The Soviet expedition took place nearly six years after the first complete submerged circumnavigation of the world undertaken by the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered submarine Triton in 1960.

While the first generation U.S. Navy's nuclear submarines were experimental vessels that could carry out operational missions, the Soviet Navy opted for the immediate series production for its ballistic missile submarine introducing the Hotel, Echo, and November classes (NATO names), that featured the vertical launching system platform which were known collectively as the HEN classes.

[6][7][8] Planning for the mission was credited to Admiral Vladimir Chernavin, then the commander of a Northern Fleet division of submarines and later to become Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Navy.

[9] The detachment's sailing orders from the Main Naval Staff read in part: You will be passing through seas and oceans where Russian sailors have not traveled in more than 100 years.

[9] The detachment completed its circumnavigation by arriving at the Pacific Fleet submarine base in Vilyuchinsk on 26 March 1966, having covered 21,000 nmi (39,000 km; 24,000 mi) in 52 days.

[8] Minister of Defense Rodion Malinovsky addressed the 23rd Congress on 2 April 1966: In recent years, the number of long cruises by our nuclear submarines have increased by 5-fold and they have clearly demonstrated the capability of our glorious sailors to successfully carry out any mission in the ocean expanses from the Arctic to Antarctic.

An officer who made the six-week tour as a special correspondent reported in the Defense Ministry newspaper that American planes and ships were detected several times.

On one occasion, when his submarine rose to periscope depth, he said, a United States plane was sighted and "we dived lower so as not to whet the appetites of the antisubmarine forces of the imperialists."

"We crossed the seas and oceans strictly observing the international rules of navigation"[13]The unnamed naval officer cited in the above article was undoubtedly Captain 2nd Rank G.A.

[5] Also, the Soviet Navy deployed its first true nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, the Yankee class, which began its first nuclear deterrence patrol in June 1969.

[17]The impact of this Soviet naval expansion was summarized by Admiral of the Fleet Sir Peter Hill-Norton, RN, the chairman of NATO's military staff committee, who observed: "The U.S. had never previously faced a global threat to its sea-lane communications from a mix of subsurface, surface and maritime-air naval forces.