The crew of the autonomous inhabited deep-sea rescue vehicle AS-36 "Bester" of the emergency rescue detachment of the Northern Fleet (SF) has started testing in the Kola Bay of the Barents Sea. This was reported by the press service of the Russian Defense Ministry on Friday, December 17.
Before that, Bester underwent an average repair at the Gunboat Ship Repair Plant in St. Petersburg with the modernization of the main systems. So, the rescue submarine has completely updated its radio equipment, automation and motion control systems. A new navigation system has been installed, which will allow you to accurately determine the location of the device both on the surface of the sea and under water. The hull of the AS-36 was tested in laboratory conditions for the maximum pressure it experiences at depths of more than 1 thousand m.
The AC-36 has already passed part of the checks in the Baltic, now it's the turn of acceptance tests. They are currently under the command of Captain of the third rank Andrey Volkov in the Kola Bay, then the test zone will be relocated to the Barents Sea. So far, its driving qualities have been partially checked in the surface position. Next in line: underwater maneuvering and measurements of various technical parameters, checking the operation of instruments, all systems and mechanisms.
The full-time carrier of the AS-36 underwater vehicle is the Mikhail Rudnitsky rescue vessel, whose crew ensures that all manipulations with the device and test work are carried out in the Kola Bay.
The tests will continue in 2022. At their final stage, Bester will dive to its working depth of more than 700 m with the provision of another autonomous rescuer - AS-34, which is based on board the rescue vessel Georgy Titov.
On November 20, SF submariners conducted special anti-submarine exercises with practical torpedo firing in the Barents Sea. Counteraction to the cruiser during the maneuvers was provided by a multipurpose nuclear submarine of one of the formations of the SF submarine forces.
