Massive Undersea War: US Navy Virginia-class Vs. Russian Kilo-class Attack Submarines

By Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

Precision-guided torpedoes, high-fidelity long range sonar and new generations of “quieting” technologies are all technologies likely to figure prominently in an undersea war between the US Navy and Russia. 

Should advanced Russian Kilo-class submarines confront US Navy Block III Virginia-class boats, it would likely result in a massive, high-tech, undersea war with a difficult to predict outcome. 

While US Navy Block III Virginia-class submarines do operate with advanced acoustics, antennas and quieting systems, the Pentagon refers to the Kilo-class as a “black hole” given the extent of its reported stealth attributes which include special, high-tech coating materials. 

Quieting technologies and sonar resolution and detection range might prove to be the decisive factor in terms of which submarine is able to detect and destroy the other without being seen themselves. Perhaps Virginia-class submarines could launch surveillance drones from its missile tubes and locate Kilo-class submarines from stand-off distances

Russia’s Corroded Carrier & High-Threat Submarines

With one corroded and much damaged aircraft carrier which may never set sea again, and a small fleet of destroyers and surface warships, the Russian Navy is ill-equipped to project global power and operate as a substantial threat or counter to the US Navy. The Russian Navy can perhaps operate as a regional power in the Black Sea or along the Northern Sea Route with its icebreakers. The Russian Navy could possibly also present some kind of a threatening presence in the Baltic Sea … however, while the Russian Navy is likely a threat taken seriously, Russia’s surface fleet does not by any estimate pose a serious threat to US Naval supremacy. This has been the case for many years, as Russia may not have the ambition to become a dominant global naval power such as the US or China.

Russian Submarines … however, present a totally different threat equation, as they not only rival the US in terms of sheer fleet size but may also be competitive when it comes to quieting technologies, firepower, nuclear-weapons delivery and even hypersonic missile attacks.