Russia to scrap world's biggest n-subs

Moscow, May 22 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Russia will decommission and scrap two of the world's largest submarines by 2018, a defence industry source has said.

The Severstal and the Arkhangelsk, both Project 841 (Typhoon-class) ballistic-missile submarines, are based at Severodvinsk on the White Sea. They will be withdrawn from the Navy by this year-end and will begin to be dismantled.

"This process is to be completed before 2018-2020 at the latest," the source said, adding the boats are outdated and it is too costly to modernise them.

A third submarine of this class, the Dmitry Donskoy, has been modernised as a test platform for Russia's new Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile It will remain in service in that capacity for some time yet, the source said.

Six Typhoon-class submarines entered service with the Soviet Navy in the 1980s, and remain the largest submarines ever built. Three have already been scrapped.

--IANS/RIA Novosti

sd