allied navies in studying and preparing a theater for war, in working out standard variants of navigational-hydrographic and hydrometeorological support of combined operations, and in developing command manuals, methodologies, and other documents. In the daily activity of the navies, coordination of the hydrographic services may consist of coordinating measures to prepare the naval theaters and develop standard documents on navigational-hydrographic and hydro- meteorological support of combined operations of the navies, and of planning and implementing combined measures to ensure the safety of overall sea navigation. To implement these measures, it is obviously necessary to accomplish a great deal of work in advance and through the common efforts of all the hydrographic services; this work includes hydrographic and hydro- meteorological study of the theater and the establishment of uniform cartographic and descriptive materials. Points which are vulnerable to amphibious landings, areas of possible antisubmarine lines, and other areas of interest in carrying out naval operational tasks, are worthy of special emphasis of this study. It will be highly important to establish stocks of hydrographic- piloting equipment and supplies, charts, manuals, and handbooks; to work out an efficient system of supplying them; and to establish mobile means of repairing the navigational equipment of the ships. We have sufficient knowledge of our seas to fully ensure the safety of overall sea navigation, but nevertheless it is still insufficient for independent operations by modern navies. In addition, since the navy has been armed with new types of weapons and technical means, requirements for study of the naval theaters have increased considerably. The number of environmental elements which have to be known in order to employ naval forces, weapons, and technical means successfully, has increased. It has become necessary to study the natural physical fields of the earth (gravitational, magnetic, electric), and to study currents, bottoms, and a number of hydrologic elements in more detail. We need a detailed study of the coastal areas of the probable enemy which are vulnerable to amphibious landings, including indication of the nature of the coastal depths and bottom and the existence and location of coastal shoals. The requirements for accuracy and detail in measuring different elements have increased. More detailed and accurate survey operations, TS #207016 Copy # Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 Approved for Release: 2017/06/16 C01482732 TC7F-SEGRET Page 6 of 8 Pages both in coastal and in open areas of the sea and oceans, are required for a great many tasks performed by the navies. In order that the tasks of hydrographic and hydrometeorological study of the theaters be performed successfully, it is desirable, in our opinion, for the forces and means of the hydrographic services of all the allied navies to participate in them according to previously coordinated plans. We think a common collection of charts should be established for all the navies, which would contribute to mutual understanding among staffs in planning and conducting combined naval operations and combat actions, and also in organizing control of forces. Such charts are also necessary for target indication, ship piloting, the development of standardized graphic operational-combat documents, etc. In our opinion, it is very important to the organization of coordination among hydrographic services, and the distribution of tasks among them, to make the organizational structure of the services similar. In the allied navies there currently are considerable differences in the organizational structure of the hydrographic services and their subunits. In some countries the means for erecting shore and floating navigational barriers are not subordinate to the hydrographic service, which hampers timely resolution of problems of coordinating the employment of these means. The hydrographic services of many of the navies have no hydrometeorological observatories, which makes it difficult to carry out the tasks involved in making a hydrometeorological study of a theater and supporting the forces. In addition, not all the hydrographic services have mobile subunits and modern hydrographic ships. It is known that one of the major tasks in preparing a theater of military operations and supporting overall sea navigation is navigational preparation. In our opinion, the combined efforts of the hydrographic services in performing this task should be concentrated first on establishing a reliable system of radionavigational preparation which provides the necessary accuracy of position-fixing in any area of the theater. To supplement the stationary system it is obviously desirable to have mobile radiotechnical, acoustic, visual and other means of navigational preparation as well, which will increase their viability and create conditions for rapid deployment of the systems in new areas. The nature of combat actions under modern conditions and the probability that they will begin without warning require high combat readiness of the forces and means of navigational-hydrographic and TS #207016 Copy # 6Er