A diving bell lowered over the prone hulk of the Russian nuclear submarine the Kursk could be the best chance of survival for 116 sailors trapped on board, news reports said yesterday. The diving bell, a small vessel capable of carrying 10-15 people to the surface at a time, has an airlock which would allow the rescued crew to acclimatise to pressure changes as they travelled to the surface, avoiding the bends or decompression sickness. The navy, which has not made public details of its rescue plans, was quoted on Monday as saying the diving bell was being hooked up to provide air and energy to the Kursk. A naval expert with Jane's Information Group, Mr Paul Beaver, said he believed there was a good chance of rescuing the crew, but only if the Russians asked for Western help if they needed it.
Soviet submarine disappears in the Atlantic off the Spanish coast.
All 88 crew members die. I nuclear submarine off Okinawa. Nine die and 50 injured. June 1983 Soviet submarine with 90 men sinks off the Kamchatka peninsula in the northern Pacific. Oct 1986 Fire breaks out on a Soviet submarine in the west Atlantic.