Russia Initiates Work On Fifth Gen Nuclear Submarine Development

Russia's United Shipbuilding Corporation (UAC) has initiated preliminary work on construction of fifth-generation Husky class nuclear submarine to replace exiting Yasen class boats.

"The results of this work will determine the construction schedule," Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov in an interview with the Moskovsky Komsomolets. The new multipurpose submarines are likely to be equipped with Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles, Sputnik News reported Tuesday.

"This is totally different submarine from viewpoint of physical fields. This submarine will be standardized to combine major elements of strategic and multipurpose submarines," he added. 

The United Ship-Building Corporation’s task is to maximally standardize the submarine "to offer a more favorable price to the Russian Defense Ministry," Rakhmanov added.

"If we complete developing the fourth-generation submarine in 2017-2018 and if we don’t start the development of the fifth-generation submarine at that time, we cannot build it sooner than 2030," he said

The United Ship-Building Corporation stated earlier that about two years will be required to work out the preliminary design of the fifth-generation Husky-class multipurpose nuclear-powered submarine.