"Nelma". Atomic deepwater station project 1851
It should be noted that the projects of the 1851 family from the very beginning were developed in an atmosphere of special secrecy. The prospective nuclear deep-water stations (AGS) had to be assigned special tasks, which led to the corresponding consequences. So, even after several decades after the completion of development and the start of operation of a new technology, information about such projects does not differ in details. Most of the information about the 1851 project and other similar developments has been obtained from various sources, and is also sometimes fragmentary or evaluative. As a result, most of the information still remains secret, but the published data allow us to create a definite picture.
AGS AC-23 at the pier. Photo Militaryrussia.ru
According to the available data, the first works in the field of nuclear deep-water stations started in the mid-sixties of the last century, but over the next few years they dealt only with theoretical questions. In 1972, the USSR Council of Ministers decided to begin the development of two new projects. One of the promising AGS was created in the framework of the 1851 project. The contractor was appointed TsKB-18, the chief designer was S.M. Bavilin In 1974, CDB-18 became part of the newly formed Malachite design bureau. The development of already started projects at the same time did not stop.
At one of the early design stages, the original appearance of the future atomic deepwater station was formed. It was proposed to design a submarine of small size, equipped with its own nuclear power plant and other systems of the required types. On board the boat should be installed a variety of equipment necessary to perform special tasks. The 1851 project did not have high requirements in terms of ride quality: it was proposed to deliver a small submarine to a given area using a submarine carrier.
From the available data, it follows that the first version of the 1851 project was not without flaws, which is why it was proposed to recycle it. Specialists from Malachite made significant changes to the project, as a result of which it received the new designation 18510. Also this version of AGS is sometimes referred to as Nelma. It was the updated version of the project that received the approval of the customer in the person of the Navy command and was brought to the construction and testing stage.
According to the popular version, the 18510 project proposed the use of the half-body design of a submarine with a solid hull made of titanium. However, other details of the overall architecture of the submarine can not be established. A few well-known photographs show that the AGS of this type has a body of round or close to circular cross section, on the upper part of which a superstructure of small width is mounted. The first version of the project implied the abandonment of the deckhouse located on the deck. However, according to the results of the first tests, it was decided to use this unit.
Nelma is equipped with a nuclear power plant built on the basis of a single reactor. The reactor power, according to various estimates, does not exceed 10 MW. According to some data, at the early stages of development it was proposed to use a reactor similar to those used on spacecraft. In addition, there was a proposal to use unusual means of biological protection: instead of traditional materials in this role should be used seawater.
The main objective of the nuclear reactor was to generate electricity for the electric motor associated with the propeller. The latter was placed on the aft end of the hull and, according to some estimates, could be located inside the annular channel. Next to the screw, it was planned to install horizontal and vertical planes with rudders.
According to various sources, the total length of the 18510 “Nelma” AGS project reached 44 m. Width - no more than 3,5 m, draft - 4 m. The displacement of a small submarine must be within 520-530 t. There are no data on the allowable depth of immersion. Assumptions are made about the possibility of diving to a depth of several hundred meters, up to 1 km. When submerged, the submarine can reach speeds of no more than 5-6 nodes.
Atomic deep-water stations “Nelma” were intended for solving special problems, which accordingly affected their appearance. Inside the robust hull is located a variety of equipment, both “traditional” for modern submarines, and having special purposes. To manage the boat and onboard equipment should crew, which includes no more than 10 officers. Also, according to some reports, there may be several divers on board leaving the boat to work at depth. To ensure the diving work on board the AGS there is a gateway and a pressure chamber.
The composition of the special equipment of the submarine, for obvious reasons, was not announced. However, on this score there are various estimates. So, in the well-known photographs of the Nelma it can be seen that the nose of the body has spherical outlines. In this regard, there was a version of the placement of part of the target equipment. In particular, there is an assumption about equipping a deepwater station with remotely controlled manipulators, with the help of which it can interact with surrounding objects.
As the carrier of the nuclear deep-water station, an existing submarine was chosen, which should have been re-equipped according to a special project. The Rubin Design Bureau, on the basis of the existing 675 multipurpose nuclear submarine project, has created a new 675Н project. At the beginning of 1973, the company Zvezdochka (Severodvinsk) began rebuilding the K-86 submarine (previously had a tactical number K-170) under a new project. Due to the complexity of such work, the AGS project carrier 1851 / 18510 was prepared only in 1981 year. After upgrading the submarine was renamed the KS-86.
In 1973, the Malachite bureau completed the development of the first version of the Nelma project - 18510. For a number of reasons, including due to the absence of the required carrier, the start of construction of the head deepwater station was postponed. The first AGS, which received the tactical number AC-23, was bookmarked only in September 1981. The construction of the head sample was carried out by the Leningrad Admiralty Association. Approximately two years later the submarine was launched, after which its tests began.
It was during the tests, in 1984, that foreign intelligence first learned of the existence of the latest Soviet AHS. In the NATO documents, this development later appeared under the designation X-Ray ("X-ray beam"). Subsequently, the name Nelma, corresponding to the original name of the project, appeared in foreign sources.
In the course of the checks, it was found that, in its current form, a new type of station is not without certain disadvantages. In particular, the use of a deckhouse, protecting the upper hatch from being flooded with water during a wave, was required. Before the beginning of the next stage of testing, the boat was modified accordingly. In addition, there were possible changes in certain features of the project, the use of new devices, etc. The AC-23 tests ended at the end of the 1986 year. In the last days of the 86, the nuclear deepwater station was handed over to the customer, and it was soon put into full operation. The first carrier of the station was the submarine KS-86.
In December 1984 of the year, the head AGS of the updated 18511 “Halibus” project was laid. Taking into account the results of the first tests of AC-23, it was decided to refine the existing project. After making all the required changes, the deep-water station became longer by about 11 m, and its displacement increased by almost 200 t. Also, a deckhouse with a set of sliding devices became a regular design element.
At the end of 1991, the head fleet of 18511 project AC-21 was handed over to the fleet. Since 1989, the construction of a serial station of this type, which received the number of AC-35. She was handed over to the customer in October 1995. Some sources also mention the laying and commencement of construction of the third station type “Halibus”, which was never completed and handed over to the customer. However, reliable information about the existence of this AGS is missing. Three built small submarines were introduced into the 29-th separate brigade of submarines of the Northern Fleet, which was also armed with nuclear deep-water stations and other special complexes of several types.
The submarine KS-86 of project 675Н became the first carrier of nuclear deep-water stations. Since 1983, the submarine has been under repair and modernization, later it received the name KS-411 "Orenburg". In 1991, it was accepted into the 29-th separate submarine brigade and became a regular carrier of the Nelma / Paltus. In the mid-nineties, the modernization of the KS-129 “Orenburg” submarine under the 09786 project was launched. In the 2006 year, the submarine, which received the opportunity to work with the existing AHS, was returned to the Navy. Since 1999, Zvezdochka has carried out repairs and modernization of the K-64 Moscow Region submarine. The boat was rebuilt according to the 09787 project, in accordance with which it lost its regular rocket weapons and received funds to work with nuclear deep-water stations. At the end of 2016, the BS-64 submarine was transferred to the fleet. There is reason to believe that she, too, can carry the 1851 family of vehicles.
Since the start of the Nelma program, four submarines of the existing types have been converted into carrier submarines. In the first trials and in the early stages of the service, the role of the main carrier is played by the submarine KS-86. In 1991, she was expelled from the navy and put on a joke. At the beginning of the two thousandth, the utilization of the boat started, ending in 2005. In the same period, it was decided to terminate the operation of the submarine KS-411 "Orenburg". At the beginning of 2009, the ship was launched. To date, all such work has been completed. Thus, at the moment there are only two nuclear submarines in the Russian Navy that can carry various types of AGS, including the Nelmu / Halibus.
Nuclear deep-water stations and their carriers were introduced into the 29 of the separate submarine brigade of the Northern Fleet. At the same time, all such submarines were under the authority of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the USSR Ministry of Defense. Subsequently, the departmental identity of technology has changed. Now "Nelma" and "Halibut" belong to the General Directorate of Underwater Research of the Ministry of Defense. Despite the change of the main operator, the tasks of the submarines, apparently, have not changed.
Any information about the operation of nuclear deep-water stations 18510 and 18511 is missing. Because of the specific features of this technique is used in particularly important operations, details of which are not subject to disclosure. As a result, in open sources there is no information about the participation of Nelma and Paltus in real operations, not to mention the details of such work. Perhaps in the future some of the information will be published, but so far the military department is in no hurry to disclose this data. This situation contributes to the emergence of various rumors and guesses. In particular, rumors regularly appear in the foreign press about the presence of off-shore countries of the Russian AGS with not good intentions. For obvious reasons, the authors of these rumors cannot provide serious evidence of their rightness, and the Russian military department is not in a hurry with refutations.
AC-23 at the quay wall. Photo Defendingrussia.ru
In 2012, several Newsconcerning the further development of the small fleet of autonomous deep-sea stations. At first it became known that one of these submarines is under repair. Later there were reports of a possible completion of the construction of the fourth AGS of the 1851 family. Later, messages appeared again about the repair of one of the Halibuts. Since then, news about the repair of equipment has appeared several times, but information on the future construction of the fourth model has not received confirmation.
According to the available data, at the moment there are all three nuclear deepwater stations built in the eighties and nineties. Due to the great age and, probably, regular work in the interests of GUGI, such equipment needs to be repaired. So, in 2012, the head boat of the АС-23 series was noticed in the shop of “Zvezdochka”, and at the end of the same year, the media reported about the planned repair of the AC-35. This means that the defense ministry and the navy plan to continue operating unique equipment necessary to solve special tasks.
It should be noted that the continued operation of the only "Nelma" and the two "Halibuses" will accordingly affect the amount of available information about unique projects. Because of the need to preserve the required secrecy, the military will not be able to disclose details of previous operations for some time. The absence of both old and new information will necessarily lead to the appearance of new assumptions, estimates, speculations and rumors.
Based on:
https://defendingrussia.ru/
http://izvestia.ru/
http://deepstorm.ru/
http://hisutton.com/
http://militaryrussia.ru/blog/topic-545.html
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