Ten nuclear Yasen-type submarines are scheduled to be constructed in Russia in the next nine years, as part of the state arms program through 2020.
The new generation submarines are capable of combating both other submarines below the surface and weapons on the surface, including aircraft carriers.
The Yasen submarine’s length is 119 meters. It weighs in at 13,800 tons, with a cruising capacity of 100 days. The submarines can go up to speeds of 31 knots.
It can be equipped with supersonic high-speed missiles and torpedoes, including nuclear weapons and “Onyxes.”
“This type of submarine was previously unknown in Russia,” Andrey Frolov, from the Center for Analysis of Strategy and Technology, told RT. “It’s multifunctional and can be used to attack carrier forces. In Soviet times, they had to use two different types of submarines, but Yasen is uniting them.”
Initially it was planned that Russia’s Navy would get 30 such submarines, but later the number was cut down to only six due to a lack of funds. Now the authorities are sticking to 10.
The first submarine is expected to hit the water by the end of 2011. Its construction started in 1993. The second submarine, based on a modified Yasen-M project, was begun in 2009.