The K-564 Arkhangelsk submarine (Project 885M Yasen-M) has joined the Northern Fleet. Like other ships, the new submarine will protect Russia's approaches from the Norwegian Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. This is according to National Interest.
The crew of the Yasen-M project submarines is 64 people. The Arkhangelsk submarine is designed to destroy enemy ships, so it combines tremendous firepower and stealth.
Characteristics of the Yasen-M Project Submarines
The displacement of a Yasen-M class submarine is about 8,600 tons. On the surface, it moves at a speed of 16 knots, and underwater, at an average speed of 30 knots.
The fastest U.S. Navy boat, the Seawolf-class nuclear attack submarine, travels at 35 knots. But its cost is extremely high compared to the relatively inexpensive Yasen-M project submarines.
As the author of National Interest emphasizes, in "silent mode," the Arkhangelsk develops a speed of 20 to 28 knots. Consequently, the submarine can compete even with the powerful and more expensive Virginia-class submarines of the U.S. Navy.
The Yasen-M project submarines are equipped with a fourth-generation KTP-6 nuclear reactor and the MGK-600 Irtysh-Amphora sonar system. The submarine's hull is made of low-magnetic steel, which increases its stealth.
Yasen-M Project Submarines Outperform NATO Submarines
The National Interest article notes that the Arkhangelsk carries long-range cruise missiles and hypersonic missiles, including Kalibr, Onyx, and Tsirkon.
The Americans have neither their own counterweight to hypersonic weapons nor significant defensive capabilities to repel attacks by Tsirkon. In other words, the U.S. Navy (and the fleets of its NATO allies) are inferior in firepower to the Yasen-M class submarines of the Russian Northern Fleet.
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