The Project 971 submarine has been put to the test after many years of repairs and may return to service in the coming months.
After almost 15 years of repairs, the Leopard nuclear submarine of Project 971 has entered factory sea trials. According to Izvestia's sources, after completing the inspections, the submarine should return to the Northern Fleet in the coming months. During the modernization, the ship received updated systems and new weapons, including the possibility of using Kalibr cruise missiles. The return of one of the most famous nuclear-powered ships of the Shchuka-B project will strengthen the grouping of Russian multipurpose submarines and expand its capabilities to defeat sea and land targets.
How the Leopard nuclear submarine was upgraded
The nuclear submarine Leopard of project 971 went to sea for factory sea trials, sources familiar with the situation told Izvestia. After completing all control measures, the ship should return to the Northern Fleet, the interlocutors specified.
The project 971 Shchuka-B submarines were built from 1983 to 2001. In the West, they were called Akula and Improved Akula. The Leopard was transferred to the Russian Navy in 1993. He was part of the 24th Submarine Division of the Northern Fleet, which was called the "animal". In 2011, the Leopard was sent to the Zvezdochka ship repair center for repairs and modernization. It was planned to return the boat to service in 2021, but the dates were postponed several times.
"These ships were not very lucky, because they were commissioned during the collapse of the USSR with all the ensuing consequences," military expert Dmitry Boltenkov told Izvestia. — In the 1990s, the shipbuilding industry lost a lot of qualified personnel, and this can partly explain such a long repair time.
The length of the boats of the 971 project is 113 m, the hull width is more than 13 m, and the total displacement is more than 13 thousand tons. Several more ships of this series are under repair and modernization.
According to their characteristics, the Pikes are considered quite successful, and the potential inherent in them is enough for them to continue their service, Rear Admiral Mikhail Chekmasov, Candidate of Military Sciences, told Izvestia.
"Initially, they had the idea that they could use not only torpedo weapons, but also missiles," he noted.
The main change after the modernization relates to weapons — the boat has received a modern Kalibr missile system and can now strike both sea and land targets, Izvestia reported. The equipment was upgraded, which brought her closer to modern Yasen-M type submarines.
— The 971 project itself is quite successful. These boats have proven themselves well. The return of such a ship to the fleet in the current conditions is very important. We don't have many multipurpose nuclear submarines. Another unit will strengthen the fleet," Dmitry Boltenkov concluded.
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| The nuclear submarine Leopard. |
| Source: RIA Novosti/Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation |
According to military expert, Captain 1st Rank Vasily Dandykin, the Leopard can return to the fleet within a few months after the start of testing. The boat's acoustics, weapons, and other characteristics have been improved, he added.
— This boat roughly corresponds in its capabilities to American submarines of the Los Angeles type. After modernization, it may surpass them and approach the level of Virginia," noted Dandykin.
Which boats replaced the ships of the 971st project
The project 885 Yasen and 885M Yasen-M boats became the successors of the Project 971 ships. To date, five representatives of this series are in service — Severodvinsk, Kazan, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk and Arkhangelsk. The Perm submarine is currently undergoing testing and is scheduled to join the fleet this year. Three more boats of this project are under construction.
Yasen-M submarines can strike surface, underwater and ground targets. They are equipped with homing torpedoes, Kalibr-PL and Onyx missiles. The former can hit naval targets at a distance of more than 250 km, and ground targets at a range of up to 2.5 thousand km. Supersonic Onyx missiles are designed to combat surface naval groups and single ships, as well as to strike ground targets.
The ships of the 885M project can use hypersonic Zircons. In 2021, the Severodvinsk lead submarine launched these missiles for the first time in history, both from a surface and underwater position. To date, there are no guaranteed ways to intercept the Zircons.
Yasen-M can detect underwater targets at a range of tens of kilometers using the Irtysh-Amphora sonar system, which includes a powerful spherical nose and on-board antennas.
In December 2024, at the flag-raising ceremony on the Arkhangelsk nuclear submarine accepted into the fleet, Sevmash CEO Mikhail Budnichenko stated that this ship has formidable striking power and high performance, and it embodies advanced engineering developments, modern systems and mechanisms.
Timofey Volkov
Dmitry Seledtsov
