Nerpichya Naval Base

 military, naval base

Nerpichya (meaning "West Face"), located at the inner reaches of the Litsa Fjord, is the newest of the Zapadnaya Litsa base facilities. The first pier facilities were ready for use by the end of the 1960s. When the base facility was opened, it served as a base for nuclear submarines of Type 675 - Echo-II class, and later, for submarines of Type 658 - Hotel class.

In 1977, all of the nuclear submarines were transferred to other naval bases on the Kola Peninsula, as Nerpichya was to be modified to become the naval base facility for the new giant 175 meter-long Type 941 nuclear submarines - Typhoon class.

Construction on the first submarine in this class was started in 1977. In the period from 1977 to 1981, the base facilities at Nerpichya were expanded to include three large piers and a number of new facilities on shore. However, despite the fact that the new nuclear submarines were to be based at Nerpichya, many of the new facilities were never completed.

For example many of the parts necessary to complete a larger facility for external supply of energy to the submarines never arrived at Zapadnaya Litsa. Many of the cranes planned for the three new piers were never erected. The three piers at which the submarines are moored are located beneath a steep mountain. In the early 1980s, there was a rock slide here which destroyed a number of buildings all the way down to the piers.

Finally, there was no missile launch tube loading & unloading crane facility of sufficient size located at this base. Instead the boats went to a special constructed craning quay constructed a mile further up the inlet, where a train terminal was constructed to bring the missiles on a journey of about 413km (260m) all the way from the Revda SLBM arsenal in the central part of the Kola Peninsula. However, torpedoes most probably could be stored and deployed from the underground munitions bunker located on the south side of the bay and loaded by means of a floating pontoon crane.