Russia’s massive new Borei-class ballistic missile submarines are some of the deadliest in the world, but they also bear striking resemblances to U.S. and NATO submarines.
“The tail features all-moving rudders and end-plates on the horizontal stabilizers just like the US Navy’s Ohio class ballistic missile submarines,” says submarine authority H.I. Sutton.
The subs also feature a pumpjet propulsion system instead of a typical submarine propeller.
“Pumpjets were pioneered by the Royal Navy but have also been used on U.S. Navy submarines since the Seawolf class in the 1990s. The Borei class were the first Russian nuclear-powered submarines to be fitted with them.”
In addition, “the smoothly faired base of the submarine’s sail is another Western influence and looks a lot like US Navy submarines, although it is still much longer.”
What is especially Russian about the Borei class: They have double hulls, like previous Russian navy submarines, and eight torpedo tubes, which is very odd for a missile boat because you’d normally find that many tubes on an attack sub. [source]
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