Russian Navy's Tula SSBN (Projet 667BDRM Delfin – Delta-IV) Docked at Shipyard for Refit

: Posted On Thursday, 26 November 2015 17:55

Naval Forces News - Russia

Russian Navy's Tula SSBN (Projet 667BDRM Delfin – Delta-IV) Docked at Shipyard for Refit

The Project 667BDRM (NATO reporting name: Delta IV) K-114 Tula nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) was put into the wet dock of the Zvyozdochka Shipyard in Severodvinsk for routine maintenance, Zvyozdochka’s press officer, Nadezhda Scherbinina, told TASS on Monday.

K-114 Tula at a pier of the Russian Northern Fleet's naval base in the town of Gadzhiyevo, Murmansk Oblast. Picture: Ria Novosti

The service life of the Northern Fleet’s submarine will be extended by another three years and a half.

"The Tula came to Zvyozdochka last December for a scheduled service life extension," Scherbinina said. "Late last week, the ship was brought into the wet dock and set atop the solid bottom. The nuclear-powered submarine will serve for another three years and a half [after the maintenance]."

She did not specify when the nuclear powered submarine would be released to the Russian Navy.

Zvyozdochka is a specialist in the medium repair of Project 667BDRM SSBNs, such as the Tula. The latter was upgraded by the shipyard and received by the Navy in 2006, with its service life extended by 10 years. In July 2012, Zvyozdochka delivered the K-407 Novomoskovsk SSBN, thus having completed the upgrade the six submarines in the series - the K-51 Verkhoturye in 1999, K-84 Yekaterinburg (2003), K-114 Tula (2006), K-117 Bryansk (2008) and K-18 Karelia (2010). The second medium repair cycle for the BDRM-version ships is under way. The Verkhoturye and Yekaterinburg have been upgraded. As the shipyard explained before, it will complete the second medium repair of and service life extension for all ships of the class. This will result in their service life exceeding the design one by far.

The Project 667BDRM SSBNs are designed for destroying strategic installations of the enemy. The submarines of the class also can sink surface combatants and submarines, using their organic torpedoes. Each of the SSBNs accommodates 16 intercontinental ballistic missiles of various types and four 533-mm torpedo tubes in the bow. Their standard weapons suite consists of 12 missiles and torpedoes, including Vodopad (SS-N-16 Stallion) antisubmarine missiles. The submarines of the class can carry modified R-29RMU2 Sineva (SS-N-23 Skiff) and R-29RMU2.1 Liner ballistic missiles. The latter is a version of the Sineva capable of penetrating any ballistic missile defenses. All Project 667BDR/BDRM submarines are expected to transition to the Liner SLBM, which will allow extending their service life until 2030. In all, the Russian Navy operates six Project 667BDRM submarines.

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