Joe's Fighting Ships
It is hardly surprising that the section which has attracted most attention in the latest edition of that great authority, Jane's Fight- ing Ships, is the one dealing with the Russian navy, though it
would not seem to contain much material of technical interest for " the discerning student of warships and naval construction" to whom it is addressed. But when the Editor of Jane's says that the information provided on the Russian navy, although presented with all reserve, will not deceive, it may be accepted. Its central points are two. There are three 35,000-ton battleships of the comparatively recent Sovyetski Soyuz class, two of which may be in commission. The most interesting part of their armament is " two catapult towers for firing radio-controlled aerial torpedoes." It is difficult to attach primary importance to these ships, partly because of their difficulty in getting to open sea and partly because of the presumption that the Russian navy has little experience in working battleships. The second point, which is that there are 360 existing submarines, significantly including ex-German tonnage, and a plan to have 1,000 completed for service by 1950-51, is another matter. There is every reason to accept the opinion that the Russians have neither the technicians nor the shipyards necessary to fulfil the plan in time. though there was also every reason to accept the opinion held in other quarters that the Russians could not possibly make an atomic bomb by this year. But the programme will be suficiently important even if it is fulfilled a few years late. "Even warmongers may take note that the peace-loving uses of submarines are singularly few.
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