ST. PETERSBURG, May 31. /TASS/. The sixth Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric submarine of Project 636.3 Kolpino, intended for the Russian Black Sea Fleet, was launched on Tuesday at the Admiralty Shipyard (Admiralty Wharves) in St. Petersburg.
"It’s a big day for the Navy, for St. Petersburg, for the country. The submarine launch is a national event. Admiralty Shipyard is indeed the flagship of the national shipbuilding industry. Your ships are delivered on time and with proper quality", Deputy Commander of the Russian Navy Vice Admiral Alexander Fedotenkov said.
Head of the Rubin Central Design Bureau for Marine Engineering Igor Vilnit for his part wished the crew of the submarine successful service and said that the designers will do their best to maintain the good quality of submarines of Project 636.3.
The Kolpino submarine will be the final in a series of six non-nuclear submarines that are currently being built for the Russian Navy.
Subs for the Northern and Baltic fleets
Fifth-generation conventional submarines will be built for the Northern and Baltic fleets, Fedotenkov said.
"The talk is about building a series of fifth-generation conventional submarines," he said.
"After completing the series [the Project 636.3 submarines] for the Pacific Fleet, we’ll be considering building conventional submarines of already another project for the Northern and Baltic Fleets. Of course, the talk is about the fifth generation," Fedotenkov said.
Speaking about Project 636.3 submarines, Fedotenkov said it was necessary "to develop this series."
"This series is successful: it features a strike missile complex and the anti-submarine warfare vessels’ considerably improved search capabilities. Many novelties have been introduced into this series," he said.
Submarines for the Pacific Fleet
The Admiralty Wharves Shipyard in St. Petersburg in northwest Russia will build a series of six Project 636.3 Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric submarines for the Pacific Fleet, Shipyard CEO Alexander Buzakov said on Tuesday.
"The decision by the command has been taken and the submarines will be built at the Admiralty Wharves shipyard," he said.
"We expect that the entire series will be built at our shipyard," he added.
In turn, President of the United Shipbuilding Corporation Alexei Rakhmanov said the Admiralty Wharves Shipyard would be the main builder of the submarines for the Pacific Fleet.
‘We’ll see by the results of the year whether it will be possible to make a decision on the construction [a part of the defense contract] at the Amur Shipyard," he said.
According to the president of the United Shipbuilding Corporation, the contract for building submarines for the Pacific Fleet will be signed in the imminent future.
As was reported earlier, a defense contract for the construction of six submarines of this project for the Pacific Fleet may be divided between the Amur Shipyard in the Russian Far East and the Admiralty Wharves in St. Petersburg.
Varshavyanka-class submarines
Submarines of Project 636.3, also known as Varshavyanka, were developed by the Rubin Central Design Bureau.
There are already four submarines of this project in the Russian Navy’s (Black Sea Fleet) combat strength. The lead submarine - the Novorossiysk, was delivered to the Russian Navy in August 2014. The second submarine in the series - the Rostov-on-Don - was delivered on December 30, 2014. In late 2015, it launched the Kalibr cruise missiles to destroy facilities of the Islamic State terrorist organization (outlawed in Russia) from a position in the Mediterranean Sea.
The third submarine - the Stary Oskol - has been serving in the Russian Navy since July 2015. The Krasnodar submarine - the fourth in the series, was handed over to the Navy on November 5, 2015. The fifth Varshavyanka-class submarine for the Black Sea Fleet, dubbed the Veliky Novgorod, was launched on March 18. The fifth and sixth submarines are planned to be delivered to the Black Sea Fleet this year.
Type 636 submarines are designed for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and anti-surface-ship warfare (ASuW) and also for general reconnaissance and patrol missions. The Type 636 submarine is considered to be to be one of the quietest diesel submarines in the world. It is said to be capable of detecting an enemy submarine at a range three to four times greater than it can be detected itself.