On Thursday, July 24, 2025, a commissioning ceremony was held at the OAO PO Sevmash shipyard (Northern Machine-Building Enterprise) in Severodvinsk, Russia, marking the entry into operational service of the new K-555 Knyaz Pozharskiy nuclear-powered strategic submarine, part of the Project 955A Borei-A class. The event was attended by President Vladimir Putin. This is the fifth submarine of the upgraded Project 955A variant and the eighth unit overall in the Project 955 series.
Photos: Kremlin
The Russian president delivered a ceremonial address in which he congratulated the defense industry and armed forces, while also highlighting that over 70 vessels of various types are currently under construction at Russian shipyards, at different stages of production. Among them, the Sevmash shipyard (OAO PO Sevmash) is expected to deliver six nuclear-powered submarines (of the Borei-A and Yasen-M classes) by 2030.
Following the ceremonial raising of the St. George’s (Andrew’s) flag, the vessel officially joined the 31st Submarine Division stationed in the closed city of ZATO Gadzhiyevo, located on the Kola Peninsula, as part of the Russian Navy’s Northern Fleet (VMF). The ceremony was attended by First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, Presidential Aides Alexei Dyumin and Nikolai Patrushev, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy Admiral Aleksandr Moiseyev, Governor of Arkhangelsk Oblast Aleksandr Tsybulskiy, United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) CEO Andrei Puchkov, and Sevmash General Director Mikhail Budnichenko.
The keel of K-555, with yard number 208, was laid on December 23, 2016. Initially, launch and sea trials were expected to begin before 2022. A christening was then planned for 2022, but the timeline was postponed several times, eventually rescheduled to January 31 and February 3, 2024. At that time, the submarine was rolled out to the Sukhona floating dock, Project 2121, and subsequently launched to undergo harbor acceptance tests, followed by state sea trials, which began on July 28, 2024.
The submarine was initially scheduled to enter service by the end of 2024, but the date was later moved to late June 2025. It has now officially been commissioned. The vessel is named after Dmitry Mikhaylovich Pozharsky (1577–1642), a prince of the Rurikid dynasty and leader of the popular uprising that expelled Polish–Lithuanian forces from Russia during the Polish–Russian War (1609–1618). The submarine was ordered by the Russian Ministry of Defense on May 25, 2012, along with three other units: K-552 Knyaz Oleg, K-553 Generalissimus Suvorov, and K-554 Imperator Aleksandr III.
The Borei-A submarines, compared to the prototype and earlier serial Borei-class boats, are equipped with modernized communication systems and feature a lower acoustic signature due to improved propellers and structural modifications to the hull, including a new movable rudder. Initial reports suggested that four additional launch tubes for ballistic missiles would be added, but this was ultimately not confirmed.
The Borei-A submarines are 170 meters long, 13.5 meters wide, with a surface displacement of 14,720 tonnes and a submerged displacement of 24,000 tonnes. They are powered by a single OK-650V pressurized water reactor with a power output of 190 MW. Their primary armament consists of 16 launch tubes for R-30 Bulava/RSM-56 ballistic missiles. Each missile is 12.1 meters long, 2 meters in diameter, and weighs 36.8 tonnes. The estimated maximum range is 9,300 km, and each missile can carry six nuclear warheads, each with a yield of 150 kilotons, along with an unspecified number of decoys.
In total, Russia is expected to operate 12 submarines of this class, including the Project 955 prototype, K-535 Yuri Dolgorukiy (in service since 2012), and the serial units, K-550 Alexander Nevsky (2013) and K-551 Vladimir Monomakh (2014). Additionally, there are four upgraded Project 955A submarines: K-549 Knyaz Vladimir (2020), K-552 Knyaz Oleg (2021), K-553 Generalissimus Suvorov (2022), and K-554 Imperator Aleksandr III (2023). Two more are under construction: Knyaz Potemkin and Dmitry Donskoy, scheduled to enter service in 2026 and 2028, respectively. Two further 955AM Borei-AM submarines are planned, with commissioning expected in 2030 and 2031. However, as the keels were not laid last year, this timeline is likely to shift.
In 2018, plans for a further upgraded Borei-B class were abandoned, while the Ministry of Defence expressed interest in two Borei-K variants, modified to carry long-range cruise missiles. Meanwhile, two special-purpose submarines, Project 09851 Khabarovsk class, based on the Borei design, are under construction: Khabarovsk and Ulyanovsk, with two more units ordered. These will serve as carriers for six Poseidon (2M39) nuclear-powered torpedoes or unmanned underwater vehicles (formerly known as Status-6, NATO reporting name: Kanyon), similar to the already operational K-329 Belgorod.
