S5-class submarine

An artistic impression of the S5-class submarine
Class overview
Operators:	Indian Navy
Preceded by:	class
Planned:	3
General characteristics
Type:	Nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine
Displacement:	13,500 tonnes (13,300 long tons; 14,900 short tons)
Propulsion:	1 x CLWR-B2 Compact Light-water reactor 190 MW (250,000 hp)
Range:	Unlimited
Armament:	12-16 × K6 MIRVed SLBM (10,000 km (6,200 mi) to 12,000 km (7,500 mi) range) or K-4 SLBM (3,500 km or 2,200 mi range)

S5 is the code name for a planned class of Indian nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines currently being developed for Indian Navy. S5 will weigh around twice as much as the preceding -class submarine. It is expected to start production by 2022.

Design

The S5-class of submarines are planned to weigh around 13,500 tonnes (13,300 long tons; 14,900 short tons). They are planned to be armed with up to twelve or sixteen K6 Submarine-launched ballistic missiles, each armed with multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles.

Development

The Government of India made an assessment of India's capability to design and construct a class of three new ballistic missile submarines codenamed S5 in 2006 when it was realised that the reactor and payload capacity of the Arihant-class submarines was limited. These submarines were initially planned to be operationalised beginning in 2021 but were later delayed. This delay had prompted the Indian Government to sanction an additional Arihant-class submarine in 2012 to avoid the idling of the production line.

See also

• Arihant-class submarine
• Indian Navy SSN programme
• Future of the Indian Navy