Project 705 and 705K lira NATO code name alfa
A small submarine built entirely for speed and average diving depths she is made of a light wieght titanium alloy which will enable her to submerge to a maximum depth of 750 meters, he light wieght construction small size and wieght means she can atain speeds of 45 knots far faster than many western submarines.
The submarines have just six compartments two of which are mainly manned control room and also engineering space to the rear, its only when at battle stations does compartment one get manned.
there are seven of the class 2 have been dismantled one is in active service still as a testing platform and the others are laid up at bolshya lopatka (near zapadny litsa the test ship is based in gremikha).
At the fall of the soviet union all but one was in service all units were liad up by 1992 however one was briefly reactivated in 1995 for testing but since been mothballed and one was re activated in 1995 and remains active as a test platform.
Specification:
Length: 82 meters long
Width: 9.5 meters
Draft: 7.6 meters
Top speed 45.2 knots
Displacement: 2,300 tonnes surfaced / 3,500 tonnes submerged
Crew: 30 to 45
Maximum diving depth: 750 meters
Hull: titanium alloy
Designed by design station 193 malakhit st petersburg chief designer Mikhail Rusanov
Re fitted to carry SS-N-15 Starfish torpedos in the 1980's (nuclear torpedos like subroc)
All of the class were stationed in Bolshya Lopatka along with submarines like the Typhoon and Oscar II class
Built at the ship yards in st petersburg and Severmorsk
K-337 sufferd a reactor accident in 1972 the liquid metal leaked from the reactor the submarine was never put to sea again instead it was dismatled her reactor compartment remains at the sadya bay nuclear storage facility.
Alfas were built between 1974 and 1977 seven were built but construction was terminated as the hulls were found to be too expencive to mass produce, they were designed to be interceptor submarines rather than a pure ASW or ASuW submarine meaning they were designed to get to a point fast shoot and run away unlike the akula or victor III which were pure attack submarines.
Reactor of the alfa:
Known as OK-550 its lead/bismuth cooled however the draw back to this is should the reactor temprature fall below 125*c the solution solidifies shutting down the reactor and causing the reactor never to function again four submarines sifferd this problem.
In the early years shore based facilities kept the reactors warm however the reliability of these installations was not garenteed so they decided the reactor should remain online even when in port, the reactors had a life span of 25 years so this wasnt a problem however it did make engineering and over hauls nearly impossible as the live reactor had to be shut down in order to carryout routine maintinance.
The issue came to light after one submarines coolant leaked causing the solution to solidify and freezing the reactor she was later taken out of service and scrapped, but the reactor unit remains in sadya bay on the kola peninsular.
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