Summary and Key Points: Russia’s Borei-class nuclear submarine K-535 Yuriy Dolgorukiy is undergoing its first scheduled maintenance, expected to last two to three years.
-However, given Russia’s track record with delays, such as with the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov, the timeline could easily stretch much longer.
-Commissioned in 2013 after significant construction delays, the Yuriy Dolgorukiy is one of Russia’s most advanced ballistic missile submarines, equipped with 16 Bulava SLBMs and a reduced noise signature.
-Despite these capabilities, its complexity could further complicate the repair process, raising doubts about when it will return to service.
Summary Russia’s Borei-class nuclear submarine K-535 Yuriy Dolgorukiy is undergoing its first scheduled maintenance, expected to last two to three years.
However, given Russia’s track record with delays, such as with the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov, the timeline could easily stretch much longer.
Commissioned in 2013 after significant construction delays, the Yuriy Dolgorukiy is one of Russia’s most advanced ballistic missile submarines, equipped with 16 Bulava SLBMs and a reduced noise signature.
Despite these capabilities, its complexity could further complicate the repair process, raising doubts about when it will return to service.
Bookmakers in London and Las Vegas should take note – the Russian Navy's Borei-class nuclear-powered K535 Yuriy Dolgorukiy is now "undergoing its first scheduled maintenance," Russian state media outlet Tass reported on Tuesday. Gamblers could now bet how long the boat, which was handed over to the Russian Navy in 2013 after a prolonged construction, will be sidelined.
If the ongoing maintenance of the flagship aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov is anything to go by, it could be years – or longer. Likewise, the efforts to see the Kirov-class battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov returned to service have been ongoing for nearly a decade.
Russian Navy vessels that head into dry dock for repairs simply have a tendency not to return! But this time, it will be different suggested Kremlin officials.
"The nuclear-powered strategic missile submarine Yury Dolgoruky, the Project 955 lead vessel, is currently undergoing its first scheduled maintenance, which will last two to three years, and afterward the cruiser will be in service for at least 20 years," said Vladimir Maltsev, head of the All-Russian Movement in Support of the Navy.
Though Russia has since built eight of the planned Borei-class 14 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, the program could hardly be described as experiencing smooth sailing.
As Harrison Kass previously wrote for The National Interest, "The first vessel in the Borei-class, the Yury Dolgorukiy, was scheduled for launch in 2002 – but budget constraints delayed the program. The Yury Dolgorukiy would not leave its construction hall until 2007." Even then its construction was met with repeated delays, and the submarine wasn't handed over to the Russian Navy until January 2013.
It has now seen just over a decade of service and will be taken offline for that planned "two to three years," which seems ambitious given the delays almost every Russian warship has suffered during recent construction and maintenance periods.
The Borei class is noted for being highly advanced submarines that should be seen as a serious threat to the United States – able to carry 16 missiles including the Bulava SLBM. In addition, the submarine is noted to have a lower noise signature than the Soviet Navy's Akula-class and even the U.S. Navy's Virginia-class submarines.
Yet, the advanced capabilities of the boats could also be their Achilles Heel so to speak.
"In all, the Borei is a complex machine; each Borei is built with 1.3 million components and mechanisms and requires 17,000 tons of metal – which is about 50 percent more metal than was used to construct the Eiffel Tower," added Kass. "Throughout the Borei, 109 kilometers of piping was used, while 600 kilometers of wiring was used. The hull of the boat is covered in ten thousand rubber plates. Indeed, the Borei is a complex machine."
Complex is something that the Russians can do well only to a point.
Such complexity meant it took a considerable time to build the Yury Dolgorukiy and its complexity will mean that the maintenance will be a serious endeavor. Russia may plan on two to three years for the refit – but that could translate to five or six years based on past experience and perhaps even longer should anything go wrong.
And in Russia something always goes wrong, so betting is now open on when this nuclear-powered submarine will be sailing again.
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
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