The Akula-class submarines are the products of Russian naval engineering power and, even today can serve as important actors in modern warfare in oceans.
Manufactured by Amur Shipbuilding Plant and Sevmash, the double-hull design of the Akula-class submarines gives much more buoyancy and versatility as compared with similar products developed in the West.
The double hull includes an inner pressure hull with an outer hull. Such a double-hull design provides more flexibility in outer hull shaping for the improvement of operational capabilities.
Powered by the OK-650B pressurized water reactor, these Akula-class submarines have widely been noted for their enhanced capabilities and reliability. This reactor had also been used in other Soviet submarines such as Sierra I, Sierra II, Oscar I, Oscar II, and the Typhoon class’s highly advanced reactor produced back in the 1970s.
The Akula I variants are Puma, Delphin, Kashalot, Kit, Pantera, Bars, and Narvel. The next generation of the Akula, currently known as Project 971U, comprises Volk, Morzh, Leopard, Tiger, and Drakon.
The sole Akula II variant is Vepr (K-157), which was launched in 1994, but is proof that development has indeed gone into armament and sensors. India leased an Akula II submarine from Russia, branded INS Chakra, but had to return it considerably earlier than scheduled because of propulsion troubles.
Akula-class submarines have long been a part of the arsenal of the Russian Navy, and Vepr will be in service for dozens of years to come.
These submarines were meant to be equipped with S-10 Granat (known as SS-N-21 Sampson) cruise attack missiles, analogous to the American Tomahawk missiles. Other Akula-class versions were equipped with six more 533mm external torpedo tubes, which further increased its combative power.
The most impressive version of the Akula II is the Vepr commissioned in 1995 and launched in 1994-the crown jewel of the Akula-class design. Four 533mm torpedo tubes and four 650mm torpedo tubes besides launching the Type 53 torpedoes, RPK-6, or RPK-2 missiles, as well as naval mines, set this version apart.
The Vepr, together with high-quality sensors and noise-reduction technologies, represents an impressive asset for the Russian Navy.
The Akula-class submarines also represented an international aspect of naval dynamics. In 2022, NATO naval forces tracked the Vepr as it moved from the Northern Fleet to the Baltic, pointing to the continued strategic value of these subs.
India’s experience with Akula-class submarines further supports its global reach. The Indian Navy allegedly leased an Akula II submarine and subsequently redubbed the INS Chakra from Russia.
The INS Chakra allegedly experienced several delays and technical problems when it first came ashore, but this submarine had proven invaluable to the country’s naval capabilities before being sent back to Russia in 2021 with propulsion troubles.
With advanced design and highly impressive capabilities, the Akula-class submarines have always remained a significant force within modern naval warfare.
The development as well as practical field deployment in the Russian Navy signifies that these submarines hold a high and lasting status of being underwater giants in their own right.