The International Military-Technical Forum "Army" is a traditional platform for signing new contracts in the interests of the armed forces, incl. navy. This time, at the forum, several large contracts were signed for the supply of surface ships, submarines, weapons, etc. to the Navy.
Surface contracts
The Ministry of Defense and the Severnaya Verf shipyard signed a state contract for the construction of a large number of surface ships. As a result of its implementation, the Navy will receive two frigates of project 22350, two corvettes of project 20385 and eight of project 20380. Ships of these types are already in series, and we are talking about continuing construction in order to increase their total number.
Sredne-Nevsky shipyard received an order for the construction of the next serial minesweeper pr. 12700 "Alexandrite". This will be the 12th ship of its type, and its construction will only begin in 2022, when the necessary production capacity will be freed up during the construction of previous minesweepers.
In the interests of the surface forces and coastal forces, another contract was signed for the supply of 3M55N Onyx anti-ship missiles. The number and cost of the products has not been specified. Such weapons are used on various surface ships, as well as as part of the Bastion coastal missile system.
Underwater order
New contracts "Army-2020" affect the development of the submarine forces of the Navy. The enterprise "Admiralteyskie Verfi" has received an order for the construction of diesel-electric submarines pr. 677 "Lada" and 636.3 "Varshavyanka". According to media reports, it is required to build one ship of both types.
The Zvezdochka shipbuilding center, in accordance with the contract received, will repair and modernize the cruising nuclear submarines of Project 971 Shchuka-B from the Northern Fleet. Three of these ships are now under repair, three more are in service, and one of the boats has recently returned to service.
When signing new contracts, the Ministry of Defense did not forget about weapons for submarines. Thus, an agreement was signed to restore the technical readiness of USET-80 torpedoes. The number of items for repair, the cost of work and the contractor have not yet been specified.
Future results
The naval contracts "Army-2020" provide for the construction of new ships according to already known projects. Fundamentally new combat units have not yet been ordered. However, even in this case, the signed agreements will make it possible to carry out a noticeable renewal of the Navy with a significant increase in combat effectiveness.
To date, the Navy has received two frigates of project 22350; they were transferred to the Northern Fleet. Another ship for the KSF has recently been launched and is being completed at the wall. The next five frigates for the Black Sea and Pacific fleets are at various stages of construction. In 2021-22. we should wait for the laying of two ships under the newest contract. They will be handed over after 2025.
Thus, until 2025-27. 10 frigates of project 22350 will serve in three or four fleets of the Russian Navy. In the future, the appearance of the modernized ship "22350M" is expected, but all ordered units will be built according to the original design.
Of greatest interest is the construction of the corvettes of the project 20380. The Navy is already operating six such ships, one is being tested and three more are under construction. All these frigates should be distributed between KTOF, KBF and KCHF. The new contract provides for the construction of eight more ships. Thus, in a few years the number of corvettes "20380" will reach 18 units, and a third of these plans have already been fulfilled.
Another order provides for the construction of two corvettes of the project 20385 - in addition to a pair of ships under construction. The two corvettes under construction will enter the Pacific Fleet in the coming years. Where the next buildings will serve was not specified.
The plans of the Navy for the construction of minesweepers pr. 12700 look very interesting. In 2016-19. the fleet received three such ships for the Baltic and Black Sea fleets. Another minesweeper is preparing to undergo tests before joining the CTOF. Four buildings are at different stages of construction. Three more were contracted earlier, and a new order appeared for Army-2020. Thus, the recently ordered minesweeper will complete the first dozen, and the construction of such a large series will cover the needs of all fleets.
So far, the Navy has only one diesel-electric submarine of pr. 677 - "St. Petersburg". The first serial ship is already undergoing tests, and the next two are still under construction. Before "Army-2020" there were contracts for the fourth and fifth submarines, and now they have ordered the sixth. If the work does not run into problems again, then after 2025 the Navy will have six Ladas.
The situation with pr. 636.3 looks much more optimistic. The Black Sea Fleet has six such diesel-electric submarines. The lead ship of the second series has already begun service in the Pacific Fleet. Two more "Varshavyanka" for KTOF are under construction and the next two will be laid in the foreseeable future. The submarine ordered for Army 2020 will become the 13th in the Russian fleet.
At present, the Navy has 10 atomic submarines of project 971. Four ships are registered with the Pacific Fleet, the remaining six - for the Northern. At the same time, only one and three boats remain in the ranks of the two fleets, respectively, while the others are being repaired. The new order for repairs and modernization will help restore the technical readiness of the Shchuk-B of the Northern Fleet. In the future, a similar order should be expected in the interests of KTOF.
Naval adjustments
Some of the features of the new package of contracts leave questions. First of all, these are the volumes of some orders and the choice of ships for construction. Izvestia, in its publication on the results of Army-2020, citing its own sources, claims that the Ministry of Defense plans to revise the shipbuilding program and partially reduce it.
The fleet ordered eight new corvettes of the project 20380. Izvestia reminds that it was previously planned to complete the construction of such ships and launch a full-fledged series of newer and more advanced 20386. The lead "Mercury" of this type is currently under construction, but orders for the following ships are not yet available.
The publication suggests that the project 20386 faced some problems in the development of integrated container weapons systems. Such equipment will provide significant benefits, but its creation and implementation is complex. Lack of progress in this direction and the need to continue construction could lead to the order of the older ships "20380".
The next order for diesel-electric submarines pr. 636.3 is very interesting. In previous times, the Ministry of Defense contracted six ships at once - one series for two fleets. Now the contract was limited to just one submarine. Why this happened and for which fleet it is intended is unknown.
At the end of last year, "Admiralty Shipyards" announced their readiness to build in the future a new batch of boats, project 636.3 - for the Baltic Fleet. Probably, the 13th "Varshavyanka" will become the first for the KBF, and the next submarines will be ordered later.
Well-established processes
Currently, several dozen ships, boats, submarines and auxiliary vessels of all main classes are at various stages of construction. With enviable regularity, new orders are placed, launches and the transfer of finished ships to the customer. In parallel, scheduled repairs are carried out with the modernization of equipment. The latest contracts signed at the Army-2020 forum will allow these processes to continue over the next few years.
It is easy to see that the plans of the Ministry of Defense and the shipbuilding industry are regularly adjusted in one direction or another. The required number of ships, the timing of their construction, etc. are changing. However, the process of modernizing the fleet as a whole continues - and its consequences are obvious.
