I am not sure if VA can dive as deep as SW. I remember SW's hull is special. Also SW was a cold war design to be able to catch high-performance (deep diving and fast sailing) Soviet boats such as Alpha class in open oceans. But once again, it's one of those grey areas that no one can truly verify.
Not all VA class have LAB though. Block I and II are still using roughly the same type of sensors as their predecessors albeit with better computer and software. I guess you don't differentiate between different blocks.
Not all Akulas are quieter than 688i fltII and fltIII. As a matter of fact, Akula I was not a huge improvement over its predecessor Victor class. Akula 2 and 3 are truly formidable.
One thing I have to caution you if you are doing a big revamp of all ships and subs. Russian Kirov class nuclear battlecruiser's CIWS is bugged. The cannons would only fire toward one side (I forgot it was port or starboard) of the ship. I tried different tricks, but couldn't fix it. I guess it's one of those bugs in the default game.
Really wish you good luck and look forward to trying out your new mod!
