SOME QUESTIONS REGARDING COORDINATION OF THE HYDROGRAPHIC SERVICES OF THE NAVIES

• Document Type: FOIA
• Keywords: WARSAW PACT
• Keywords: TRANCHE 14
• Keywords: WARSAW PACT INTELLIGENCE
• Collection: CIA Analysis of the Soviet Navy
• 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
• Case Number: SC-2007-00006
• Publication Date: February 24, 1975

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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
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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
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COUNTRY
DATE OF
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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.
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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
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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,
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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
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