Russian Navy receives final Kilo-class submarine

The Russian Navy has officially accepted the diesel-electric submarine Yakutsk into its fleet, concluding the construction series of Project 636.3 boats designated for the Pacific Fleet.

The handover ceremony took place on June 11 at the Admiralty Shipyards in St. Petersburg, with senior naval leadership in attendance.

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, Admiral Vladimir Vorobyov, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, delivered remarks on behalf of Admiral Alexander Moiseyev, congratulating both shipbuilders and the submarine’s crew. In his address, Vorobyov called on the crew to “carry out their assigned tasks with honor.”

Yakutsk is the sixth and final Project 636.3 “Varshavyanka”-class, NATO reporting name Kilo, submarine built for the Pacific Fleet by Admiralty Shipyards. It was laid down on August 23, 2021, launched on October 11, 2024, and has since completed all required state trials. As of now, there is no publicly available information regarding the timing of its transfer voyage to the Russian Far East.

Four of the previously delivered submarines—Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Volkhov, Magadan, and Ufa—are already deployed with the Pacific Fleet’s Primorskaya Flotilla. These vessels are reported to be operational in the region. The fifth submarine, Mozhaisk, was last confirmed in the Baltic Sea. There has been no official announcement regarding the start of its redeployment to the Pacific.

The Yakutsk’s construction began under the supervision of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as noted during the ceremony. The completion of the series is seen as a reinforcement of Russia’s undersea presence in the Asia-Pacific region, though official sources have not disclosed the full scope or schedule of deployment.

Project 636.3 submarines, often referred to by NATO as “Improved Kilo-class,” are known for their low acoustic signature and are designed for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare missions. These vessels are equipped with advanced sonar and can carry Kalibr cruise missiles, providing a strategic deterrence capability in contested maritime zones.

The launch of Yakutsk follows a pattern of increased Russian naval activity in the Pacific theater amid rising global tensions. While the Ministry of Defense has not elaborated on future fleet movements, the submarine is expected to join its sister vessels in operations based out of the Russian Far East.

With the completion of Yakutsk, the Admiralty Shipyards have delivered twelve Project 636.3 submarines to the Russian Navy since the program’s inception. The Pacific Fleet now fields six of these.