Factual error: When Jack Ryan is chasing the Cook's Assistant Igor Loginov through the missile compartment, the compartment shown does not exist. Russian Typhoon submarines (of which the Red October is a variant, just with a new propulsion system) have a pair of cylindrical pressure hulls - each containing a missile compartment - on either side of the missile tubes. The location where the fight takes place in the movie would be inside a free-flood area in a real Typhoon. (02:01:20 - 02:05:00)

The Hunt for Red October (1990)
Plot summary
Directed by: John McTiernan
Starring: Alec Baldwin, Sean Connery, Sam Neill, Tim Curry, James Earl Jones, Scott Glenn, Jeffrey Jones, Courtney B. Vance, Richard Jordan, Joss Ackland, Peter Firth
Soviet submarine captain disappears with his vessel from a training exercise. He tells the Soviets he is defecting. The Soviets tell the Americans he is going to launch missiles on the US. Both sides are trying to sink the Red October but a CIA analyst thinks otherwise, and tries to prove to the US forces that the Red October isn't a threat.
Nikki Williams
Vasily Borodin: I would like to have seen Montana.
Trivia: The Alfa-class submarine Konovalov commanded by Captain Tupolev is named after Soviet Rear Admiral Vladimir Konovalov. In March 1945, he sunk the German luxury liner Goya in the Baltic Sea on its way to Kiel, killing 6220 East Prussian refugees out of 6385.
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Chosen answer: They use it to wipe the grease pencil markings off the screens.