Munitions

53-65K torpedo

Also known as
  • 53-65
  • 53-65K
  • Type 53-65K
  • 53/65K
  • Izdeliye 243

The 53-65K is a Soviet 533 mm wake-homing anti-ship torpedo from the Type 53-65 family. It replaced the peroxide-fueled family propulsion with a kerosene-oxygen turbine, carried a roughly 307 kg high-explosive warhead, and appears in documented torpedo fits for Soviet and Russian submarines including Delta III, Kilo, Akula, and Victor III classes.

53-65K torpedo, 533 mm wake-homing anti-ship torpedo, Munitions
Image source: 53-65K torpedo MW.JPG - Wikimedia Commons
Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
Soviet Union
Type
533 mm wake-homing anti-ship torpedo
Service note
Cold War
Designer
SKB Mashzavod (Kirov plant design bureau)
Unit cost
21,000 rubles (reported)

Specifications

Caliber
533 mm
Length
7.2 m
Weight
2,070 kg
Warhead
307.6 kg high explosive
Guidance
Active acoustic wake homing
Propulsion
Kerosene-oxygen turbine
Target
Surface vessels
Launch platform
Submarines and surface vessels
Fuse
Magnetic proximity fuse
Range
Up to 19 km
Speed
45 knots
Variants

Type 53-65 designations separate the original peroxide-fueled Soviet anti-ship torpedo family from the safer kerosene-oxygen 53-65K branch and later export or refurbished versions.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
Type 53-65Original family member

Introduced in 1965 and treated by later references as the baseline Soviet wake-homing anti-surface torpedo family.

Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net, Russian Torpedoes after World War II - NavWeaps

53-65M torpedo, 533 mm submarine torpedo, Munitions53-65M torpedoImproved peroxide-fueled variant

Introduced in 1969 as an improved same-family model with longer listed range than the 53-65K, while retaining the more difficult peroxide fuel path.

Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net, Russian Torpedoes after World War II - NavWeaps

Type 53-65AProject 705 automated-input variant

Identified as a Type 53-65M derivative with automated target input for highly automated Project 705 Lira submarines.

Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net

Type 53-65KEExport variant

Described as the export form of the 53-65K, introduced after the earlier fuel arrangements limited export appeal.

Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net, Large submarines - Project 877, 636 - RussianShips.info

Type 53-65K modRefurbished service variant

Listed as a refurbished or possibly updated 53-65K version introduced in 2011 for Russian and Indian service.

Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net

Documented Firing Platforms

Open submarine references list the 53-65K in several Soviet and Russian 533 mm torpedo fits. These relationships are platform-compatibility context only and do not imply documented combat firing.

Firing weaponWeapon typeFiring evidence
Delta III-class submarine, Ballistic missile submarine, Naval SystemsDelta III-class submarineBallistic missile submarine

RussianShips lists Project 667BDR Delta III submarines with four 533 mm bow torpedo tubes carrying SET-65, SAET-60M, 53-65K, 53-65M, and Vodopad weapons.

Sources: Nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines - Project 667BDR - RussianShips.info, Delta III-class submarine - Naval Encyclopedia

Project 636 / 636M / 636.3 Kilo-class submarine, Diesel-electric attack submarine, Naval SystemsProject 636 / 636M / 636.3 Kilo-class submarineDiesel-electric attack submarine

RussianShips lists Project 877 and Project 636 Kilo-family boats with six 533 mm bow tubes and identifies 53-65K or 53-65KE among their torpedo loads.

Sources: Large submarines - Project 877, 636 - RussianShips.info

Akula-class submarine, Nuclear-powered attack submarine, Naval SystemsAkula-class submarineNuclear-powered attack submarine

RussianShips lists Project 971 Akula-class submarines with four 533 mm bow torpedo tubes and includes 53-65K among the documented 533 mm torpedo load.

Sources: Nuclear-powered submarines - Project 971 - RussianShips.info

Victor III-class submarine, Nuclear-powered attack submarine, Naval SystemsVictor III-class submarineNuclear-powered attack submarine

RussianShips lists Project 671RTM/RTMK Victor III submarines with four 533 mm bow torpedo tubes and 53-65K among the 533 mm torpedoes.

Sources: Nuclear-powered submarines - Project 671RTM, 671RTMK - RussianShips.info

Wake-Homing Design Context

The 53-65K is best read as an anti-surface torpedo rather than a general undersea weapon. Its wake-homing seeker follows the disturbance left by a ship, and the kerosene-oxygen power plant separated it from the peroxide-fueled Type 53-65 and 53-65M line.

FeatureSourced context
Target setWeaponsystems.net identifies the family as intended for surface vessels, with the 53-65K using active acoustic wake homing.
Fuel choiceThe 53-65K branch used kerosene-oxygen propulsion, trading some range against the peroxide-fueled family members for a safer handling path.
Catalog roleRussianShips armament lists show the torpedo in 533 mm submarine tube fits, while the absence of direct conflict-use evidence keeps this record relationship-only.
Timeline

53-65K torpedo Key Events

  1. Type 53-65 enters service

    NavWeaps and Weaponsystems.net list 1965 for the original Type 53-65 family member, establishing the baseline Soviet wake-homing anti-surface torpedo line.

    Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net, Russian Torpedoes after World War II - NavWeaps

  2. 53-65K and 53-65M appear

    Both NavWeaps and Weaponsystems.net list 1969 for the 53-65K and 53-65M variants; the 53-65K branch used kerosene-oxygen propulsion rather than the family's peroxide fuel path.

    Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net, Russian Torpedoes after World War II - NavWeaps

  3. 53-65KE export variant introduced

    Weaponsystems.net identifies the 53-65KE as the export version of the 53-65K and places its introduction in 1984.

    Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net

  4. 53-65K mod listed

    Weaponsystems.net lists a 53-65K mod as a refurbished or possibly updated version introduced for Russian and Indian service.

    Sources: Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.net

Media

53-65K torpedo Images

53-65K torpedo, 533 mm wake-homing anti-ship torpedo, Munitions - view 1
Source: 53-65K torpedo at Park Patriot.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
Related Weapon Systems
Delta III-class submarine, Ballistic missile submarine, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsDelta III-class submarineBallistic missile submarineThe Delta III-class submarine is the NATO reporting name for the Soviet Project 667BDR Kalmar, a Sevmash-built nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine designed around the D-9R launch system and 16 R-29R / SS-N-18 submarine-launched ballistic missiles. The class introduced a MIRV-capable Soviet SSBN design, remained visible in Russian Pacific Fleet strategic exercises into the 2010s, and ended regular SSBN service when K-44 Ryazan was withdrawn after the other Project 667BDR boats had already left service.
Victor III-class submarine, Nuclear-powered attack submarine, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsVictor III-class submarineNuclear-powered attack submarineThe Victor III-class submarine is the NATO reporting name for the Soviet Project 671RTM/RTMK Shchuka nuclear-powered attack submarine. Built at Admiralty and Komsomolsk shipyards, it carried the Project 671 line into a quieter, missile-capable generation with updated combat electronics, a distinctive towed-array sonar pod, 533 mm and 650 mm bow tubes, and a loadout spanning torpedoes, RK-55 Granat cruise missiles, antisubmarine missiles, and mines. A small number of late boats remained tied to Russian Northern Fleet service decades after the Soviet collapse.
100 mm KSM-65 coastal defense gun, Towed 100 mm coastal-defense gun, ArtilleryArtillery100 mm KSM-65 coastal defense gunTowed 100 mm coastal-defense gunThe KSM-65 was a Soviet 100 mm coastal-defense gun that adapted the KS-19 anti-aircraft gun family to a KMU-65 coastal platform, off-mount battery fire control, and high-rate fire against surface targets. Developed at Plant No. 8 under L. V. Lyulyev after the Soviet Navy moved away from the earlier S-65 project, it remained a small 116-gun Cold War system with documented Soviet inventory into the 1980s but no direct conflict-use sourcing strong enough for a normal conflict entry.
Delta IV-class submarine, Nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine class, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsDelta IV-class submarineNuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine classThe Delta IV-class submarine is the Soviet Project 667BDRM Delfin nuclear-powered ballistic-missile submarine, built by Sevmash for the Northern Fleet and retained by Russia as an aging but still visible sea-based nuclear deterrent. The class carries a D-9RM missile system with 16 R-29RM-family SLBMs, four 533 mm torpedo tubes, and modernized Sineva/Layner-era missiles; public sources distinguish the seven boats built from smaller operational counts as individual hulls cycle through overhaul or replacement by Borei-class SSBNs.

Sources

53-65K torpedo - MilitaryRussiaPublisher: MilitaryRussia | Note: Supports Soviet development background, manufacturer context at the S.M. Kirov Torpedo Plant, and reported technical characteristics for the 53-65K variant. | Accessed: 2026-06-27Type 53-65 - Weaponsystems.netPublisher: Weaponsystems.net | Note: Supports the torpedo's wake-homing anti-surface role, 53-65K kerosene-oxygen propulsion, Izdeliye 243 designation, variant structure, and platform compatibility background. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Russian Torpedoes after World War II - NavWeapsPublisher: NavWeaps | Note: Supports the 53-65, 53-65K, and 53-65M in-service dates, propulsion split, range/speed comparison, and wake-following homing context. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines - Project 667BDR - RussianShips.infoPublisher: RussianShips.info | Note: Supports the Delta III / Project 667BDR firing-platform relationship by listing 53-65K and 53-65M among weapons for its 533 mm bow torpedo tubes. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Large submarines - Project 877, 636 - RussianShips.infoPublisher: RussianShips.info | Note: Supports Kilo-family launch-platform context by listing 53-65K and 53-65KE among torpedoes for Project 877 and Project 636 533 mm bow tubes. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Nuclear-powered submarines - Project 971 - RussianShips.infoPublisher: RussianShips.info | Note: Supports Akula-class launch-platform context by listing 53-65K among the 533 mm torpedo load for Project 971 submarines. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Nuclear-powered submarines - Project 671RTM, 671RTMK - RussianShips.infoPublisher: RussianShips.info | Note: Supports Victor III launch-platform context by listing 53-65K among the 533 mm torpedoes for Project 671RTM/RTMK submarines. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Underwater Weapons: Problems and Capabilities - Russian NavyPublisher: Rusnavy | Note: Supports the reported mid-1980s unit cost for the 53-65K submarine torpedo. | Accessed: 2026-06-2753-65K torpedo MW.JPG - Wikimedia CommonsPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing context for the torpedo display photo used as the primary image. | Accessed: 2026-06-2753-65K torpedo at Park Patriot.jpg - Wikimedia CommonsPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing context for the park display torpedo image in the gallery. | Accessed: 2026-06-27Delta III-class submarine - Naval EncyclopediaPublisher: Naval Encyclopedia | Note: Supports the firing-platform relationship: the Delta III-class submarine page lists the 53-65K among torpedoes carried in its four 533 mm tubes. | Accessed: 2026-06-29