#Russian Black Sea Fleet

Russia plans to lay down two additional Project 677M Lada-class diesel-electric submarines in early 2026, a move that underscores Moscow’s continued push to modernize its non-nuclear submarine force despite years of technical setbacks.

A Ukrainian underwater drone struck and critically disabled a Russian Project 636.3 Kilo-class submarine inside the Novorossiysk naval base. Ukrainian analysts say the strike effectively removes the submarine from service due to Russia’s inability to repair submarines in the Black Sea, while blast fragments from the explosion may have also damaged a second submarine moored nearby.

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) said it carried out a special operation in Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, using “Sub Sea Baby” underwater drones to strike a “Varshavyanka”-class submarine. The claim, if confirmed, would underline how Ukraine’s expanding sea-drone campaign is pressing Russia to shift high-value naval assets away from occupied Crimea and deeper into Russian ports.

Russia appears to be rushing one of its most chronically delayed submarines into service, as Admiralty Shipyards moves to hand over the Lada-class Velikiye Luki to the Navy before year’s end after nearly two decades of setbacks.