Vasily Arkhipov
Soviet submarine officer who averted nuclear war (1926-1998) · Russia · On the map · Died at 72
A Soviet submarine officer who, on a single decision in 1962, stopped his crew from launching a nuclear torpedo at U.S. warships during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The director of the National Security Archive later called him "the man who saved the world."
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About this person
Vasily Aleksandrovich Arkhipov was born 30 January 1926 and rose to vice admiral in the Soviet Navy. In October 1962, he served as executive officer aboard submarine B-59 during the Cuban Missile Crisis, when U.S. destroyers dropped stun grenades near the vessel. The captain and political officer, believing war had started, prepared to fire a nuclear torpedo at American ships - but launch required unanimous agreement among all three senior officers, and Arkhipov refused. He became rear admiral in 1975 and head of the Kirov Naval Academy, then vice admiral in 1981 before retiring mid-decade. He settled in Zheleznodorozhny, Moscow Oblast, and died of kidney cancer on 19 August 1998, the disease possibly linked to radiation exposure during his service.