Work is set to begin in December on a new Russian ballistic-missile submarine, SKRIN Market & Corporate News reported yesterday (see GSN, Sept. 16).
The Sevmash shipyard is scheduled to begin assembling the new Borei-class vessel, tentatively dubbed Nicholas the Sanctifier, on Dec. 22. Three more submarines of the same class -- the Yuri Dolgoruky, the Alexander Nevsky, and the Dmitry Monomakh -- are in various phases of construction and testing.
The Russian navy plans by 2018 to base much of its nuclear strategy around the Borei-class submarines, which would carry ballistic missiles armed with up to 10 nuclear warheads as well as missile defense countermeasures. Moscow plans to gradually phase out its Typhoon, Delta 3 and Delta 4 submarines in favor of the new vessel.
The latest vessel is likely to cost roughly $767 million, the expense announced for the Yuri Dolgoruky (SKRIN Market & Corporate News/Marchmontnews.com, Oct. 8).
Meanwhile, the Russian strategic missile forces were set today to begin drills expected to continue through Oct. 17, RIA Novosti reported.
No fewer than six aircraft are expected to take part in the drills outside the town of Teikovo, where a Russian strategic missile division has received six mobile-launched Topol-M ICBM units (RIA Novosti, Oct. 8).