The Russian Navy’s newest submarine Alexander Nevsky was commissioned into service today at Sevmash shipyard, Ria Novosti writes.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu attended the ceremony, which took place in Severodvinsk, Russia.
The Alexander Nevsky is a nuclear ballistic missile submarine of the fourth generation of Borei class.
The submarine was laid down in March 2004 and was initially planned to be launched in 2009, but she faced some budgetary problems and repeated failures of the submarine’s main weapon, the Bulava missile.
In terms of design, the submarine doesn’t incorporate any significant differences from the lead ship of the class, Yury Dolgoruky.
Eight submarines are expected to enter into service by 2020, since the Navy plans to retire older ships by 2018.
The submarine’s construction costs were about USD 900 million.
[mappress] Naval Today Staff, December 23, 2013; Image: Tomsk