The new submarine will serve in the Northern Fleet.
The Arkhangelsk Project 885 Yasen-M multipurpose nuclear submarine, which joined the Russian Navy on December 27, will strengthen the Northern Fleet. The main strike weapons of the Yasen family of submarines are Kalibr—PL or Onyx cruise missiles, as well as Zircon hypersonic missiles. Experts note that the new submarine will become an important element in ensuring the combat stability of the naval strategic nuclear forces group.
Multi-purpose submarine
The Arkhangelsk multipurpose nuclear submarine will become part of the Northern Fleet, sources in the Russian Defense Ministry told Izvestia.
The solemn ceremony of raising the flag on the ship took place in Severodvinsk at the shipyard of USC Sevmash. It was conducted under the leadership of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Alexander Moiseev. During the ceremony, he presented the St. Andrew's flag to the submarine commander, Captain 1st Rank Alexander Gladkov. After that, the banner was hoisted on the ship's flagpole.
"The Arkhangelsk nuclear submarine is a carrier of all types of naval missile weapons capable of effectively hitting both sea and coastal targets. This allows Yasen-M class submarines to remain effective and promising weapons. Thanks to this, they make an invaluable contribution to maintaining global and regional security in peacetime," Alexander Moiseev said at the opening ceremony.
Admiral Alexander Moiseev, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy
Image source: Photo: JSC "PO Sevmash"
The admiral recalled that the submariners "achieved high results in fulfilling the task of the Navy's military presence in the oceans as part of the voyage of the lead ship of the Kazan project 885M to the Republic of Cuba this year."
According to Alexander Moiseev, the construction of a series of submarines of this project will continue. In the near future, the Navy will be replenished with four multipurpose nuclear submarines Perm, Ulyanovsk, Voronezh and Vladivostok.
APRK Arkhangelsk has a formidable striking force and high performance. It embodies advanced engineering developments, modern systems and mechanisms are implemented. I am sure that this newest cruiser will become another strong argument in defending national interests in the oceans," said Mikhail Budnichenko, CEO of Sevmash.
To date, four cruisers of the Yasen and Yasen-M projects — Severodvinsk, Kazan, Novosibirsk and Krasnoyarsk — are already serving in the Russian Navy. Four more submarines are at different stages of construction.
The Yasen-M multipurpose submarines are our most modern ships, which are ahead of any submarines of our "partners" in many tactical and technical characteristics, Admiral Sergey Avakyants, ex—commander of the Pacific Fleet, told Izvestia.
"In addition, the Ash Trees are carriers of high—precision long—range hypersonic weapons," the admiral said. — The main purpose of these ships is to be covertly located in any point of the World Ocean, ready to strike at large industrial and control centers and other critical enemy facilities. By receiving ships with such capabilities, our Navy will be able to conduct independent strategic operations in the ocean area. That's what we should strive for.
Photo: JSC "PO Sevmash"
Image Source: iz.ru
The Arkhangelsk is a multi—purpose boat that can perform a wide range of tasks, Ilya Kramnik, a researcher at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Izvestia.
"She can hunt for submarines, given her fairly advanced sonar weapons, which are combined with low noise and high speed," he noted. — It can also destroy enemy surface ships. The boat's launchers can accommodate both anti-ship and missiles to destroy coastal facilities. There are also certain issues with torpedo armament — it is still from Soviet times — and they will have to be resolved. The new torpedoes have not yet been fully tested — there is something to work on and improve. Potentially, this is a very important acquisition that will last for many years.
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| APRK Arkhangelsk. |
| Source: iz.ru |
But the main task of the boats of this project is to ensure the combat stability of the naval strategic nuclear forces group, he noted.
"Boats can also participate in covering the Northern Sea Route and operate in the Atlantic," the expert explained. — But, I note, the Northern Fleet does not have enough ships to operate in the Atlantic, their number must be increased.
The power of Arkhangelsk
More than 400 organizations across Russia were involved in the construction of the Arkhangelsk nuclear submarine. The ship has successfully passed all the test stages. She became the 141st nuclear submarine built for the Russian Navy on the stocks of Sevmash. The designer is the St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Bureau of the USC Malakhit.
The latest Russian developments in the field of military weapons, naval weapons, technical and electronic complexes, and main power plants are used in the construction of this series of submarines. The changes and technical solutions introduced into the Yasen-M project relate to the element base of the complexes, upgraded equipment and materials produced by Russian enterprises.
Photo: JSC "PO Sevmash"
Image source: iz.ru
In particular, for the first time in the practice of building domestic submarines, the so—called one-and-a-half-hull design was used - the lightweight hull "covers" the durable one not completely, but only partially.
Cruise missiles are the basis of the submarine's strike power. In the mines of the "Ash" there are "Onyx" or "Caliber", as well as "Zircons".
Kalibras are extremely effective at hitting not only surface targets, but also ground targets — their firing range is at least 1.5 thousand km. Supersonic Onyx missiles are designed to combat surface naval groups and single ships, as well as for strikes against ground targets.
Photo: JSC "PO Sevmash"
Image source: iz.ru
Yaseni can also use Zircon hypersonic missiles. In 2021, the Severodvinsk submarine of this project used them for the first time in history. Moreover, the launches were carried out both from the surface position of the ship and from the underwater position from a depth of 40 m. These missiles can strike various targets: both surface naval formations and coastal targets. At the same time, the Zircons are practically invulnerable, existing air defense systems cannot intercept them.
Vladimir Matveev
Bogdan Stepovoy
