Russia Cancels Project 955B - Will Build Six More Project 955A Submarines.

The 2018-2027 state armament program does not envisage the construction of Project 955B Borei-B class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines but six more Project 955A Borei-A class submarines (NATO reporting name: Dolgorukiy-class) will be built by the Sevmash Shipyard after 2023, a source in Russia’s defense industry told TASS.

The K-535 SSBN "Yuri Dolgoruky" of Project 955 of the Northern Fleet on 05/20/2018. Picture by CrazyMk / forums.airbase.ru

After receiving them, the Navy will operate 14 submarines of the type, the source added. As it was reported earlier, work on the conceptual design of upgraded Project 955B submarines with a new water-jet propulsion system and onboard equipment was expected to begin in 2018. Their development was included in the draft state armament program and a series of four such submarines was planned to be built.

"After the proposals on building Borei-B nuclear-powered submarines were analyzed, a decision was made to give them up as the construction of such submarines does not meet the cost-efficiency criterion. Instead of them, Borei-A class submarines were included in the final version of the state armament program through 2027," the source said. According to the source, "the construction of the new series of Project 955A submarines will begin at the Sevmash Shipyard after 2023." "In all, six Borei-A class submarines are planned to be built. They will be operational with the Northern and Pacific Fleets. When the series is built, the Navy will operate 14 new nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, namely 11 Borei-A class and three Borei-class submarines," the source said.

TASS does not have any official confirmation of this information.

The Project 955 and Project 955A submarines were developed by the Rubin Central Design Bureau for Marine Engineering in St. Petersburg in northwest Russia. The Sevmash Shipyard in Severodvinsk in north Russia continues the construction of the first series of eight submarines. Three Project 955 Borei-class submarines, in particular, the lead submarine Yuri Dolgorukiy and the serial-produced submarines Alexander Nevsky and Vladimir Monomakh, have already been put into operation with the Russian Navy. The remaining five submarines, namely the Knyaz Vladimir, Knyaz Oleg, Generalissimo Suvorov, Emperor Alexander III and Knyaz Pozharsky, were laid down and are being built under improved Project 955A.

The fourth-generation Project 955 nuclear-powered submarine is designed for elimination of the enemy’s strategic land targets and for tactical missions, e.g. antisurface and antisubmarine operations, in time of war. The submarine embodies advanced shipborne radio electronics and design solutions improving the hull’s hydrodynamics and slashing the noise. The submarine’s primary weapon is the sophisticated R-30 Bulava (SS-NX-32) multiple individually-targeted re-entry vehicle (MIRV) submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) with a range of over 8,000 kilometers (4,971 miles). Each Project 955 submarine carries 16 solid-propellant Bulava intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The submarine is equipped with a surfacing escape chamber for the whole crew. The submarine has a length of 170 meters, a width of 13.5 meters and a submergence depth of 450 meters. Its crew totals 107.

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