 After service with the 5th Operational Squadron and undertaking the navy's , Kasatonov went on to take up his own commands, firstly the destroyer , and then her sister ship .After further study at the Naval Academy, he was appointed head of the department of the mobilization at the Northern Fleet headquarters, before becoming captain of the battlecruiser "Pyotr Velikiy" in 2000.It was during exercises in August 2000, led by the admiral aboard the "Pyotr Velikiy", that the submarine K-141 "Kursk" suffered a fatal accident and sank.