Gorshkov rose from Black Sea Fleet leadership to commander-in-chief and deputy minister of defense. Under his direction, Soviet ships formed standing squadrons in the Mediterranean, Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. His maxim that better could be the enemy of good enough expressed a procurement preference for capable ships available in useful numbers rather than exquisite designs that never reached the fleet. Good enough still meant a credible 75-to-80-percent solution, rather than poor ships bought merely to inflate hull totals.
Chapter · 59:54-1:05:31
From Black Sea commander to builder of a blue-water Soviet Navy
Gorshkov's postwar promotions culminated in command of a globally deployed fleet built around submarines, surface groups, and sustained presence.