Husky - Program
The first Husky-class multi-purpose submarine [mnogotselevaya podvodnaya lodka] was planned to be completed by 2030. The fifth-generation sub will join Russia's fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, many of which are currently being modernized, including with advanced cruise missiles.
As Russia continues to build its new Yasen-class nuclear submarines and keeps modernizing the Soviet-era Shchuka-class submarines, the Russia Navy has set its sights on a fifth-generation multipurpose sub, which was already in development. The project was known under the name "Husky" and was planned to replace the Shchuka- and Yasen-class submarines.
The fifth-generation submarine of the Husky project will be maximally unified and will incorporate the qualities of multi-purpose and strategic submarines. Alexei Rakhmanov, president of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), said this on the air of Ekho Moskvy 04 April 2016. "The fifth generation boat project was being actively discussed and various preliminary tasks are being prepared, the work was being done, it will be a completely different boat in terms of physical fields." This will be a boat that will be unified - strategic and multi-purpose in a number of its key elements, "said he. Rakhmanov specified that the nuclear submarine "will be different with weapons," but before the USC, the task was to achieve maximum uniformity in order to "get the best price proposal for the Defense Ministry."
"If we finish the development of a fourth-generation boat in 2017-2018, and if we do not start developing a fifth-generation boat in these years, we will not release it until 2030," Rakhmanov said, referring to the possible timing of the creation of the Husky submarine ".
As previously reported in USC, the formation of the appearance and the creation of a preliminary design of the multi-purpose nuclear submarine of the fifth generation of the Haski project will be completed within two years. The development of a multi-purpose nuclear submarine of the fifth generation was being carried out at the Malakhit design bureau in St. Petersburg. At present, Russia was building a series of multi-purpose submarines of the fourth generation of the project "Ash".
On 27 December 2017, the commander of the Russian Navy, Adm. Vladimir Korolev, reviewed the preliminary designed of a fifth-generation submarine, which was developed by St. Petersburg Marine Design Bureau "Malachite." The research and development stage of the project was scheduled to be completed in 2018. The first Husky-class submarine will be laid down in 2023-2024 and will be completed by 2030, Deputy Navy Commander Vice Adm. Viktor Bursuk told Sputnik in July 2017.
The construction would be funded under the 2018-2025 State Armaments Program, adopted in 2015 and defining massive military hardware upgrades, with the plan of 70 percent rearmament by 2020.
On 18 March 2013 RIA Novosti reported that work was in progress on the newest fifth-generation nuclear-powered and diesel submarines at Russia's Rubin Central Design Bureau, according to Rubin head Igor Vilnit. In recent decades Rubin designers mainly developed large underwater nuclear ships - carriers of ballistic and cruise missiles. The "Malakhit" SPMBM was specialized mainly on multipurpose nuclear submarines. The Russian Navy currently relies on third-generation submarines with fourth-generation subs of the Yury Dolgoruky (Project 955 Borey) and St. Petersburg (Project 677 Lada) class just beginning to be adopted for service.
As for the ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) variant, the K-535 Yuri Dolgoruky, the first in the Borei class, was commissioned in 2012, and would be expected to remain in service until the 2040 timeframe, so the new Husky design features might not find much immediate application on this front.
The ten or so units of the Project 971 Shuka-B Bars-class Akula attack submarines are all expected to be withdrawn from service in the 2020 to 2025 timeframe, and would need an equivalent number of replacements. The same might be said for the remaining four Project 671 Victor class boats. A total of seven units of the Project 885 Yasen / Graney Severodvinsk class are expected to enter service by around the year 2020. If Yasen construction halted at seven boats, then seven Husky boats configured as attack submarines might be needed by 2025. By 2018, the six remaining units of the Project 949A ("Antey" type), NATO code "Oscar II" class might all be expected to be withdrawn from service between 2020 and 2025, and would need an equivalent number of replacements.
It must be evident that there is a scheduling mismatch between the large number of boats that might be withdrawn from service in the 2020-2025 timeframe, and the Husky program schedule which seems more focused on the post 2025 timeframe. Allowing the Russian boats a 35-year service life would still require a rapid ramp-up of construction to place five boats in commission in 2025, three in 2026, four boats in 2027, four in 2028, and possibly one a year thereafter. In practice, the Russian boats have a very low operating tempo, and one might expect to see older boats remain in commission for upwards of four decades, and a building program of possibly three boats each year in the late 2020s.
The Defense Ministry said in 2014 Russia is planning to develop its fifth-generation submarine by 2020 under a 2011-2020 arms procurement program, to be armed with both ballistic and cruise missiles. Anatoly Shlemov, a senior executive with United Shipbuilding Corporation, in a 2016 interview with the Russian news outlet Lenta.ru, indicatged that Russia expected the new submarines to enter production sometime between 2017 and 2018, with the interceptor variant entering service in the 2020s.
"If we finish the development of a fourth-generation boat in 2017-2018, and if we do not start developing a fifth-generation boat in these years, we will not release it until 2030," Alexei Rakhmanov, president of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) said on the air of Ekho Moskvy April 4, 2016, referring to the possible timing of the creation of the Husky submarine.
As previously reported in USC, the formation of the appearance and the creation of a preliminary design of the multi-purpose nuclear submarine of the fifth generation of the Haski project will be completed within two years. The development of a multi-purpose nuclear submarine of the fifth generation is being carried out at the Malakhit design bureau in St. Petersburg.
The appearance of the new multi-purpose nuclear submarine (NPS) of the fifth generation of the Husky project was already being formed, the Navy was developing a tactical and technical task (TTZ), an official representative of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) told RIA Novosti on 18 March 2016. Multipurpose nuclear submarines of the "Husky" project of the fifth generation will replace the 885 "Yasen" submarine, which are currently being built and are entering the combat composition of the Russian Navy.
"Currently, work is underway to form the appearance of a new nuclear submarine, the Navy is developing a TTZ to perform a preliminary design of the ship," the USC representative said. While it is known only that hypersonic missiles "Zircon" will be used in the arsenal of multi-purpose nuclear submarines of the "Husky" project. The project is conducted by the design bureau "Malachite" (St. Petersburg).
The construction of fifth-generation nuclear-powered submarines would begin after the commission of seven Yasen-class (project 885) submarines, which are planned to join the Russian Navy by 2023. The flagship, the Severodvinks, was already in service. The second submarine, the Kazan, has been floated out and was undergoing sea trials, after which it will join the military in 2018. It will be armed with 533-mm torpedoes, Kalibr-PL cruise missiles and P-800 Oniks missiles.
"A global war today is unlikely, but the risk of regional conflicts is high. Taking this into account, submarines armed with cruise missiles will be tremendously important because they can attack both surface and ground targets," Adm. Vyacheslav Popov, former commander of the Northern Fleet, told RIA Novosti. The Russian Naval Doctrine envisages that such submarines will be the core of the multipurpose submarine force until the Husky-class submarines enter service. According to Popov, today the most important capability of a naval force is versatility.
The earlier Project 885 was developed since the 1980s as a low-noise multipurpose fourth-generation boat. At the end of the 1980s, a new complex of anti-ship missiles "Onyx" appeared, at the same time the boat was required to include a powerful hydroacoustic complex, whose conformal antennas set quite large dimensions of the boat. In total, the fleet wanted to buy up to 2020 seven such boats (previously it was reported that there could be eight ships built, and even earlier - 10). According to the Military Balance report by The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), as of 2017 the Russian multipurpose submarine force includes one Yasen-class submarine, 11 Shchuka-class submarines, five Antey-class subs, two Kondor submarines (project 945A) and three project 671RTM (Shchuka-class, second generation) submarines. Several project 971 submarines were undergoing modernization, including being equipped with Kalibr-PL missiles. By 2025, four Antey submarines would be upgraded with Kalibr and Oniks missiles.
The Husky fifth generation submarine is expected to become the successor to the Yasen multitasking submarine. The Yasen class submarine currently used by the Russian Navy is Severodvinsk, while the second Yasen class ship, Kazan, has just been launched and is in the test phase. The Navy will receive the Kazan Submarine in 2018. According to the Russian Navy Doctrine, these Yasen class submarines will become the primary attacking force of the fleet's fleet's submarine fleet until the first Husky class ships appeared. This suggests the first Husky would enter service in the 2045 timeframe, three decades after the first unit entered service.
Shipbuilders will begin work on the production of the fifth-generation Husky multi-task nuclear submarine soon after completing the 7th boat of the Yasen class. The final Yasen will be handed over to the Russian Navy by 2023. Navy Vice Admiral Viktor Bursuk said in 2017 that the first Husky was to be built in 2023-2024. As planned, the Husky will be completed and handed over to the Navy before 2030.
The project of the fifth-generation atomic submarine Husky will be finalized in accordance with the amendments of the Russian Navy. Alexei Rakhmanov, the head of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), said this on the air of the radio station Ekho Moskvy 23 April 2018. "A draft project has been developed, it was the first discussion with our colleagues from the Navy, certain remarks were made, now we will finalize these comments," he said.
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