The Russian Military Merged Thread- Navy

[CougarKing]

A Borey class sub on the move:

Diplomat

]Russia’s Deadliest Sub Is Heading to the Pacific
Moscow’s Pacific fleet will soon receive its first Borei-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine.

By Franz-Stefan Gady
September 03, 2015

The Borei-class (aka Dolgorukiy-class), Project 955, fourth generation nuclear-powered ballistic submarine (SSBN), Alexander Nevsky, will join Russia’s Pacific fleet in early September based on information obtained from the Russian Joint Staff, according to TASS .

“In mid-August, the Alexander Nevsky started subglacial passage from the Northern Fleet to the Pacific Fleet for the permanent combat duty. It is expected to arrive in Kamchatka in the first week of September,” a source within the Russian Joint Staff told TASS.

The Alexander Nevsky is the second Borei-class vessel built and was commissioned in December 2013. Once arriving in Russia’s Far East, it will join the permanent readiness forces of the Russian Pacific fleet and will be part of the 25th division of submarines based in Vilyuchinsk.

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[CougarKing]

A weapon as threatening to coastal cities that hasn't been seen since the nuclear-armed torpedoes of the Cold War?

Diplomat

Is Russia Building a Top-Secret Nuclear-Armed Underwater Drone?
Pentagon officials think that Moscow’s newest weapon could obliterate entire coastal cities.

By Franz-Stefan Gady
September 17, 2015

Russia is purportedly working on a top-secret unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), which, once operational, will be armed with megaton-class nuclear warheads Bill Gertz over at The Washington Free Beacon reports. Moscow’s newest arms program, code-named “Kanyon” by the U.S. military, has allegedly been designed to target both naval ports used by the U.S. Navy’s submarine fleet as well as U.S. coastal regions. According to Gertz:

Officials familiar with details of the Kanyon program said the weapon is envisioned as an autonomous submarine strike vehicle armed with a nuclear warhead ranging in size to “tens” of megatons in yield. A blast created by a nuclear weapon that size would create massive damage over wide areas. A megaton is the equivalent of 1 million tons of TNT.

Additional details on the program are murky. “This is an unmanned sub that will have a high-speed and long-distance capability,” one source states without offering further information.

However, Russia it seems is years away from testing a prototype, according to a defense official interviewed by Gertz. “The Kanyon represents another example of Russia’s aggressive and innovative approach to the development of military capabilities against U.S. and Western interests,” emphasizes a former CIA analyst. Furthermore the expert points out:
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[CougarKing]

Oscars, Deltas to soldier on for 20 more years?

Diplomat

Russia to Upgrade 12 Nuclear-Powered Subs
Moscow wants to expand the boats’ service life by another 20 years.

By Franz-Stefan Gady
October 05, 2015

The Russian Navy is in the process of modernizing and overhauling 12 multi-purpose nuclear-powered submarines, IHS Jane’s Navy International reports. In September, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told reporters that six boats are already undergoing modernization at the Zvezda shipyard at Bolshoy Kamen on Russia’s Pacific coast.

The six boats include project 971 SSN Akula-class, project 949A SSGN Oscar II-class, and Project 667 SSBN Delta III-class nuclear-powered submarines. In detail, the vessels at Zvezda are the Kuzbass and Magadan (both Akula-class), the Irkutsk, Chelyabinsk, and Tver (all Oscar II-class), and the Ryazan (Delta III-class).

All nuclear-powered submarines will be equipped with new weapon systems, including new missiles. The goal is to extend their service life by 20 years and to bring the boats up to the technological level of Russia’s most modern nuclear-powered undersea vessels, such as the project 885 Yasen-class SSGNs.

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[CougarKing]

More on the warships launching cruise missiles against rebels in Syria:

Buyan-M class corvettes in action, firing vertical-launch Kalibr (export version known as Klub) land-attack missiles at targets in Syria from the Caspian Sea!

Russia Today

October 7, 2015

If ultimately confirmed, the ability for the Russians to launch a strike from that far is also revelatory Eric Wertheim — naval analyst and author of U.S. Naval Institute’s Combat Fleets of the World — told USNI News on Wednesday.

Russian possession of a weapon that parallels the range and performance of the Raytheon Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) — the U.S. long range land attack missile — shows “the rest of the world is catching up to this technology,” Wertheim said.  “It’s a wake up call.”

US Naval Institute

08.10.2015

In actuality Kalibr is a whole family of missiles with numerous subtypes, intended for Russian Armed Forces and foreign customers. There are variants for Ground Forces and Air Forces use, but these missiles are being used most extensively by the Navy. They are manufactured for submarines (Kalibr-PL) and surface ships (Kalibr-NK). ...

That’s why we are witnessing mass “Kalibration” of the Russian Navy. The first ship to receive Kalibr-NK was the Dagestan light frigate of Project 11661K built by the Maksim Gorkiy plant in Zelyonodolsk. It entered service on November 28, 2012 after a successful Kalibr launch at a land target. It was followed by three Project 21631 Buyan-M small missile boats: Grad Slavyazhsk, Uglich, and Velikiy Ustyug. These small ships with full displacement of 949 tons carry 8 Kalibr missiles each in UKSK vertical launch cells, which can also launch Oniks supersonic anti-ship missiles. Grad Slavyazhsk carried out a successful launch in September 2013 against a land target.

Southfront.org

 

[McG]

"Oops!  Sorry about that!"

Russian missiles miss Syria and hit Iran.

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/world/russia-bombed-iran-by-mistake-when-cruise-missiles-aimed-at-syrian-crashed-in-islamic-republic-u-s-says

 

[dimsum]

More on the warships launching cruise missiles against rebels in Syria:

Buyan-M class corvettes in action, firing vertical-launch Kalibr (export version known as Klub) land-attack missiles at targets in Syria from the Caspian Sea!

Russia Today

I'd like to think that this would be the TSN Turning Point, or at least a wake-up call, for some folks in dark blue about the capabilities of Corvettes vice DDH/FFH and up.  Of course, they will never be as "sexy" as a large honkin' Cruiser or Carrier.

From Wiki, size-wise (obviously not weapons/speed-wise) those aren't that much different than our MCDVs. 

 

[tomahawk6]

The corvette's launched SS-N-30 cruise missiles with a range of 1000 miles.This was definitely an eye opener before it was thought that these misiles only had a range of 150 miles.If Russia sells these to Iran or any other potential enemies we better hope our defensive systems are up to the task or else we could lose a carrier.

 

[MilEME09]

The corvette's launched SS-N-30 cruise missiles with a range of 1000 miles.This was definitely an eye opener before it was thought that these misiles only had a range of 150 miles.If Russia sells these to Iran or any other potential enemies we better hope our defensive systems are up to the task or else we could lose a carrier.

It also will make the intelligence community, and me worried, what else are we wrong about?

 

[winnipegoo7]

The corvette's launched SS-N-30 cruise missiles with a range of 1000 miles.This was definitely an eye opener before it was thought that these misiles only had a range of 150 miles.If Russia sells these to Iran or any other potential enemies we better hope our defensive systems are up to the task or else we could lose a carrier.

Who thought that?

November 2014

Sources in the Russian media also say that soon the Calibers will be able to strike targets at a range of at least 1,000 kilometers

http://in.rbth.com/economics/2014/11/07/admiral_nakhimov_missile_to_spearhead_russian_navy_39551

March 2015:

"Critically important facilities" can be defeated or destroyed using a range of tools, including long-range LACMs. Russia's newest naval land-attack missile, the SS-N-30A, can hit targets located anywhere from 1,300km (700nm) to 2,600km (1,400nm) away, although sources differ. Caspian Flotilla commander  Rear Admiral Alekminskiy mentioned the 2,600km range during a June 2012 meeting with Dagestan president Magomedsalam Magomedov; however, a range of 3,000km (1,620nm) has been seen in unofficial reporting.

http://7fbtk.blogspot.ca/2015_03_01_archive.html

August 2015:

Part of the Kalibr family, however, is intended solely for “domestic consumption” (known as 3M14, 3M54, and 3M541) and their ranges are many times greater (some sources use the “E” designation for missiles not intended for export, which is an obvious mistake). Depending on the source, their range is either 2,600 km or 1,500 km; some hypothesize that the longer range is associated with missiles equipped with nuclear warheads while conventionally armed Kalibr SLCMs have the 1,500 or somewhat greater range.

http://armscontrolwonk.com/


I found those sources on Google. Hopefully American defence analysts have other sources available to them.


And if Iranians scare you, here is their newest cruise missile:
http://www.janes.com/article/49998/analysis-iranian-cruise-missile-unveiling-raises-questions-about-range

 

[CougarKing]

Hasn't this been in practice since the Cold War?

Diplomat

Undersea Cables: How Russia Targets the West’s Soft Underbelly

Washington is worried about Moscow’s ability to disrupt global Internet communications.
L1001025
By Franz-Stefan Gady
October 27, 2015

Russia has been stepping up its submarine patrols near remote locations of fiber optic cables laid on the ocean floor and carrying digital data across continents the New York Times reports.

Pentagon officials and European diplomats speaking on the condition of anonymity compared Russian activities to Cold War levels, when both East and West repeatedly tried to tap undersea cables to extrapolate intelligence, something that is still standard practice among the world’s leading intelligence agencies, although it is rarely talked about in public.

The United States is in particular concerned about Russia’s burgeoning capabilities to interrupt global internet traffic communications by cutting undersea cables in the event of a conflict with the West. Russian submarine patrols have risen by over 50 percent in the last year, according to statements made by senior officials of the Russian Navy.

However, the precise nature of Russian activities remains highly classified. “It would be a concern to hear any country was tampering with communication cables; however, due to the classified nature of submarine operations, we do not discuss specifics,” a U.S. Navy spokesman told the New York Times.

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[cavalryman]

Hasn't this been in practice since the Cold War?

Diplomat

To steal from a USN blogger.... In the 80s, this was called Monday  ;D

 

[CougarKing]

More Russian naval projects in the pipeline:

Russia's new Project 22160 corvettes to be armed with Kalibr-NK missiles

Jane's

26 October 2015

The Russian Navy's new Project 22160 patrol ships will be armed with the Kalibr-NK land attack cruise missile, according to Alexander Karpov, First Deputy Director General of Gorky Zelenodolsk Shipyard.

For Karpov the capability of the missiles was proved when Russia launched Kalibr-NK strikes from the Caspian Sea into Syria on 7 October: "The successful salvoes…demonstrated the firepower of these missiles. Besides, they take up little volume."

New at Euronaval 2012, the 22160 OPV is offered for export in a military version. At 94 metres long, with a 14 m. beam and a draught of 3.4 metres, this variant can be armed with Alfa/Club anti-ship missiles or Shtil-1 (SA-N-7) anti-aircraft missiles in vertical silos and a 57mm gun. Target designation is provided by Positiv-ME1 or Fregat-MAE-4K (Top Plate) radars. Self defence is based on eight Igla anti-air missiles, TK-25E electronic countermeasures, PK-10 decoy launchers, two anti-diver grenade launchers and two 14.5mm machine guns. The hangar can house a 12 tonne Kamov Ka-28 (Helix) helicopter. Four 300kW high-speed diesels provide a speed of 30 knots.

DSI-Presse, Severnoye DB

Design based on an OPV in service with the Russian border guards. bastion-opk.ru

Russia's Bal-E coastal defense system to be equipped with upgraded Kh-35 missile

Navy Recognition

28 October 2015

The Bal coastal defense system will be equipped with an upgraded version of the Kh-35E missile, Morinformsystem-Agat Group CEO and General Designer Georgy Antsev told TASS on Tuesday. Morinformsystem-Agat naval weapons developer is upgrading the Bal coastal defense missile system. The system will receive a modernized missile, which has a range of up to 300 kilometers (186 miles) and can be guided via unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), he added.

Kh-35 aka "Uran" most numerous Russian antiship missile arming for example missile boats Molniya license-built in Vietnam.

 

[CougarKing]

The author of this article states that this "Status 6" torpedo is actually the same system as the aforementioned Kanyon nuke-armed UUV:

Diplomat

Revealed: Russia’s Top Secret Nuclear Torpedo

Moscow’s new weapon could obliterate entire coastal cities.
L1001025
By Franz-Stefan Gady
November 13, 2015

A Russian state-run television station accidentally aired top secret plans of a new long-range nuclear torpedo called “Status-6” RT reports.

The incident occurred this week during a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with top military officers of the Russian Armed Forces in Sochi, located on the Black Sea in southwestern Russia.  During the meeting, where the development of Russia’s military capabilities were being discussed, a TV crew from state-run Channel One filmed a Russian general studying a diagram of a new “oceanic multi-purpose Status-6 system.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the Russian media accidentally leaked classified data this Tuesday. “It is true some secret data got into the shot, and it was subsequently deleted. We hope that this won’t happen again,” he said.

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It appears that the “Status-6” torpedo/UUV is more or less the same weapon system that I have reported on back in September (See: “Is Russia Building a Top-Secret Nuclear Armed Underwater Drone?”). Codenamed “Kanyon” by Pentagon officials, it has allegedly also been designed to target both naval ports used by the U.S. Navy’s submarine fleet as well as U.S. coastal regions.

 

[CougarKing]

There was another Bulava sub launch test last November as well:

Diplomat

Confirmed: ‘Russia’s Deadliest Sub’ Test Fires 2 Ballistic Missiles

A submerged Russian submarine successfully launched two ballistic missiles.

After repeated delays, the Borei-class (aka Dolgorukiy-class), Project 955 fourth generation nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) Vladimir Monomakh successfully test fired two Bulava (RSM-56) ballistic missiles from a submerged position in the White Sea off the northwest coast of Russia, RT reports.

According to a press release by the Russian Defense Ministry, the two missiles successfully hit targets in the Kamchatka region in Russia’s Far East on November 15:

    Salvo firing from a submerged position was made in accordance with the plan of combat training. The parameters trajectory of two ICBM “Bulava” worked normally. As confirmed by objective monitoring, the missile warheads successfully arrived at the Kura test site in Kamchatka.

The Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile, a variant of the land-based Topol-M SS-27,  is one of the most expensive Russian weapons programs and intended to be the cornerstone of the sea-based component of Russia’s nuclear triad.

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[CougarKing]

Bad news for Putin's navy:

EDITED TO ADD: it's only after digging more that I realized this same incident happened back in 2012 and a number of sources were mistakenly resurrecting an old report. My apologies.

UK Defence Journal

Russian aircraft carrier towed home after break down

Posted By: George Allison November 17, 2015
Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov is seen here being towed home by a tug boat after breaking down in a storm. Kuznetsov is an aircraft cruiser (heavy aircraft-carrying missile cruiser in Russian classification) serving as the flagship of the Russian Navy.

She was originally commissioned in the Soviet Navy, and was intended to be the lead ship of her class, but the only other ship of her class, Varyag, was never completed or commissioned by the Soviet, Russian or Ukrainian navy. Later, this second hull was sold to the People’s Republic of China by Ukraine, completed in Dalian and launched as Liaoning.

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[tomahawk6]

The Russians used their new stealth cruise missile in strikes on IS targets,its the Kh-101.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/11/19/putin-blasts-syria-with-new-stealth-missile-and-shows-the-world-he-can-strike-from-1-700-miles-away.html#

The Kh-101 long-range cruise missile, which reportedly packs an 800-pound warhead and can fly no less than 1,700 miles under satellite guidance, has been in development by Russia’s cash-strapped aerospace industry for three decades. Now that it’s apparently combat-ready, Moscow can claim to possess a global strike capability that, before, only the United States possessed.

 

[CougarKing]

I don't suppose there's probably an Akula class SSN luring nearby to protect the cruiser Moskva from sub-surface threats? Unless you think a single Helix on the CG's stern is adequate ASW defence.

RT

Russia deploys missile cruiser off Syria coast, ordered to destroy any target posing danger
Published time: 24 Nov, 2015 18:16
Edited time: 25 Nov, 2015 18:20

(...Full article at link above)

 

[tomahawk6]

The Russians arent happy with Israel either as they recently struck targets near Damascus.The cruiser is a message to both parties I suspect.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

I don't suppose there's probably an Akula class SSN luring nearby to protect the cruiser Moskva from sub-surface threats? Unless you think a single Helix on the CG's stern is adequate ASW defence.

RT

Or a nice quiet diesel boat...or two...or...

 

[Colin Parkinson]

The Russians arent happy with Israel either as they recently struck targets near Damascus.The cruiser is a message to both parties I suspect.

Israel has been very quick to create a relationship with the Russian forces there and made it quite clear they won't target or shoot at Russian jets. Russia has also agreed to replace Turkish goods with Israeli. I suspect Putin understands Israel need to defend itself and attacks on sideshows by Hezbollah will be tolerated. In fact Putin will likely see any attempt to annoy or draw in Israel as a nuisance and distraction. Creating a better relationship between Russia and Israel is good business and strategic, Israel can help Russia on the tech side of things and Russia knows Israel wants make sure it has other friends with the unreliability shown by the recent US administration.