The Alfa class's small crew left an open question about submarine automation

The Alfa class raises the question of why Western submarines did not pursue the same degree of automation and crew reduction. A viewer describes routine work concentrated on monitoring systems, with the crew remaining in the third compartment except when repairs required them elsewhere. Another contribution points out that later Soviet and Russian submarines also returned to larger complements. The Alfa demonstrated radical crew reduction, but the reasons for those later choices remain unanswered here.