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fighting ships of the world

SOVIET / RUSSIAN NAVY (USSR / RUSSIA)

SUBMARINES

K-137 nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines (project 667A) (1967 - 1972)

K-219 nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines (project 667AU) (1971 - 1974)

K-137 1975

K-140 1978

K-420 1990

K-395 2000

KS-403 2000

BS-411 Orenburg 2000

KS-403 Kazan' 2000

Project history: The technical project for this class was approved in 1964; the submarine was designed by Rubin design bureau (TsKB-18). This was reportedly the first design intended to fire ballistic missiles submerged. Since missiles no longer had to be raised to the top of the sail before firing, their tubes could be moved into the hull abaft the sail, in two parallel rows. A parallel Project 668 was intended to fire the new Bazalt cruise missile submerged, from inclined hull tubes. The missiles could be packed relatively densely because the tubes were fixed in the hull. The pressure hull was necked-in abaft the control room to accommodate the missile tubes; the pressure hull necked-out further aft to take the machinery. About 1960 both designs were lengthened to provide a second set of tubes (total twelve ballistic or cruise missiles) abaft the machinery.

    Work on Bazalt halted in 1962 due to aerodynamic problems, and Project 668 was abandoned. The only available cruise missile was P-5/6, which could not be fired submerged, and which required an elevating launcher which stowed flat. That limited a submarine of this size to eight missiles, and there was no point in building a new type. Instead, a second batch of Project 675 was ordered. Eventually something like Project 668 materialised in the form of Project 949, which was armed with the more successful Granit missile.

    The ballistic missile version was redesigned in 1963-64 to carry sixteen R-27 rather than twelve R-21 missiles and, moreover, to carry them inside the pressure hull, as in contemporary Western SSBNs. It became the Project 667A. The redesign seems to have been prompted by compromise of Western submarine construction or missile guidance technology.

    Like earlier strategic submarines, these ships had 40cm self-defence (anti-escort) weapons, in their case in bow tubes flanking the four large caliber bow tubes.

    A recent Russian account describes this design as highly automated for its one, with automatic prelaunch preparation of missiles and a computer to provide firing data. The modernised Project 667AU (which fired the R-27U missile) introduced an inertial navigation system with astrocorrection.

Modernizations: 1975, K-258;1977, K-245; 1980, K-214; 1984, K-241; 1985, K-137 Leninets; 1992, K-444 - under Project 627AU: with data as above

1978, K-140 - under Project 667AM: - 16 R-27 SLBM, MVU-100 Tucha CCS; + 12 R-31 SLBM (12 3M17), Almaz-AM CCS; 7760/9600t, 132.0x11.7x8.00m, compl. 120

1983, KS-403 - under Project 667AK: unarmed; 8675/9190t, 151.8x11.7x7.90m, 16.5/27kts, compl. 120; MGK-500 Skat, MG-509 Radian sonars

1984, K-408; 1985, K-26, K-253; 1987, K-423; 1991, K-395 - under Project 667AT: lengthened and beamed, 8888/11400t, 141.7x12.8x7.80m, 15.3/25kts, compl. 115, armament consisted of SAM Strela-2M (6), 8 - 533 TT (amidships, 32 Granat 3M10 CruM), 6 - 533 TT (bow, 14, incl. URPK-6 Vodopad-PL ASuM (83R, 84R)), sensors consisted of RLK-101 Albatros radar, MGK-400 Rubikon, MG-519 Arfa, MG-512 Vint sonars, Zaliv-P ECM suite, MVU-132AT Omnibus-AT CCS

1990, K-420 - under Project 667M: lengthened and beamed, 10500/13600t, 152.0x14.7x8.70m, 15/25kts, compl. 112; armament consisted of 12 x 1 P-750 Meteorit-M SSM (12 3M25), 4 - 533 TT (bow, 12 incl. URPK-6 Vodopad-PL ASuM (83R, 84R)), sensors consisted of MRK-50 Kaskad radar, MGK-400 Rubikon, MG-519 Arfa, MG-512 Vint sonars, Zaliv-P ECM suite, MVU-100 Tucha CCS

1990, KS-411: unarmed; 9408/10950t, 162.5x11.7x8.30m, 13.2/21.9kts, compl. 106, bow- and stern thrusters; can carry Project 18511 midget submarine

1996, KS-403 - under Project 09780: - MGK-500 Skat sonar; + Irtysh-Amfora sonar

Naval service: K-219 sank 6.10.1986 in Atlantic (500nm E of Bermuda Islands) by cause of faulty crew action after flooding of a missile tube and followed explosion of a missile.

Project 667A 1980

Project 667AT 1998

KS-403 Kazan' 1997

BS-411 Orenburg 2000

© Ivan Gogin, 2015