Russian Yasen-M Nuclear Powered Attack Submarine Simulates Missile Strikes in the Arctic

The Russian Navy’s Yasen-M Class nuclear powered attacks submarine Arkhangelsk has launched cruise missiles in the Arctic as part of ongoing Zapad 2025 military exercises across the country’s western regions. Commenting on the exercises, the Russian Defence Ministry reported: “Within the framework of the joint strategic Zapad 2025 drills, the Northern Fleet’s submarine forces delivered a missile strike using high-precision long-range missile weapons on a simulated enemy in the Barents Sea. The crew of the nuclear-powered submarine cruiser Arkhangelsk practiced launching a Kalibr cruise missile at a sea target from an underwater position.” The ministry emphasised that the area of missile launches was temporarily closed for civilian navigation and flights, adding: “according to objective control data, the missile successfully hit the sea target.”

The first Yasen-M Class submarine was commissioned into service in mid-2021, and had been dubbed world’s “deadliest submarine ever” by the National Interest, reflecting broader concerns in the West regarding their much improved capabilities over previous Russian attack submarines. Russian President Vladimir Putin was confirmed on July 24 to have given instructions to continue the serial production of the ships, with the class’ carriage of high-precision weapons and advanced navigation, communication and hydroacoustics capabilities having all been highlighted at the time. The ships saw their missile capabilities improved significantly in March as Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles were for the first time integrated onto a vessel of the class for frontline service. The first test launch of the Zircon from a Yasen-M class ship had previously been carried out in October 2021, with the missiles providing a 1000 kilometre engagement range and impacting targets at Mach 9 speeds with high manoeuvrability, making them particularly challenging o intercept. Each submarine accommodates vertical launch cells for 32 cruise missiles, while also carrying ten torpedo tubes and an Igla-M short ranged surface to air missile system.

Further reporting on the exercises, the Defence Ministry noted that within the framework of Zapad 2025 the Northern Fleet rehearses defensive measures to protect coastal facilities and garrisons, and is demonstrating command and control over diverse force groups in their operational areas, while executing the comprehensive deployment of high-precision weaponry. The primary objective of these exercises is to train for the defence of coastal infrastructure in the Arctic. The exercises have also seen Bastion coastal defence systems launch cruise missile strikes against simulated targets in the region. Russian defences against enemy warships rely overwhelmingly on the country’s submarine fleet, coastal missile installations, and air launched cruise missiles deployed by aircraft such as the Tu-22M3 bomber, as part of an asymmetric approach that reduces reliance on more costly surface combat ships such as destroyers.