Underwater Pioneers who use their lives to fulfill their mission -- A record of the officers and soldiers of a submarine base of the North Sea Fleet of the Navy (above)

This is a strategic force that symbolizes the status of a great power and supports national security, and a "killer" force that makes the motherland proud and frights opponents.
In the 42 years since the establishment of a submarine base of the North Sea Fleet, the first nuclear submarine force of the Chinese Navy, it has made a long underwater voyage, setting a new record for a long voyage of nuclear submarines in the world. The deep limit diving has tested the deep-sea combat performance of China's nuclear submarines. The underwater launch of carrier rockets announced the formation of China's sea-based strategic deterrent force and initially possessed the capability of nuclear deterrence and counterattack. There has never been a nuclear accident....... Generations of nuclear submarine officers and soldiers of the base have chased the Chinese dream and the dream of strengthening the army in the depths of the ocean, forged the impregnable underwater nuclear shield of the Republic, made outstanding contributions and established immortal feats for safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests. In the golden autumn of October, reporters came to this base to visit the extraordinary stories of nuclear submarine officers and soldiers.

Nuclear submarine and conventional submarine ocean training. Photo by Dragon Canal (issued by Xinhua News Agency)

Listen to the party command is "deep sea compass"
In the 1950 s, in order to break the nuclear blackmail and nuclear monopoly of the world's military powers and safeguard national independence, autonomy, security and dignity, China started the arduous construction and development process of nuclear submarine industry. In December 1970, China's first nuclear submarine was launched. This is another important strategic weapon and equipment successfully developed by our country after the "two bombs.
"The base force is a strategic force that has grown up bathed in the care of the Party, with special weapons and equipment and special missions, which doomed us to make it the highest political requirement to listen to the Party's command. From the general to the private, all need to have a strong political awareness, overall situation awareness and strategic awareness, and be absolutely politically loyal and reliable, so that the Party and the people can safely hand over the strategic weapon of nuclear submarines to you!" base political commissar li yanming told reporters.
Although nuclear submarines are the most basic combat unit, they have strategic weapons, go out of the ocean, stay in the deep sea to perform tasks, build a strong party organization, become the core of the unified leadership and unity of the crew, and is the organizational system guarantee for listening to the party's command.
The party committee of the base has always regarded "building the branch on the company" as an important principle to improve the party organization setting and operation mode of nuclear submarines when performing tasks. On each voyage, a temporary party committee at sea is added to the mission boat. This model of "party committees and branches built together on the boat" has given full play to the core leadership role of the front-line party committee, the fighting fortress role of the branch, and the vanguard and exemplary role of party members, laying a solid organizational foundation for listening to the party's command.
Once, the "underwater pioneer boat" was ordered to go to the deep ocean to carry out important tasks. During this period, the situation at sea changed rapidly and dangerous. "I would rather lose my life than disobey the order." At the moment of crisis, the "group of people" of the temporary Party committee strictly carried out the orders of the higher authorities, carefully commanded and manipulated, and successfully completed the task under complex circumstances. "What is obeying the party's command? It is to carry out the decision-making instructions of the higher party committee to the letter." Recalling that mission, Liang Guilin, director of the political department of the base, said with deep feeling.
The boat does not get lost in the deep sea, relying on the solid ideological foundation laid at ordinary times. The party committee of the base unremittingly armed the officers and soldiers with the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, used the party's innovative theory to promote the education of people, deeply and persistently cultivated the core values of contemporary revolutionary soldiers, focused on the goal of strengthening the army, deepened ideological and political education, and continued to carry out the characteristics of nuclear submarine forces. "Nine Spirit" series of educational activities.
The consciousness of the military soul is a "sea god needle" and the command of the Party is a "deep sea compass". "Every year, new recruits enter the camp and new crew members board the boat. The firm belief in listening to the party's command is our first lesson." Liu Bencai, political commissar of the 11th crew team, said that from the beginning of the army, they put the party's command into every crew member and integrated into the blood of generations of officers and soldiers.
"To choose a nuclear submarine is to choose the party's cause, and to build merit based on one's post is to be infinitely loyal to the party." Base commander peak said. The officers and soldiers of the 11th crew team, who were awarded the honorary title of "underwater pioneer boat" by the Central Military Commission, went to sea not long ago to carry out a major task. In the deep sea and the ocean, in the face of sudden danger, the main soldier Meng Xianglei put his life and death out of the way and worked hard to rescue the accident. The party organization decided to develop his "line of fire" to join the party. The special "Dragon Palace" fire line of joining the party ceremony has become the traditional practice of the base party committee to unite the military, strengthen faith, and stimulate morale.
No matter how the times develop and the environment changes, the firm belief of the officers and soldiers of the base that "the boat is controlled by me and I listen to the party's command" has never wavered.
Only when you can win can you not be angry.
Only when you can fight can you stop the war. Only when you have the ability to win can you have the confidence to deter and not be angry.
In September 1988, our nuclear submarine once again quietly dived into the vast expanse of blue waves to carry out the underwater launch carrier rocket mission. The carrier rocket broke through the sea and, with orange flames, accurately splashed down on the target sea area. This marks the initial formation of our military's sea-based strategic defense force. my country has also become the fifth country in the world with the ability to launch nuclear submarines underwater after the United States, the Soviet Union, Britain and France.
Since the beginning of the new century, the wave of new military reforms has come, and winning local wars at sea under the conditions of informatization has become an urgent issue of the times. As a nuclear submarine force, the party committee of the base focuses all construction and work on winning information-based wars, requires combat effectiveness from scientific training, refines skills, skillfully practices tactics, and experiences strategies, and constantly improves deterrence and actual combat capabilities under information-based conditions. continue to take sonorous steps in the game of winning future wars.
They increased the upgrading of simulation training facilities, and built a comprehensive training information network, 3D virtual teaching simulation system, sonar target comprehensive recognition training system, underwater information confrontation training system, nuclear power simulation training system and other advanced training equipment in one of the simulation training center. From the reactor management, to torpedo attack, submarine control, underwater acoustic confrontation, to achieve full staff, full equipment, full system, full element simulation training, officers and soldiers do not need to go to sea, can carry out "fighting room driving giant whales, mouse smoke, screen shooting war mines" port and shore training, the unit training level continues to a new level.
Nuclear submarines have thousands of sets of various types of equipment, tens of thousands of instruments, thousands of indicator lights, and tens of thousands of large and small valves....... In organizing training, the party committee of the base keeps a close eye on new recruits, new personnel, new subjects, and new posts, and every year carries out "three strong skills training" with strong new sailors, strong new subjects, and strong new posts as the main contents ". At the end of the training, the training department organizes the relevant business chief to examine and accept the participants. Those who pass the examination shall be issued with an induction certificate; Those who fail to meet the standards shall be retested after rectification.
In order to adapt to the construction and development of nuclear submarine forces, the number of people transferred from various places to work in nuclear submarine forces has increased year by year, and the team engaged in the cause of nuclear submarines has grown rapidly. How can more people be trained while maintaining a strong deterrent force at sea? The base has boldly innovated its training mechanism, pioneered and practiced a training mechanism consistent with "taking turns and waiting for war at sea", conducted several hot handover training for nuclear submarines at sea, and explored the training method of "people rest and boat endlessly", effectively maintaining the existence of nuclear submarines at sea. "Long-term uninterrupted high-standard training has rapidly improved the ability of nuclear submarine forces to perform tasks." Base chief of staff Yu Zhengqiang told reporters.
They boldly, scientifically, and safely trained, took the lead in completing the hot emergency dispatch of nuclear submarines, and took the lead in successfully implementing a new type of underwater torpedo multi-mine salvo. After the hard work and unremitting efforts of several generations of officers and soldiers, the training in the open sea has gradually become normal, and the difficulty and intensity of the training have increased year by year. The base officers and soldiers have created more than 20 Chinese nuclear submarines for the first time and the first forever in history.
Forging the sword of the sea to make the enemy afraid
"Diving is fighting, and positions are battlefields." This is what the officers and soldiers of the base often say.
With the development of the times, the standard of ability to win battles is constantly changing. In recent years, the base troops have accumulated actual combat experience in performing tasks, continuously improved their ability to win under actual combat conditions, and focused on forging a sea sword that frightened the enemy.
In late autumn, a new tactical exercise kicked off in a certain sea area, with nuclear submarines lurking in the deep sea. They are faced with an unprecedented problem: the intended target is located in the side and rear of the boat. According to the traditional method, the boat must turn around and attack the target, but the fighter plane is fleeting. Yuan Yubai, then the maritime commander, gave an order to the submarine to search for the target with the help of the automatic steering function of the torpedo. Once there is a mistake, it may cause torpedo search failure, or even turn to attack the mother ship of serious consequences. Under the calm command of the captain, the officers and soldiers of the boat strictly followed the rules, and the torpedo, like a snake, quickly pounced on the target and destroyed it in one fell swoop. the first large-angle torpedo attack by a nuclear submarine was a complete success.
That year, the nuclear submarine in a certain area of the mission. radar soldier mu meitian stared at the radar display screen with rapt attention. Suddenly, a small signal flashed in front of his eyes and disappeared without a trace in an instant, but it left a clear mark on Mu Meitian's mind: "It is suspected that an anti-submarine aircraft of a certain country, port x degrees, distance x x, is flying towards my boat!" Mu Mei Tian did not mess up. The then captain Dong Zhen immediately adjusted his deployment: "Emergency dive!" The nuclear submarine plunged headfirst into the billowing blue waves. Sure enough, a few minutes later, a certain country's anti-submarine aircraft swept the sea. With his excellent professional skills, Mu Meitian made detection and judgment in advance, which won precious time for nuclear submarines to discover and maneuver effectively. Gao Feng, commander of the base, said: "in case of emergency, officers and soldiers face calmly and deal with it calmly, which is not only the basic requirement of combat style, but also the actual test of technical and tactical level."
On one occasion, the officers and men of the "underwater vanguard boat" were ordered to drive a nuclear submarine into the deep ocean for confrontation training. Passing through a narrow waterway with complex sea conditions, the Blue Army ships and aircraft continued to chase and intercept. "Floating means exposure, exposure means failure of the voyage." Liu Bencai, political commissar of the boat, made a brief "battle" mobilization through a broadcaster. Under the calm command of the captain, he "hovered", "sank to the bottom of the sea", and "quickly maneuvered around the corner"....... The officers and soldiers are calm and calm, with excellent quality and superior courage, with the "blue army" fighting wits and courage. Finally, the officers and soldiers successfully got rid of the "tail"!
This was a large-scale exercise to test the combat effectiveness of the base troops. At the order of the higher authorities, the nuclear submarine made an emergency dispatch, diving into the sea and heading towards the designated sea area. Along the thousands of miles of voyage, in addition to the "dragnet" laid by the troops participating in the exercise, foreign troops continued to detect and search. The nuclear submarines that are hunting the deep sea use all means that can be concealed to hide their tracks, break through the heavy blockade formed by anti-submarine vessels, aircraft and underwater minefields, and arrive at the mission sea area on time to launch new torpedoes on time. The torpedo hit the target ship and the huge target ship was blown in two. This is the first time that our nuclear submarine has fired a new type of torpedo, marking that our combat capability has once again leapt to a new level. (Zhang Chen)

Source: Economic Daily