Scale 1:700 Brand Hobbyboss (Score 7/10)
Scale 1:700 Brand Hobbyboss (Score 7/10)
The Typhoon class, Soviet designation Project 941 Akula (Russian: Акула, meaning "shark", NATO reporting name Typhoon), is a class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines designed and built by the Soviet Union for the Soviet Navy. With a submerged displacement of 48,000 tonnes, the Typhoons are the largest submarines ever built, able to accommodate comfortable living facilities for the crew of 160 when submerged for months on end. The source of the NATO reporting name remains unclear, although it is often claimed to be related to the use of the word "typhoon" ("тайфун") by General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev of the Communist Party in a 1974 speech while describing a new type of nuclear ballistic missile submarine, as a reaction to the United States Navy's new Ohio-class submarine.
The Russian Navy cancelled its Typhoon modernization program in March 2012, stating that modernizing one Typhoon would be as expensive as building two new Borei-class submarines. With the announcement that Russia has eliminated the last SS-N-20 Sturgeon SLBMs in September 2012, only one Typhoon remains in service, Dmitry Donskoy, which is armed with the more modern RSM-56 Bulava SLBM.
Besides their missile armament, the Typhoon class features six torpedo tubes designed to handle RPK-2 (SS-N-15) missiles or Type 53 torpedoes. A Typhoon-class submarine can stay submerged for 120 days in normal conditions, and potentially more if deemed necessary (e.g., in the case of a nuclear war). Their primary weapons system is composed of 20 R-39 (NATO: SS-N-20) ballistic missiles (SLBM) with a maximum of 10 MIRV nuclear warheads each. Technically, Typhoons were able to deploy their long-range nuclear missiles while moored at their docks.
Typhoon-class submarines feature multiple pressure hulls, similar to the World War II Japanese I-400-class submarine, which simplifies internal design while making the vessel much wider than a normal submarine. In the main body of the sub, two long pressure hulls lie parallel with a third, smaller pressure hull above them (which protrudes just below the sail), and two other pressure hulls for torpedoes and steering gear. This also greatly increases their survivability – even if one pressure hull is breached, the crew members in the other are safe and there is less potential for flooding.
The Typhoon is capable of traveling at 28 kn (52 km/h; 32 mph) underwater.
The Typhoon class was developed under Project 941 as the Russian Akula class (Акула), meaning shark. It is sometimes confused with other submarines, as Akula is the name NATO uses to designate the Russian Project 971 Shchuka-B (Щука-Б)-class attack submarines. The project was developed with the objective to match the SLBM armament of Ohio-class submarines, capable of carrying 192 nuclear warheads, 100 kt each, but with significantly longer range. To accommodate this increase in range, Soviet SLBMs were substantially larger and heavier than their American counterparts (the R-39 Rif is more than twice as heavy as the UGM-96 Trident I; it remains the heaviest SLBM to have been in service worldwide). The submarine had to be scaled accordingly.
In the early 1990s, there were also proposals to rebuild some of the Typhoon-class submarines to submarine cargo vessels for shipping oil, gas and cargo under polar ice to Russia's far flung northern territories. The submarines could take up to 10,000 tonnes of cargo on-board and ship it under the polar ice to tankers waiting in the Barents Sea. These ships – after the considerable engineering required to develop technologies to transfer oil from drilling platforms to the submarines, and later, to the waiting tankers – would then deliver their cargo world-wide.
Six Typhoon-class submarines were built. Originally, the submarines were designated by hull numbers only. Names were later assigned to the four vessels retained by the Russian Navy, which were sponsored by either a city or company. The construction order for an additional vessel (hull number TK-210) was cancelled and never completed. Only the first of these submarines to be constructed, Dmitriy Donskoy, is still in active service with the Russian Navy, serving as a test platform for the Bulava (SS-NX-32) missile. Arkhangelsk (TK-17) and Severstal (TK-20) remain in reserve, not currently active with the Russian fleet. All the R-39 missiles have been retired. The Typhoons have been replaced by the Borei class since 2010-2011.
In late December 2008, a senior Navy official announced that the two Typhoon-class submarines, TK-17 Arkhangelsk and TK-20 Severstal, that are in reserve would not be rearmed with the new Bulava SLBM missile system. They could however be modified to carry cruise missiles or to lay mines, or could be used in special operations. In late June 2009, the Navy Commander-in-Chief, Admiral Vladimir Vysotskiy told reporters that the two submarines would be reserved for possible future repairs and modernisation. In May 2010, the Navy Commander-in-Chief reported that Russia's Typhoon-class submarines would remain in service with the Navy until 2019. In September 2011, the Russian defense ministry decided to write off all Project 941 Akula nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines until 2014. The reasons for decommissioning the Typhoon-class vessels are the restrictions imposed on Russia by the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and successful trials of new Borei-class submarine.
Despite being a replacement for many types of submarines, the Borei-class submarines are slightly shorter than the Typhoon class (170 m (560 ft) as opposed to 175 m (574 ft)), and have a smaller crew (107 people as opposed to 160). These changes were in part designed to reduce the cost to build and maintain the submarines. In addition, the United States and Canada provided 80% of funds for scrapping the older Typhoon-class submarines, making it much more economical to build a new submarine. However, according to other sources at the Russian defence ministry, no such decision has been made; in that case, the submarines would remain with the Russian Navy.
In 2013, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency announced that the Navy would scrap two Typhoons, beginning in 2018. They were the TK-17 Arkhangelsk and TK-20 Severstal. As of 2017, the decision about the scrapping of TK-17 and TK-20 was still not certain.
# Name Comissioned Status
TK-17 Arkhangelsk 15 December 1987 Decommissioned in 2013
Class overview
Name: Typhoon class
Builders: Sevmash, designed by Rubin
Operators:
Soviet Navy
Russian Navy
Preceded by: Delta class
Succeeded by: Borei class
Built: 1976–present (Russian Navy continues the construction of 2 submarines for 2026 with modern technology)[citation needed]
In service: 1981–present
In commission: 1981–1989
Planned: 7
Completed: 6
Cancelled: 1
Active: 1
Retired: 3
Preserved: 2
General characteristics
Type: Ballistic missile submarine
Displacement:
23,200–24,500 t (22,830–24,110 long tons) surfaced
48,000 t (47,240 long tons) submerged
Length: 175 m (574 ft 2 in)
Beam: 23 m (75 ft 6 in)
Draught: 12 m (39 ft 4 in)
Propulsion:
2 × OK-650 pressurized-water nuclear reactors, 190 MWt each
2 × VV-type steam turbines, 102 MW (136,800 hp) each
2 shafts with 7-bladed shrouded screws
Speed:
22.22 knots (41.15 km/h; 25.57 mph) surfaced
27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph) submerged
Endurance: 120+ days submerged[1]
Test depth: 900 m (3,000 ft)
Complement: 160 persons[1]
Armament:
1 × 9K38 Igla SAM
6 × 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes
RPK-2 Viyuga cruise missiles
Type 53 torpedoes[2]
D-19 launch system
20 × RSM-52 SLBMs
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