Pentagon and White House panic, first when their nuclear submarine the USS Tampa Bay vanishes while shadowing a Russian Akula-class one in the Arctic, which actually sinks. Newly-promoted maverick USNavy Commander Joe Glass is promoted captain of the Virginia-class submarine USS Arkansas, finds the truth and rescues the Russian captain, legendary admiral Andropov, with other survivors, who helps them overcome the hostile Russian vessels. Meanwhile Russian president Nikolai Zakarin, who was visiting the Moermansk base on Kola peninsula, has been taken hostage by his war-hungry minister of defense Dmitriy Durov. To avoid a nuclear war, Lieutenant Bill Beaman's SEAL commando, already parachuted -with a bad fall- to spy on the base, is ordered to rescue Zakarin, and Glass to pick them up, neither proving nearly easy, even if sensible Andropov cooperates sincerely.—KGF Vissers