Sevmash launches Ulyanovsk multi-purpose nuclear-powered submarine
Ulyanovsk, the sixth serial-built Yasen-M class nuclear-powered submarine, has been launched at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk. The vessel is expected to join Russia's Northern Fleet.
The launch ceremony took place on Tuesday, 28 July, and was attended by Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Yury Trutnev, Navy Commander Admiral Aleksandr Moiseev, Arkhangelsk Governor Alexander Tsybulsky, and several other senior officials.
The launch comes at a time when Russia's war aggressive regime faces mounting security challenges, with Ukrainian long-range drone strikes increasingly targeting oil refineries, naval bases, defence industries, and critical infrastructure.
In his address, Deputy Prime Minister Trutnev quoted Emperor Alexander III, who ruled from 1881 to 1894: "Russia has only two allies: the army and the navy."
Unlike earlier Soviet-designed attack submarines, the Yasen and Yasen-M classes are designed as true multi-role platforms. In addition to their traditional hunter-killer mission against enemy submarines and surface vessels, they are capable of striking both maritime and land-based targets using vertically launched cruise missiles.
Ulyanovsk is expected to be equipped with the Tsirkon hypersonic missile, which can carry a tactical nuclear warhead.
The return of tactical nuclear weapons aboard Russian multi-purpose submarines has raised concerns in the West. By the end of the Cold War, both the United States and Russia had removed such weapons from their attack submarines. Russia is now reintroducing them as part of its undersea warfare capabilities.
The traditional bottle of champagne was smashed against the submarine's hull by Ulyanovsk's first commanding officer, Captain 1st Rank Vyacheslav Samoilov, before the vessel was launched into the water, according to Sevmash.
Admiral Moiseev, himself a former submariner and former commander of the Northern Fleet, described the launch as a significant milestone for the Russian Navy.
"This demonstrates the ongoing systematic work to modernise the Navy's fleet and enhance its combat capabilities," Moiseev said.
Before being commissioned and formally handed over to the Northern Fleet, Ulyanovsk will undergo an extensive programme of sea trials. These are expected to last around a year and will include testing of navigation systems, deep-diving operations in the Norwegian Sea, weapons trials, and crew training.
The previous Yasen-M submarine to be launched at Sevmash was Perm in March last year. The submarine was first seen on sea trials in August last year, and is still not handed over to the Navy. Reportedly, the submarine departed Severodvinsk for the White Sea on 23 July, following previous trial voyages in May and June.
The Northern Fleet currently operates two Yasen-M class submarines, Kazan and Arkhangelsk. It also has the original Yasen-class submarine, Severodvinsk, although the vessel is currently undergoing a mid-life overhaul. The work, which is expected to take several years, includes replacing the spent nuclear fuel in the submarine's reactor.
Three additional Yasen-M class submarines—Voronezh, Vladivostok, and Murmansk—are at various stages of construction at the Sevmash shipyard.
The Northern Fleet's Yasen-class submarines are all based at Zapadnaya Litsa, approximately 60 kilometres from the Norwegian border on the Barents Sea coast. Russia's Pacific Fleet also operates Yasen-M class submarines.
