The crew has finished all tests of the vessel, made resupplies and are fully prepared to sail to its permanent base in Novorossiysk, a Northern Fleet spokesperson told TASS.
As BarentsObserver reported, the “Novorossiysk”, arrived in the Northern Fleet for deep-water tests in the beginning of November 2014.
Another Varshavyanka-class (NATO reporting name Improved Kilo class) diesel-electric submarine called “Rostov-na-Donu” was in January reported to be preparing to sail to the Barents Sea for deep-water tests of equipment and weapons systems.
The Varshavyanka-class submarines are characterized by a combination of small size and low noise level with powerful torpedoes and missiles. They can fight underwater and surface targets and are designed to protect naval bases, coastline and sea lanes. They have a 4000 tons displacement and can make 20 knots submerged. The submarine is armed with 533 mm torpedoes and Kalibr cruise missiles, which can destroy surface targets at a distance of up to 300 kilometers.