One of the shortcomings of the domestic fleet is sometimes called the original system for replenishing the ship's composition, according to which the lead ship of each series is a test platform for testing and updating new weapons and radio electronics systems. Even after successful tests and the massive introduction of new systems on the ships of the Navy, work continues on their improvement and modernization, as a result, ships of the same type differ significantly from each other in the composition of equipment, which complicates their supply, repair and operation.
A striking example of such an approach is the heavy nuclear missile cruisers of pr. 1144 "Orlan". Despite the modest series, all 4 cruisers in reality belong to three different projects, and the head TARKR "Kirov" and the last TARKR "Peter the Great" are so different from each other that it is time to talk about completely different ships:
- On the Kirov cruiser, a separate bow launcher was used to launch the Blizzard anti-submarine missiles. The rest of the cruisers are armed with PLUR "Waterfall", launched through torpedo tubes.
- Artillery "Kirov" - two 100 mm mounts, the rest of the ships are equipped with a new AK-130.
- The lead "Kirov" differed from the other three cruisers of the series in the design of the S-300F launchers, due to the smaller dimensions of the anti-aircraft missiles of the first version.
- On Peter the Great, one of the anti-aircraft systems was replaced by the S-300FM, a new control post was installed: the total ammunition load was reduced to 94 missiles, but it became possible to hit targets at a distance of 200 km.
- Anti-aircraft self-defense systems: on the first three ships were installed two air defense systems "Osa-M"; on "Peter the Great" - the multi-channel complex "Dagger" (16 below deck launchers, 128 missiles).
- The anti-aircraft artillery has changed: the first two cruisers had four AK-630 batteries, the Admiral Nakhimov and Peter the Great - 6 Kortik complexes.
- For self-defense against torpedoes on cruisers, RBU-6000 was originally installed; on "Nakhimov" and "Petra" they were replaced by RBU-12000 "Boa".
- Starting from the second building, a new BIUS "Lesorub-44" was installed on the TARKRs, the old electronic warfare system "Gurzuf" was replaced by "Cantata-M", the space communications complex "Tsunami-BM" - by "Kristall-BK". From the third hull, the ships were equipped with an improved three-dimensional radar "Fregat-MA" with a phased array, as well as navigation radar "Vaigach-U". Additionally, to enhance the capabilities of the air defense "Peter the Great", on its foremast on the right and left were installed radar detection of low-flying targets "Podkat".
The flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, the guards missile cruiser Moskva, is the only truly unique of the three operating cruisers of Project 1164 Atalant, equipped with the P-1000 Vulcan anti-ship missile system. The main caliber of the other two cruisers, Varyag and Marshal Ustinov, remains the P-500 Basalt. If suddenly the missile cruiser "Ukraine" (the fourth ship of Project 1164), which has been quietly rusting at the outfitting wall in Nikolaev for 20 years, is suddenly completed, it is difficult to even imagine what new and unusual systems will appear on its decks (however, it already has little to do with competent modernization).
No less interesting is the history of the evolution of large anti-submarine ships of project 1155 (code "Udaloy"), from which the BOD "Admiral Chabanenko" was miraculously born (pr.1155.1) - with supersonic anti-ship missiles "Moskit", artillery of 130 mm caliber, ZRAK "Kortik" and anti-submarine rocket torpedoes "Vodopad-NK". Instead of the Polynom hydroacoustic complex, the Chabanenko was replaced by the more advanced Zvezda-2.
At the same time, "Admiral Chabanenko" was not supposed to turn into a unique ship; according to the improved project 1155.1, at least 4 new BODs should have been laid, but the "dashing 90s" broke out and the "Shepherd" was left in splendid isolation. At present, "Admiral Chabanenko" is on duty to protect the Motherland together with its "older brothers" BOD pr. 1155, comparing favorably with them with its article and more powerful weapon.
Russians modernized Japanese TV and got a vacuum cleaner as a result
There were several reasons for this situation: firstly, the constant lagging of science-intensive industries behind the shipbuilding industry; as a result, when the hull of the new ship was already bobbing on the water, most of the weapons and electronics were not yet ready. To saturate the volume of the case, it was necessary to install systems of the previous generation, which over time were sometimes replaced with the promised new ones.
The second reason is the absence of a clear doctrine of the Navy, when the priorities of the Navy were completely changed with each reshuffle of personnel in the Admiralty and the shipbuilding industry. The ships were mortgaged, dismantled on the slipway, and re-mortgaged. The nuclear destroyer after 10 years of "modernization" on the boards of designers turned into a monstrous nuclear cruiser "Orlan" …
And the third reason is the absence of the tradition of "test ships-laboratories". This does not mean water-filled test benches for submarine ballistic missiles, but the presence of real test ships on which any promising system can be installed. The "test ship" can go out to sea and thoroughly test the system in real sea conditions.
The rich and powerful Soviet Union did not feel any inconvenience from such metamorphoses - every time enough funds were allocated to maintain and modernize this entire huge diverse fleet in time.
The real problem came with the collapse of the USSR - funding was cut to a critical level, and new ships are built too rarely to be used as "testing grounds" - the existing fleet must be replenished as soon as possible.
In modern Russia, the question is more and more often asked: is it not too wasteful to use a ship worth half a billion dollars to "test" promising systems. After all, it is no secret that most of the weapons planned for installation on the new frigate of project 22350 "Admiral Gorshkov" did not undergo any approbation on the ships of the Navy, therefore, numerous "childhood diseases" and "inconsistencies" of the most complex and expensive equipment are not excluded, which will require major changes to subsequent ships of the series. Which is very expensive. At the same time, the lead Admiral Gorshkov himself risks remaining an "experimental ship" for a long time.
The author's fears are not in vain, the head corvette "Guarding" did not escape the fate of the "proving ground" - the first two units of the series were built on the project 20380, the third corvette "Boyky" (entered sea trials on October 10, 2012) was already under construction according to the amended project 20381, with the installation of a new version of the Kh-35U Uran-U missile system and vertical launchers of the Redut air defense system. You will laugh, but already the sixth ship of the series is being built according to an even more modified project 20385: the number of cells of the Redut air defense missile system has been increased to 16, instead of the Uran-U anti-ship missile system, Caliber cruise missiles will appear!
It's just great that the capabilities of Russian corvettes will increase many times over, but two questions remain: 1. Why couldn't these changes be incorporated into the original project? 2. Corvettes of the "Guarding" type are the most modern type of warships of the Russian Navy and the only one of all new projects that has already been put into service. It is these ships that will in the near future protect the sea borders of our Fatherland, and such experiments with their design are completely useless. Perhaps, for a start it is worth practicing on less valuable ships?
And how are they doing?
In foreign fleets, everything looks somewhat different. Since 2003, Her Majesty's Royal Navy has received six completely identical "battle dragons" - Daring-class air defense destroyers. But the situation in the US Navy is much more serious - by laying ships in large batches, the Americans have no room for error. If any critical flaw suddenly "emerges", dozens of destroyers will have to be rebuilt.
However, everything here is also very arbitrary: for example, destroyers of the "Spruance" type initially had a strange margin of strength and stability, about a quarter of the hull volumes were reserved for the installation of advanced weapons systems. At first, a huge empty ship amused foreign specialists a lot - a big one and can't do anything! In this mode, half of a series of 30 destroyers was built, the decks of the ships were gradually "overgrown" with new systems - Harpoon missiles, Falanx anti-aircraft guns, etc. The United States has adopted a new Mk.41 VLS universal launcher and a Tomahawk cruise missile. It was for this weapon that the volumes in the bow of the ship were reserved - the modular design made it possible, with minimal changes, to install the UVP on 61 launch cells, in which the predatory bodies of Tomahawks froze in anticipation (running a little ahead, I will say that American engineers calculated this situation in advance - in the midst of the construction of "Spruens" Mk.41 has already passed comprehensive tests on the "test ship").
Subsequently, the Ticonderoga missile cruisers and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers grew out of the Spruens. "Ticonderogs" and "Spruence" are so close in design that from some angles they can be easily confused. Modern "Arleigh Burke", despite its unrecognizable look, internally is also in many ways similar to the "Spruens". On the other hand, it is incorrect to talk about any deep modernization here - the changes in the design of Aegis cruisers are so significant that Spruance, Ticonderoga and Arlie Burke are three different projects with the most standardized equipment.
Where is that vague line between competent evolution and the construction of ships in the "discord"? Probably, the answer can be given by specialized laboratory ships; test ships currently in use in all fleets of the world.
A boat that doesn't fit in the ocean
On October 29, 2010 at 05:30 Moscow time, the Bulava ballistic missile was successfully launched from the Dmitry Donskoy submarine in the White Sea. The warheads were delivered to the specified area of the Kura training ground in Kamchatka …
You have probably read a similar chronicle of events more than once. Test launches of the Bulava SLBM are carried out from the TK-208 Dmitry Donskoy heavy strategic missile submarine - the last submarine of Project 941 Akula that remains in service.
Currently, the submarine is disarmed, a special launch cup designed for the light Bulava (37 tons instead of the standard R-39 missile weighing 90 tons) has been inserted into one of its 20 launch silos. In 2008, Dmitry Donskoy turned into a multifunctional launch stand, allowing engineers to conduct test launches in real conditions far from the coast, from a surface or underwater position.
It was on this ship that the fate of the Bulava was decided and the crew of the test cruiser made a lot of efforts to ensure successful launches of the new Russian miracle rocket. From the point of view of the Russian Navy, the modernization of the last "Shark" into a test bench looks quite reasonable - all the same, the TK-208 could not use its standard armament - the huge obsolete R-39 missile was removed from service. And you must admit that it would be strange to build the Borey 4th generation strategic missile carriers with a crude Bulava missile in hand. Only numerous test launches from the Dmitry Donskoy test stand made it possible to bring the capricious rocket to the required state of reliability.
The further fate of the Dmitry Donskoy submarine is unknown: it makes no sense to leave such an extremely large submarine in the fleet's combat composition - Borey, like any modern foreign SSBN, with three times less submarine displacement, carries the same number of ballistic missiles. On the other hand, the "extra" submarine can become a test bench for new Russian submarine-launched ballistic missiles for a long time.
American "Eagle"
Having entered service in March 1945, the seaplane carrier "Norton Sound" spent several months senselessly surfed the Pacific Ocean - all hot sea battles had ended by that time and the ship was doing routine work to support flights of patrol "Catalin", in the fall it arrived in China, where it passed service in the occupation forces in Japan and China. A year later, the "Norton Sound" completed its inglorious cruise and returned to the United States, where fate prepared him a generous gift. Unlike its sisterships, "Norton Sound" has turned into a laboratory ship and then probably no one imagined that this quickly outdated vessel will serve for another 40 long years, performing the most sophisticated and important tasks.
After the first reconstruction, the Norton Sound became the first US Navy missile carrier - from its deck, regular test launches of Lark anti-aircraft missiles and Aerobee meteorological missiles were carried out to explore the upper atmosphere and Earth's radiation belts in near space. The program ended in 1950 with an enchanting launch of a five-ton Viking rocket, which delivered a container with scientific equipment to an altitude of 170 km.
And then the paranormal began: it was no coincidence that in the title of the chapter I compared the Norton Sound with the Soviet Orlan - in 40 years the ship had been fitted with a whole range of naval weapons and radio-technical systems. It was Norton Sound that tested the Terrier, Tartar, Sea Sparrow anti-aircraft missile systems, the Mk.26 universal beam launcher, the 127 mm Mk.45 light naval artillery mount … In addition to testing conventional weapons, " Norton Sound "in 1958 managed to shoot three times Argus missiles with nuclear warheads into space: the whole world enjoyed the views of giant fireballs at an altitude of 750 km … Reconstruction again …" Norton Sound "received the Typhoon BIUS and promising radars … A year later the result was obtained: the BIUS Typhoon turned out to be a useless "wunderwolf" … To hell with the BIUS, reconstruction again … Norton Sound is testing gyroscopes and electronic warfare systems, the results are positive … reconstruction … In 1971, the first prototype of the Aegis system was installed on the Norton Sound, there were radars with HEADLIGHTS. The story ended in 1981, when two modules of the Mk.41 VLS vertical launcher were installed on the ship, crazed by such a "modernization".
The USS Norton Sound was decommissioned in late 1986 and scrapped for metal. It's a pity. The ship would make an excellent maritime museum of the Cold War.
Does Japan have too much money?
The Japanese went farthest in the development of test ships. Before massively building warships, the Land of the Rising Sun built a moving model of promising Murasame-class destroyers on a 1: 1 scale. Simply put, the Japanese have built a real ship that, being devoid of weapons, can only perform research and experimental tasks in the interests of the technical center of the Japanese Naval Self-Defense Forces.
On the one hand, this approach to business inspires respect for Japanese shipbuilders. This is real quality and attention to detail! The destroyer prototype is used for comprehensive testing of naval weapons, ship systems and technologies. A comprehensive assessment of stealth technologies and hull contours is being carried out at Aska; a Canadian exhaust gas cooling system has been installed to reduce thermal signature. The ship is equipped with an original power plant, to reduce acoustic noise, the propellers are driven by electric motors - there is no longer the need for long shafts and support bearings.
From the "high-tech systems" on the strange destroyer, an automated damage control system is installed: all rooms of the ship are equipped with sensors, from where information about damages, fires, water ingress and other malfunctions is sent to the central command post. The system allows operators to assess the development of an emergency situation and take adequate measures in a timely manner. Also "Asuka" is equipped with BIUS OYQ-7, which is the Japanese analogue of "Aegis".
On the other hand, no one has yet thought of building a specialized experimental ship - it is too irrational and wasteful. Usually, ships and vessels that have served their time and become unnecessary are turned into an "experimental stand". It is all the more strange that the ultramodern Japan, already living in the XXII century, was unable to test all the necessary systems by means of computer simulation. By way of illustration, the Boeing 787 wide-body airliner was fully designed and tested on a computer. Although, of course, the Japanese know better - it may be true on a computer that it is impossible to determine the RCS of a ship in real conditions or the noise of a ship's power plant. In the end, ASE-6102 "Asuka" is a complete copy of the modern destroyer URO of the "Murasame" type (the capabilities of the "test ship" are even superior to the combat destroyers thanks to the presence of the Aegis BIUS), in the bow of the "Asuka" space is reserved for the installation of UVP Mk.48 to launch 32 ESSM anti-aircraft missiles.
During natural disasters, the ship is periodically involved in search and rescue operations, and when the sun is shining brightly in the sky, Asuka is often open to visit by curious Japanese and guests of the country.
