Russian Navy:
- the first in the world in terms of the potential of naval strategic nuclear forces (parity with the United States);
- the third in the number of multipurpose nuclear submarines. Taking into account the multipurpose diesel-electric submarines, our Navy will break into second place, leaving the UK behind;
- the sixth largest surface fleet in the world, inferior in the number of warships in the oceanic zone to the naval forces of the United States, China, Great Britain, India and Japan;
- the sixth in terms of the potential of naval aviation.
Traditionally, the strengths of the Russian Navy:
- world leadership in the development of anti-ship missile weapons. From “Eilat” to “Caliber”: 70 years of experience and dozens of products, in a wide range of weight and dimensions and characteristics;
- the presence of a huge "mosquito fleet" of combat and support boats for operations in river basins and the coastal sea zone;
- unique samples of military equipment (titanium submarines, deep-sea "Loshariki", heavy nuclear cruisers). All this in one way or another expands the scope of its application and gives our Navy a unique flavor.
Traditionally weak points:
- power plants of ships;
- combat information and control systems (the existing CIUS allow you to receive only primary target designation from surveillance radars, then all weapons operate in an autonomous mode, using their own radar and fire control means. Unlike foreign Aegis, which create a continuous information field connecting together everything armament and systems of the ship);
- the absence of long-range air defense systems (zonal air defense systems are installed on only 5 ships of the Navy; for comparison: the United States has such ships - 84, some of which, due to their capabilities, are included in the missile defense system);
- eternal organizational and financial difficulties.
Paradox: despite the apparent weakness and almost complete absence of modern ships, the Russian Navy is the most combat-ready and effective fleet in the world.
Reasons for the paradox:
Original tactics and an innovative way of using the Navy in a rapidly changing international environment. As an example - "Syrian express": delivery of the necessary aid to Syria on board warships. That, firstly, excludes the inspection and confiscation of "prohibited" cargo by the UN and OSCE (the principle of extraterritoriality, where to step on the deck of a warship is to cross the border of the Russian state). In addition, a warship has increased combat resistance in the event of “forceful intervention,” an attempted seizure, or any armed provocation.
And, of course, powerful political will, without which even the most formidable weapon remains a useless metal.
Russia is not afraid of criticism and does not hesitate to use the navy to achieve its geopolitical interests. As a result, far from the youngest and most powerful ships perform such "delicate" tasks that are beyond the power of even the coolest squadron under the Stars and Stripes.
To fight is not to shoot. Sometimes it is enough to flood your ship, blocking the enemy's fleet. BOD "Ochakov" in Donuzlav. Crimea, 2014. And that's it, now call the Sixth Fleet for help.
The modern fleets of our “partners” are not able to realize even a small fraction of their capabilities, while the Russian Navy uses the potential of the existing ships by 200%. As a result, time after time, the victory remains with us.
Fleet prospects
Since the announcement of the state armaments program for the period until 2020, the planned schedule has become so detached from reality that it is no longer necessary to talk about any systematic development of the fleet within the framework of GPV-2020.
Helicopter carriers "Mistral" (according to the plan - 4 units). The topic is now closed.
A possible way out of the situation is the domestic project of a landing helicopter carrier (code “Priboy”), information about which was announced in the press in the summer of 2015.
Frigates 11356 (according to the plan - from realistic 4 to populist 9 units). Construction was stopped on the third building due to the lack of engines for them. The main supplier of shipborne gas turbine units (Zorya-Mashproekt) remained on the territory of Ukraine.
As a half-measure, a small rocket ship, project 22800, with a displacement of 800 tons, is proposed. According to Commander-in-Chief Viktor Chirkov, it is planned to build a series of 18 such corvettes, the first of which will be laid in 2016.
It is clear that the replacement is not equivalent. A small rocket ship, due to its size, does not have sufficient autonomy and seaworthiness for operations on the high seas. In addition, from the voiced characteristics of the project 22800 it follows that the MRK is practically defenseless from the air.
But it was project 11356 that was intended for the speedy strengthening of the Black Sea Fleet and the revival of the 5th operational squadron (this was the designation for the formations of Soviet ships on combat duty in the Mediterranean Sea).
Now everything will be a little different.
Refusal to build frigates of Project 11356 and their replacement in the Black Sea with small rocket ships is a logical decision, this is obviously an outdated project, with the construction of ships of this type the fleet was 10 years late.
- Expert of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies M. Barabanov.
It is for this reason that all four frigates of project 22350 (today the most modern surface ships of the Russian Navy, in a number of characteristics corresponding to foreign destroyers) are now planned to be included in the Black Sea Fleet. The lead ship of this type, the Admiral Gorshkov, is currently being tested in the North.
Disruptions, delays, problems.
The former anti-record of the frigate "Gorshkov" was beaten by the achievement of the corvette "Perfect" (Amur Shipyard). The modest 2,200-ton corvette has been under construction since 2006, but has not yet been commissioned. Finished afloat.
The epic with the large landing ship "Ivan Gren" continues for the 11th year. However, it is not so “big”. In terms of displacement, the Ivan Gren large landing craft is four times inferior to the Mistral.
From such a flow of impartial information, the reader may have a nervous breakdown.
It's actually not that bad.
Delays in construction and commissioning are traditional problems for any technique.
"It has been 23 months since the San Antonio entered service, but the fleet has never received an efficient ship."
- US Navy Commander Donald Winter on the USS San Antonio stealth landing craft.
Another thing is that domestic long-term construction projects are taking place in an even harsher, perverted form, when the count goes not for 20 months, but for 20 years (that is how much the nuclear submarine K-560 Severodvinsk was built for "storm of the seas").
The problem with the engines did not come as a surprise either.
The pride of the Russian Empire, the world's best destroyer Novik (1911). Well, open the deck and take a look at the power plant of any of the “Noviks” … Oh, myn goth! “A. G. Volcano”, Stettin.
There is nothing to be surprised at.
Corvettes of the project 20385 (according to the plan - up to 8 units). The construction of the first two buildings (“Thundering” and “Provorny” - since 2012) was interrupted due to the impossibility of purchasing diesel engines from the German company MTU for them due to sanctions.
How not to recall the well-known joke of Saltykov-Shchedrin - if you fall asleep for 100 years and then wake up …
As a replacement for project 20385, an even more advanced project 20386 is proposed, in which exclusively domestic technologists and components will be used. The design should begin this year. The laying of the first building is tentatively planned for 2017-18.
The main thing is that the ships are being built. Instead of dead-end options, alternative ways of solving the problem are proposed.
Commencement of sea trials of the communications vessel "Yuri Ivanov" (radio-technical reconnaissance ship, project 18280)
The dispute about the need to modernize the nuclear-powered Orlans came to its logical conclusion. In October 2014, the TARKR “Admiral Nakhimov” was brought into the “Sevmash” filling pool, work began to dismantle the outdated equipment.
The construction of nuclear-powered submarines continues under the modernized projects 885M Yasen-M and 955A Borey-A.
In the period 2014-15. three diesel-electric boats of the project 636.3 (known as the “black hole”) were commissioned. Novorossiysk, Rostov-on-Don and Stary Oskol. Another - "Krasnodar", went on sea trials on August 10.
Extremely secretive, equipped with the latest technology and armed with cruise missiles "Caliber" - the combat value of these "babies" will be higher than that of a rusty TARKR.
The news about the upcoming construction of a series of destroyers under Project 23560 "Leader" is being discussed. Displacement - 18 thousand tons (hello to the American "Zamvolt" with its 15 thousand). There is no longer any doubt that the domestic super destroyer (cruiser or arsenal ship - any classification is conditional) will be equipped with a nuclear power plant. Despite a number of obvious problems (high cost, impossibility of basing on the Black Sea), the choice of a nuclear power plant destroyer as a power plant is the most logical solution. Our reactors are better than gas turbines.
Model of the nuclear-powered destroyer pr. 23560 from the "Army 2015" exhibition
Experience shows that we can build a "box" with a / c and 18 thousand tons and even equip it with a YSU within five years. The main problem of promising domestic destroyers is that they need to create a complex of detection equipment (modern radar with PFAR / AFAR) and a long-range naval air defense system (similar to the "land" S-400 or "Polyment-Redut"). After all, it is no secret that it is precisely the tasks of air defense that are the only sense in the construction of combat surface ships with a displacement of more than 4 thousand tons in our time (which does not exclude the reasonable "versatility" of these super destroyers).
In general, no global strengthening of the Navy is expected in the coming decade. The ships under construction will hardly be enough to compensate for the loss of the ship composition, due to the full depletion of the resource of the ships and submarines of the Soviet era.
The Smetlivy patrol ship passes the Bosphorus. Snide comments from the Turkish forum: "Like a fire on board", "Russians are frying caviar." "Sharp-witted" was launched in 1967.
Frigates will gradually take the place of the "ocean hounds" of the BOD.
The flagship of the Northern Fleet will be replaced by the upgraded TARKR "Nakhimov" instead of the "Petr" that has left for repairs.
The Northern and Pacific fleets will have 4-5 strategic missile-carrying submarines (all modern, of the Borey project) and approximately the same number of multipurpose Pike and Ash.
The remaining six strategic missile cruisers pr. 667BDRM (the most recent was commissioned in 1990) will leave the combat strength after 2020. Together with them, liquid-propellant SLBMs of the design of the V. I. Makeeva (R-29, "Sineva", "Liner"). The core of Russia's naval strategic nuclear forces will be the R-30 Bulava solid-propellant SLBMs. Despite the worst energy and mass perfection (the rate of outflow of powder gases is always lower than that of liquid propellants), the transition to solid rocket fuel will radically increase operational safety, reduce the time of prelaunch preparation and the cost of building missiles.
We go, though not always right, but our own way. Despite the far from ideal ship composition, the Russian Navy remains an effective combat vehicle and a deadly enemy.
