TASS Russian news agency
Defense Ministry sources said the buoys are on trials with Russian submarines. Burak-M is an electronic warfare device. It is discharged by a submarine to the water surface, activates and operates as a jammer. It jams the communication channels of acoustic buoys — submarine detection stations dropped by adversary airplanes and helicopters.
The fight against such stations is very important for the Russian Navy. NATO countries engage such buoys to search for submarines, expert Igor Kurdin said. “In particular, the United States has recently upgraded Orion antisubmarine aircraft. It is armed with magnetometers, acoustic and other equipment to detect submarines. The aircraft drops buoys in the area of a detected submarine. The equipment lowers hydrophones to a specific depth to determine the exact coordinates of the submarine,” he said.
Disrupted communications between the antisubmarine aircraft and the buoys make their use senseless and allows a submarine to escape. The Russian Navy has not had such systems before, the expert said.
Turboprop Orion P-3 was the main NATO antisubmarine aircraft in the Cold War and after it. Close to 700 aircraft were produced. Today Poseidon P-8 jet aircraft developed from passenger Boeing 737-800 is replacing Orion. The new aircraft has upgraded onboard equipment and longer patrol time. The speed allows the aircraft to quickly approach the position for submarine search. The first P-8 were delivered to the US Navy in 2013. A total of 177 submarine hunters have to be procured. Great Britain and India also procured Poseidon.
The new Russian buoys have to promote covert operations of SSBN of projects 667BDRM and 955 which are the backbone of the naval component of the Russian strategic nuclear forces. All Russian SSBN are operated by the Northern and Pacific fleets. Fourth-generation nuclear Borey-A-class submarines of projects 955 and 955A have to become the backbone of the Russian strategic nuclear naval force and replace project 677BDRM and the last Kalmar-class submarines of project 667BDR and 941.
Burak-M will be also used by Lada-class diesel-electric submarines of projects 636.3 and 677. The submarines have to destroy warships and U-boats, engage in patrol, reconnaissance, and defend communications in brown waters. They are armed with torpedoes and Kalibr cruise missiles, the Izvestia said.
