H I Sutton
The world submarine scene is changing fast, and it feels as if 2019 was the start of a sharp rise in the rate of development. Perhaps because of a lull following the end of the Cold War, or because of the dawn of the next industrial revolution, things are hotting up.
The launch of Russia's special mission submarine Belgorod was one of the major submarine stories of ... [+]H I SUTTON
From the perspective of the history books, in my view by far the most significant new submarine of 2019 was Belgorod. Russia’s latest super submarine, she was launched on April 24 in Severodvinsk. She is second only to the famous Typhoon Class in terms of size. But her significance is not in her size alone. She is expected to be the first submarine to carry Russia’s enigmatic super weapon, the Poseidon Intercontinental Nuclear-Powered Nuclear-Armed Autonomous Torpedo. A better term might be ‘mega torpedo.’ It is designed to be around 20 to 30 times the size of a regular torpedo, or twice the size of a ballistic missile, and to carry a 2 megaton nuclear warhead, able to target coastal cities such as New York or San Francisco. With essentially unlimited range and deep diving capability, if it performs as described, it will be challenging to counter.
And Belgorod has another trick up her sleeve. As well as carrying 6 Poseidons, she can act as a mother submarine for Russia’s secretive deep-diving midget submarines. These can work on communication cables, such as internet cables, deep below the surface. This makes her a spy submarine in common parlance.
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Russia will not be alone in the submarine history books. The U.S. Navy awarded the world’s first contract for an extra-large unmanned underwater vehicle (XLUUV) in February. Boeing will build the Orca XLUUV which is essentially a full size submarine but shrunk because it has no crew. The Orca is likely to go down in history as one of the all-time most significant designs, unless another country beats America to it.
In Japan, the second lithium-ion battery equipped Soryu Class submarine was launched in November. This increases underwater range of the boat. Submariners have been slow to adopt new battery technology due to safety concerns. So if Japan's project is seen as successful it could lead to another revolution in non-nuclear submarine technology.
Elsewhere, France launched the first of its Suffren Class nuclear-powered attack submarines in July. Sleek and impressive boats, these are roughly the Marine Nationale’s equivalent to the U.S. Navy’s Virginia Class and Royal Navy’s Astute Class boats.
And at the other end of the spectrum, Myanmar has received its first submarine. The Kilo Class boat was formerly in service with the Indian Navy and will be used to develop the country’s submarine capability. This is part of a wider trend which sees many smaller navies building a submarine capability. Perhaps this is the bigger and more world-altering trend, hiding beneath the headline-grabbing big navy projects?
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