The Russian Navy will tomorrow receive the fifth diesel-electric submarine Project 636,3 class Varshavyanka, the Veliky Novgorod, with a ceremony to be held in St. Petersburg, in the 110 anniversary of the submarine fleet. The Kolpino, the last of the class, will be delivered for testing next May. Both Veliky Novgorod and Kolpino will enter into active service by the end of the 2016. The Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric submarines will equip the Black Sea War Fleet. These submarines represent a key element of the Russian naval strategy in the Mediterranean, where Moscow has a permanent task force consisting of ten fleet surface ships in service. The construction of the first submarine, the 'Novorossiysk' started in August of the 2010, followed by the "Rostov Na Donu" in November 2011, the "Stary Oskol" in the August of 2012 and the fourth boat, the "Krasnodar" entered the construction site on February 20th of the 2014. Work on the fifth boat, the 'Veliky Novgorod' and the sixth, the 'Kolpino', began the 30 October of the 2014. The Russian submarines nicknamed by the US Navy as "Black Holes in the Ocean / Black Holes in the Ocean", once immersed, would no longer be identifiable. The Black Sea Fleet did not receive new submarines from 23 years and operated only with 'L'Alrosa', a 'Kilo' class boat entered into service in the 1990.
The Varshavyanka are powered by diesel-electric engines with very low noise emissions and can hit targets at long distances without being detected by enemy antisubmarine radars.
Improved version of the "Kilo" (the latter below five speed nodes is invisible to passive sonar), implements technology stealth advanced. It has a displacement of 3.100 tons, reaches a speed of 20 knots, can dive up to 300 meters and carry crews of 52 people. The submarines, armed with 18 torpedoes, mines and eight Kalibr 3M54 cruise missiles (NATO SS-N-27 Sizzler), will carry out anti-submarine missions (Hunter Killer) in relatively shallow waters. All six submarines will be deployed at the Novorossiysk naval base by the 2016. The 'Novorossiysk' is in service in the Black Sea since the 22 August of the 2014. The 'Rostov-on-Don' is in service since December 30 of the 2014, while it is Stary Oskol since July of the 2015. The Krasnodar, fourth of the class Varshavyanka, is active since 5 last November.
Last December the Rostov-on-Don launched the entire rescue of cruise missiles Kalibr 3M54 embarked against enemy targets near the Syrian city of Raqqa. The Rostov-on-Don it has actually entered the history of the Russian Navy for being the first submarine to launch cruise missiles against real enemy targets.
(photo: Ria Novosti)
