Ice Station Zebra, treacherously perched at the top of the world, silently guards a secret that will change the balance of world power forever. America's only hope rests with the speed and courage of the fighting men in the nuclear sub Tigerfish.

A new technologically superior Soviet nuclear sub, the Red October, is heading toward the United States coast under the command of Captain Ramius. The American government thinks Ramius is planning to attack. A lone CIA analyst has a different idea: he thinks Ramius is planning to defect, but he has only a few hours to find him and prove it. At the same time, the entire Russian naval and air commands are trying to find Ramius too.

At the height of the Cold War, the world holds its breath when a Soviet submarine armed with nuclear missiles goes missing in the Pacific. On board the vessel, the battle-tested captain and a rogue KGB agent are waging a life-and-death game of cat and mouse. With enemy forces closing in and time running out, the captain fights to keep control with nuclear armageddon hanging in the balance.