Russia’s Poseidon Codename Status-6, is an Autonomous, Nuclear-Powered, and Nuclear-Armed Unmanned Underwater Vehicle.

 

The Russian navy has received the first submarine Belgorod which is designed to carry Poseidon nuclear-powered underwater drones

According to information published by Tass on July 11, 2022, the Sevmash Shipyard has delivered the Project 09852 submarine Belgorod able to carry Poseidon nuclear-powered underwater drones to the Russian Navy.

The submarine is designed to accomplish various research tasks, implement search and rescue operations and can carry deep-water rescue and autonomous unmanned submersible vehicles.

The Poseidon, previously known by the Russian codename Status-6, is an autonomous, nuclear-powered, and nuclear-armed unmanned underwater vehicle under development by Rubin Design Bureau, capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear payloads. The Poseidon is one of the six new Russian strategic weapons announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on 1 March 2018.

The Poseidon appears to be a torpedo-shaped robotic mini-submarine that can travel at speeds of 185 km/h. More recent information suggests a top speed of 100 km/h, with a range of 10,000 km and a depth maximum of 1,000 m.

It is 1.6–2 metres in diameter and 24 metres long. The warhead shown in the leaked figure is a cylinder 1.5 metres in diameter by 4 metres in length, giving a volume of 7 cubic meters.

It can travel fast in an intercontinental range with an operational depth of over 1 km.

As Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Nikolai Yevmenov said at the ceremony, the Belgorod will open new opportunities for carrying out research.

The Project 09852 submarine Belgorod, the first carrier of Poseidon nuclear-powered underwater drones, was floated out on April 23, 2019. The submarine was initially planned to be delivered to the Navy in 2020. According to available data, its delivery was delayed as the program of its trials was not completed, which was also due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Under Russia’s state armament program through 2027, shipbuilders will deliver three special-purpose nuclear-powered submarines to the Russian Navy.

The submarine opens new opportunities for Russia to implement various scientific research tasks and conduct rescue operations in remote areas of the oceans, Xinhua news agency quoted Nikolay Yevmenov, commander-in-chief of the Navy, as saying at a ceremony on Friday.

Two more such submarines will be commissioned by 2027.

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