Russian Vladimir Monomakh submarine launches Bulava SLBM missiles.

The Pacific Fleet’s Project 955 Borei-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine Vladimir Monomakh (NATO reporting name: Dolgorukiy-class) has performed a salvo launch of four Bulava (SS-NX-32) sea-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) during a planned exercise, the Defense Ministry’s press office said.
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Pacific Fleet’s Project 955 Borei-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine Vladimir Monomakh (Picture source: Wikipedia)

“The salvo launch was performed from the underwater position in the Sea of Okhotsk against the Chizha range in the Arkhangelsk Region [in north Russia]. The flight of Bulava ballistic missiles went smoothly. According to live monitoring and recording data, the warheads reached the assigned area of the Chizha range,” the Defense Minsitry's press office said on December 14. Russian Defense Minister General of the Army Sergei Shoigu reported on the completion of training by strategic missile forces to President Vladimir Putin and said that the salvo launch had been performed over a distance of more than 5,500 km.

In November 2015, the Vladimir Monomakh submarine conducted a successful salvo launch of two Bulava ballistic missiles from the underwater position in the White Sea at the Kura range in Kamchatka.

In May 2018, the Project 955 submarine Yuri Dolgorukiy performed a salvo launch of four Bulava ballistic missiles from the White Sea to hit targets at the Kura training range.

Russian Navy nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines did not perform such salvo launches before 2018. In August 1991, the Begemot-2 operation was carried out, during which the Project 667BDRM Delfin-class submarine Novomoskovsk performed a launch of 16 R-29RM (SS-N-23 Skiff) ballistic missiles.

In 1998, a Project 941 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (Typhoon-class) fired all of its 20 ballistic missiles. The missiles self-destructed at a low altitude shortly after they were launched as the launch was aimed at disposing of the ballistic missiles under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).

During the Begemot-2 operation, the Project 667BDRM submarine fired only two real ballistic missiles, while the remaining 14 were mockups.

Thus, the salvo launches carried out in 2018 and 2020 were record-breaking in terms of the number of real missiles launched.

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