In June 2020, the first Borey-A class submarine, named Knyaz Vladimir, was handed over to the Northern Fleet. Photo: Sevmash
Northern Fleet gets priority in
receiving new ballistic missile subs
Russia’s Defense Ministry has decided
that at least one of the next Borei-A class strategic submarines will be
delivered to the Northern Fleet instead of the Pacific Fleet.
Read in Russian | Читать по-русски
By
Thomas Nilsen
May 15, 2021
The strategic importance of
the Northern Fleet based on the Kola Peninsula is growing as Arctic tensions
are rising.
The plan for redistribution of
the Borei-A submarines is now being made, newspaper Izvestia reported this week.
Originally the three next subs
of the class, currently under construction at the Sevmash yard in Severodvinsk, were
supposed to be part of the Pacific Fleet’s 25th nuclear submarine division
based on Kamchatka. Now, sources in the Defense Ministry said to the newspaper
that at least one will instead be part of the 31st division based in Gadzhiyevo
on the coast to the Barents Sea.
That will either be “Knyaz Oleg” or “Generalissimus Suvorov”.
“Knyaz Oleg”
is currently undergoing sea trials and is expected to be handed over to the
navy later this year.
“Knyaz Vladimir” at the Sevmash yard in Severodvinsk. Photo: Sevmash yard
Four submarines of the Borei
class are so far delivered, of which two are with the Northern Fleet (“Yury Dolgorukiy” and “Knyaz Vladimir”) and two are
sailing with the Pacific Fleet (“Aleksandr
Nevsky” and “Vladimir
Monomakh”).
According to Izvestia’s source, the decision to
possibly relocate was taken after the navy’s Arctic Umka exercise in March this year, where three
nuclear submarines from the Northern Fleet surfaced through the ice
simultaneously north of Franz Josef Land.
Giving priority to the
Northern Fleet is interesting since it is the Pacific Fleet that today operates
the oldest ballistic missile submarines of the Delta-III class while the
Northern Fleet has all of the five newer Delta-IV subs still in operation.
The move follows a pattern
from the last decades of the Cold War when the Northern Fleet was given most of
the newest nuclear submarines and naval weaponry.
It will also mean that a
larger portion of Russia’s naval-based strategic nuclear warheads will be
sailing the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean.
A Borei class submarine can
carry 16 ballistic Bulava missiles, each armed with 6 to 10 nuclear
warheads.
Originally, eight Borei-class
submarines were supposed to be built, but last year the Defense Ministry signed
contracts with the Sevmash shipyard for an additional two, to be named “Dmitry Donskoy” and “Knyaz Potyomkin”.
Ingen kommentarer:
Legg inn en kommentar
Merk: Bare medlemmer av denne bloggen kan legge inn en kommentar.