BALABANOVO, June 10 (RIA Novosti) - The Defense Ministry plans to complete sea trials of a new diesel Lada-class submarine this year, a military official said on Wednesday."The Navy will complete trials of the Lada-class submarine equipped with new sonar systems in 2009," said Maj. Gen. Alexander Shevchenko, in charge of the Armed Forces' armaments maintenance and support.
A deputy head of the Navy General Staff said in March that the first Lada-class would enter service with the Russian Navy in 2010.
The St. Petersburg is a Project 677 diesel submarine, developed by the Rubin design bureau, features an advanced anti-sonar coating for its hull, an extended cruise range, and advanced anti-ship and anti-submarine weaponry, including Club-S cruise missile systems. The export version is known as the Amur 1650.
The construction of the sub began in 1997 at St. Petersburg's Admiralty Shipyards. Two other submarines of the same class - the Kronshtadt and the Sevastopol - are being built by the company.
"The sub is undergoing sea trials to test new propulsion, electronics and weapons systems," Vice Admiral Oleg Burtsev said.
The Lada class vessels will gradually replace the Kilo class submarines, which are sometimes called "Black Holes" for their uncanny ability to "disappear," and are thought to be one of the quietest diesel-electric submarine classes in the world.
The Russian Navy is planning to commission a total of eight Lada-class submarines in the future, the admiral said.The St. Petersburg will be the first to enter sea trials.
sources:
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en.rian.ru/russia/20090610/155219756.html
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