The Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Nikolai Evmenov, announced that on November 1, two submarines of Project 636.3, Ufa and Magadan, will be laid down at the Admiralty Shipyards in St. Petersburg. This was announced by the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy during a meeting at which they discussed issues related to the construction of a series of non-nuclear submarines of Project 636.3 for the Pacific Fleet.

During the meeting, the chiefs of specialized departments reported their readiness to lay submarines and discussed the application of technologies in the construction of these submarines, taking into account their operation in the Far East.

The Director General of Admiralty Shipyards JSC Alexander Buzakov reported to the Commander-in-Chief on the state of the enterprise’s production facilities, noting that the laying of two submarines at the same time is a unique event for shipbuilders.

“This illustrates the capabilities of the plant and the smooth running of the serial construction of non-nuclear submarines,” the press service of the Russian Defense Ministry quoted Buzakov as saying.

  • Solemn ceremony of launching a diesel-electric submarine of project 636.3 "Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky" at the "Admiralty Shipyards" in St. Petersburg
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  • © Alexander Halperin

The meeting participants analyzed the test results of the first diesel-electric submarine of project 636.3 Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. According to the Ministry of Defense, the submarine confirmed all the declared tactical and technical characteristics and completely completed the test program, including diving.

In turn, the Navy Commander-in-Chief recalled that in December this year the second diesel-electric submarine of Volkhov Project 636.3 for the Pacific Fleet will be launched.

Marine update

The main priorities for the development of the Navy are defined in the presidential decree on the basics of state policy in the field of naval activities until 2030, which Vladimir Putin signed back in 2017.

In March 2019, Russian Minister of Defense Army General Sergei Shoigu announced that in accordance with the state armament program until 2027, the Russian Navy will replenish more than 180 new ships and vessels.

On July 29, 2019, taking the main naval parade on the occasion of the Day of the Russian Navy, Vladimir Putin said that the fleet "is mastering the latest technology, effectively using and developing promising engineering and design solutions that have no analogues in the world."

“This year alone, the navy will be replenished with 15 ships and combat boats. Naval aviation and coastal forces are being updated, the infrastructure of naval bases is being improved, the practice of world tours has been restored, ”the Russian president emphasized.

According to him, the unique examples of Russian weapons are a guarantee that the fleet will be able to "give a worthy rebuff to any aggressor."

The President noted that “the level of modern weapons and military equipment in the Navy has exceeded 62%” and the state does not intend to stop there, but will continue the process of rearmament of the Navy.

Third generation

Submarines of project 636.3 Varshavyanka belong to the third generation of submarines and are a continuation of the Soviet diesel-electric submarines of projects 636 and 877 developed by TsKB MT Rubin (St. Petersburg).

  • Diesel submarine Krasnokamensk of the Varshavyanka class in Vladivostok
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  • © Vitaliy Ankov

Varshavyanka inherited its unusual name from project 636 - boats were intended for export to the Warsaw Pact countries during the Cold War. In the 1990s and 2000s, simplified modifications of the Varshavyanka were also exported to China, Algeria and Vietnam. In total, about 20 such submarines were manufactured and sold abroad.

The length of the project 636.3 submarine is 74 m, the width is 10 m, the displacement is about 2.3 thousand tons, the depth of immersion is 300 m, the autonomy is 45 days, the underwater speed is 20 knots (37 km / h), the crew is 52 people . Varshavyanka belongs to the class of third-generation submarines, but it is equipped with modern equipment, which allows us to automate control processes to a large extent.

One of the main advantages of the Project 636.3 boats is their extremely low noise - in the West they were nicknamed “The Black Hole” for this.

A special feature of the Project 636.3 submarines is their equipping with the Caliber-PL strike missile system and updated electronic equipment. The submarine is also equipped with six 533 mm torpedo tubes.

“Varshavyanka” received baptism of fire in December 2015 off the coast of Syria, launching militants of the “Islamic State” *. These were the first missile attacks in the history of the Russian fleet from an underwater position in real combat operations.

In March 2019, the Ministry of Defense announced that six Varshavyanka series submarines intended for the Pacific Fleet were under construction. At the same time, the Ministry of Defense emphasized that all ships will be manufactured using new sonar plates, which will "completely hide submarines from radars."

The use of new technologies, coupled with modern weapons, makes these submarines one of the most popular among Russian sailors, military expert Yuri Knutov said in an interview with RT.

“Certain corrections are made to the construction project, as new technologies appear, but the main thing is that these low-noise submarines are adapted for firing with Caliber. Americans and NATO call these submarines a "black hole" because they could not detect them on their radars. Naturally, during the construction, their best qualities will be preserved, and the achievements that have appeared during the use of these boats, including for solving military tasks in the territorial waters of Syria, will be added, ”said the expert.

Missile advantage

The use of the Caliber caliber missiles by Varshavyanka is a fundamental difference from similarly designed boats, noted retired 1st rank captain Konstantin Sivkov, speaking with RT.

“The submarine of project 636 is almost identical to the submarine of project 877 Halibut.” The main difference is the launchers, which allow you to put the caliber rockets. In addition, the new submarine has a more perfect absorbing coating, thanks to which foreign submarines will not be able to detect it. In the Mediterranean, such submarines were able to detect the latest British submarine, which thwarted its participation in the strike on Syria, ”the expert recalled.

  • Launch from the underwater position of the Caliber cruise missiles from the Kolpino submarine
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  • © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

In turn, Yuri Knutov, in a conversation with RT, noted that submarines will be able to destroy both the ground enemy and sea, because Caliber missiles can hit not only land and sea targets, but also submarines.

“But still, the main target of these Russian submarines of the Pacific Fleet will be American medium and shorter-range missiles, which will be deployed in South Korea and Japan after the collapse of the INF Treaty,” Knutov said.

According to the expert, in the future, other types of precision weapons that have been developed in Russia in recent years will be used on Project 636.3 submarines.

“Caliber missiles, which can be launched from underwater, are the main type of weaponry for submarines of this class. However, a transition to universal launchers is planned, which will be more modern and advanced, which in the future will allow new submarines to use Zircon hypersonic missiles, ”concluded Yuri Knutov.

* “Islamic State” (ISIS, ISIS) - the organization was recognized as terrorist by decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of December 29, 2014.