The CIA’s Bold Operation to Steal a Russian Submarine: The True Story of Project Azorian
During the Cold War, a period marked by intense espionage and covert operations, one of the most audacious intelligence missions undertaken by the United States was the CIA’s attempt to recover a sunken Soviet submarine. This mission, known as Project Azorian, remains one of the most complex and secretive operations in the history of intelligence gathering.
The Sinking of K-129
The story begins on March 8, 1968, when the Soviet Golf-II class submarine K-129 mysteriously sank in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 1,560 miles northwest of Hawaii. The submarine was carrying nuclear missiles and was on a patrol mission. All 98 crew members aboard perished. The exact cause of the sinking remains unclear, but it is widely believed to have been due to a mechanical failure or an onboard explosion.
The Soviet Union was unable to locate the wreckage, but the United States, using advanced sonar technology aboard the USS Halibut, managed to find the submarine at a depth of over 16,000 feet.
The CIA’s Ambitious Plan
Recognizing the immense intelligence value of the submarine—particularly its cryptographic equipment and nuclear missiles—the CIA proposed an extraordinarily ambitious plan to recover it from the ocean floor. The operation, codenamed Project Azorian, was approved by President Richard Nixon and involved designing and building a massive, specially equipped ship capable of lifting the submarine from such extreme depths.
The CIA enlisted the help of billionaire Howard Hughes, who agreed to front the project under the guise of deep-sea mining. Hughes’ company, Global Marine Development Inc., constructed the Hughes Glomar Explorer, a ship designed to secretly retrieve the submarine.
The Recovery Operation
In the summer of 1974, the Hughes Glomar Explorer set sail to the location of the K-129 wreckage. The ship was equipped with a large mechanical claw, known as the “capture vehicle,” designed to grab the submarine and lift it to the surface. The entire operation was conducted under the highest levels of secrecy.
The recovery operation faced numerous challenges, including the extreme depth, the weight of the submarine, and the constant risk of detection by Soviet forces. Despite these difficulties, the capture vehicle successfully grasped the submarine and began the process of lifting it to the surface.
However, during the lift, a critical structural failure occurred, and part of the submarine broke off and fell back to the ocean floor. Reports suggest that the CIA was only able to recover a portion of the submarine, including two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some crew members’ remains. The most sensitive parts, including the missile compartment and cryptographic materials, were reportedly lost.
The Secrecy and Aftermath
The CIA managed to keep the operation a secret for several years, even denying its existence when reports began to leak. The phrase “neither confirm nor deny,” now a staple response in intelligence circles, became widely known after the CIA used it in response to inquiries about Project Azorian. This response led to the term “Glomar response,” named after the Glomar Explorer.
In 2010, the CIA released some documents related to the operation, confirming many details about Project Azorian, although much of the mission remains classified to this day.
Project Azorian represents one of the most daring and technically challenging operations in CIA history. While the mission was only partially successful, it demonstrated the lengths to which the United States was willing to go to gain an edge in the Cold War. The operation also highlighted the incredible capabilities of covert engineering and intelligence efforts during this tense period of global history.
