The origin of the Mistrals is known in great detail.
Universal amphibious helicopter docks, adopted by the French Navy in the amount of three units. Large ships with a total displacement of over 20 thousand tons with a continuous flight deck, a hangar for placing aircraft and a stern dock chamber for landing boats.
They are built on a modular basis in accordance with the standards of civil shipbuilding, which has a positive effect on reducing the cost and accelerating the pace of their construction. The maximum duration of construction of the Mistral UDC, taking into account all the identified problems and inevitable delays, does not exceed 34 months. The purchase price of two ships under the "Russian contract" amounted to 1.2 billion euros, which corresponds to the cost of one amphibious transport dock ship of the "San Antonio" type (USA). Impressive.
"Tigers" on the deck of the "Mistral"
The use of civil shipbuilding norms and technologies in the design of the UDC seems to be a justified decision - the concept of using the UDC does not imply direct participation in hostilities. High survivability, resistance to hydrodynamic shocks and combat damage, the presence of shock weapons - all these points do not apply to the Mistral. The tasks of the ferry ship are the delivery of an expeditionary battalion of the Marine Corps to any part of the world, the over-the-horizon landing of personnel and equipment in low-intensity conflicts using helicopters and amphibious assault vehicles, participation in humanitarian missions, and performing the functions of a hospital ship and command post. The combat information center on board the French "ferry" is equipped at the level of the CIC of a cruiser with the "Aegis" system.
Just how "French" is this "steam"?
The Mistral UDKV project was born thanks to the efforts of the General Delegation for Armaments (Délégation Générale pour l'Armement) and the French state defense company DCNS (Direction des Constructions Navales) with the involvement of a number of foreign contractors: Finnish Wärtsilä (marine diesel generators), Swedish branches of Rolls-Royce (Azipod-type propellers), Polish Stocznia Remontowa de Gdańsk (blocks of the middle part of the hull, forming a helicopter hangar). The development of the combat information system and means of detecting the ship was entrusted to the international industrial group Thales Group - the world leader in the development of electronic systems for aerospace, military and naval technology. The self-defense air defense system was supplied by the European company MBDA. The multinational format of the project does not bother the French at all - a single European space with a single currency, living according to uniform laws and rules. General goals and objectives. A fleet built according to uniform NATO standards.
But, most surprisingly, the Mistral project is not limited to the European continent: the threads of this story stretch far to the east, to South Korean Gyeongsangnam-do. To where STX Corporation is headquartered.
"Mistrals" for the French Navy were cost according to the following scheme: the UDC hull was ultimately formed from two large sections - bow and stern. The stern section and superstructure were built at DCNS own facilities with the participation of many subcontractors: the wreck of a standing ship was regularly towed from one French shipyard to another, where it was gradually saturated with equipment: most of the assembly work was carried out in Brest, Rolls-Royce engines and propellers Meomeid”was edited in Lorient. The final saturation of the finished section of the hull, the installation of electronics and radio engineering systems were carried out by specialists from the shipyard in Toulon. In total, DCNS accounted for about 60% of the work performed.
The nose of the landing helicopter carrier was under construction in Saint-Nazaire, at the famous shipyard "Chantier de l'Atlantic", which at that time belonged to the French industrial giant Alstom. Cradle of some of the world's most spectacular shipbuilding projects, the legendary Queen Mary 2 liner departed from here. Here, in the 70s, a series of Batillus-type supertankers with a deadweight of more than half a million tons was built! The bows of each of the Mistral UDCs were also assembled here.
In 2006, the shipyard "Chantier de l'Atlantic" was transferred to its own Norwegian industrial group Aker Yards. However, soon, in 2009, the shipyard, like the entire Aker Yards group, was taken over by the South Korean STX corporation. The third ship of the Mistral class - Dixmude (L9015) - was being completed by the Koreans.
The Mistral helicopter carriers were built by the whole world. France with the participation of Poland, Sweden, Finland … - the whole European Union is assembled! In French and South Korean shipyards. Despite such a complex industrial chain and a huge number of foreign counterparties, the new UDC, on the whole, met the expectations of the French Navy command - a universal and relatively cheap means of delivering humanitarian aid and expeditionary units to the countries of Africa and the Middle East. For example, UDC Diximud took part in Operation Serval (suppression of riots in Mali, 2013), delivering units of the 92nd Infantry Regiment (92ème Régiment d'Infanterie) from France to the African continent.
Ship without Homeland
With the French "Mistrals" everything is very clear - the ships were built by joint efforts of partner countries. The close economic, political and military ties between the countries of the Eurozone and even such a distant, but in fact close, Republic of Korea are beyond doubt. Uniform international standards and transnational companies blur the borders of states, uniting under their leadership the scientific and industrial potential of many countries.
But where and how are the Vladivostok and Sevastopol being built - two amphibious helicopter carriers intended for the Russian Navy?
According to the contract, which has become the largest military deal between Russia and the Western countries since the end of World War II, in 2014 and 2015 the shipyard of the Russian Navy should be replenished with two imported Russian-French-built UDCs.
From words quickly to action:
On February 1, 2012 in Saint-Nazaire began cutting metal for the first ship, named Vladivostok. On October 1 of the same year, work began at the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg - according to the contract, domestic shipbuilders must build 20% of the aft sections of the helicopter carrier.
It is easy to guess that the South Korean STX has become the general contractor - it is she, with the support of the French defense company DCNS and a number of third-party suppliers, who builds helicopter carriers for the Russian Navy at the Chantier de l'Atlantic shipyard in Saint-Nazaire.
On June 26, 2013, the Baltic Shipyard completed the planned scope of work on time, launching the stern of the new Mistral - a month later, the stern section was safely delivered to Saint-Nazaire for subsequent docking with the main part of the ship.
On October 15, 2013, the landing ship Vladivostok was officially launched. After the completion of all work at the French shipyard, it will move to the outfitting wall of the Severnaya Verf plant (St. Petersburg) for the final saturation with domestic equipment.
It is expected that the new helicopter carrier will enter the Russian Navy in late 2014 - early 2015. Less than three years from the date of the bookmark! An unprecedented result for domestic shipbuilding, where one frigate can be built for 8 years.
The second ship of the "Russian series" - "Sevastopol" - was laid down on June 18, 2013. It will be built according to a similar scheme, with the only difference that the Baltic Shipyard will provide the construction of 40% of the UDC building. The ship should be operational by the end of 2015.
Also, the agreement between Russia and France includes options for the construction of the third and fourth helicopter carriers under license at their own industrial facilities - it is assumed that for these purposes a new shipyard will be built on about. Kotlin. But, as it became known at the end of 2012, plans for the implementation of these options were postponed from 2013 to 2016, which gives the whole story a vague shade of uncertainty.
Among the suppliers and contractors in the global industrial chain are: the Russian United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), the state defense company DCNS, the shipyard "Chantier de l'Atlantic" of the South Korean company STX, the Finnish Wärtsilä and the Swedish division of Rolls-Royce (power plants and propulsion). The participation of Thales Group is extremely important - the equipment and systems supplied by this company are of the greatest interest to the Russian military-industrial complex (first of all, the Zenit-9 combat information and control system). Also, the Russian helicopter carrier is promised to be equipped with Vampir-NG infrared search and sighting systems of the French company Sagem. Despite the abundance of foreign equipment, the French promise to carry out a complete Russification of all systems of the ship in order to avoid any problems during its operation as part of the Russian Navy.
The air group will be represented by domestic Ka-29 transport and combat helicopters and Ka-52 attack vehicles. The first of the Russian Mistrals will have to be equipped with French-made high-speed boats - the layout and dimensions of the docking chamber were originally calculated for the dimensions of NATO equipment. Therefore, the effective placement of existing Russian-made landing craft inside the Mistral is not possible. However, this is not the biggest problem, moreover, it was successfully solved.
Considering the number of subcontractors who took part in the creation of the helicopter carrier for the Russian Navy, one can sing "Internationale" - the French landing ship turned out to be in fact the "Noah's Ark", which absorbed technologies and participants from all over the world.
And we have to admit: the project was a 100% success.
Despite the angry accusations of “squandering” public funds, the Mistrals turned out to be VERY cheap. 600 million euros (800 million dollars) for each combat unit - even taking into account all the additional procedures associated with fine-tuning the ship's systems, testing it and eliminating identified deficiencies - the cost of the Mistral will not exceed a billion dollars. This is incredibly high from the point of view of the average Russian. But sheer pennies by the standards of modern shipbuilding.
800 million dollars - even now it is impossible to build a normal destroyer for that kind of money. American "Berks" cost the Pentagon 1, 8-2 billion dollars apiece. The cost of a small Russian corvette of project 20385, according to the Main Command of the Navy, can reach 560 million dollars (18 billion rubles)!
In this case, we have a large helicopter carrier with a displacement of 20 thousand tons. In addition, it was built in an extremely short time - the result is obvious, and it is difficult to notice any corruption component here. It is not possible to build something like that for a lower price.
Sailor, take off your bast shoes, stepping on the deck of the democratic European "Mistral"
Fears that the Mistral will not be able to operate at temperatures below +7 degrees Celsius are completely unfounded.
Russia, along with Scandinavia and Canada, are undoubtedly the northernmost countries in the world. But let me know how this relates to the Mistral? Nobody talks about its basing in the Far North - Russia, fortunately, is monstrously large and we have enough other bases with more adequate natural and climatic conditions. Novorossiysk. Weather forecast for December 1 - plus 12 ° С. Subtropics.
Vladivostok is colder. Latitude is Crimean, longitude is Kolyma. Nevertheless, there, too, the operation of the UDC should not face any critical difficulties - the operational zone of the Pacific Fleet includes the entire Asia-Pacific region and the Indian Ocean, where, as you know, the temperature rarely drops below + 7 ° Celsius.
The Mistral is not suitable for operations in the Arctic. But he simply has nothing to do there. But there is plenty to do in Mediterranean and other southern seas.
Statements about the inconsistency of the infrastructure of the bases and the standards of domestic diesel fuel with European standards are not worth the candle. The Mistral is not as big as it is thought to be - for example, it is smaller than the nuclear-powered cruiser Peter the Great. The length of the helicopter carrier is only 35 meters longer than the average BOD or destroyer. The empty displacement of this "ferry" with the unloaded air wing, boats, equipment, stocks of weapons and fuel should not exceed 15 thousand tons.
Dixmude (L9015) versus Lafayette-class frigate (full in / and 3600 t.)
The only problem may be related to the maintenance of the Azipod rudder drives. In principle, this question should be addressed to the ship repair centers in the Baltic and in the North, however, not so long ago, plans were outlined to build a large shipbuilding enterprise in the Far East in cooperation with South Korea - by the time all Mistrals arrive. must be decided.
"Mistral" is half the size of Soviet aircraft-carrying cruisers - let's hope that it will not repeat their fate and will receive all the necessary coastal infrastructure in time.
As for the inconsistency of domestic brands and grades of fuels and lubricants with high-tech Mistral engines … Who will surprise you now with "outlandish" imported equipment - Finnish diesel generators from Vyartislya?
The most formidable charges leveled against the French "ferries" are their low combat potential and absolute uselessness within the framework of the defensive concept of using the Russian Navy. The "cabin-bearer" itself needs high-quality cover from the sea and from the air and is not capable of participating in a naval battle. Full speed 18 knots. Instead of serious self-defense systems - MANPADS and machine guns. Powerful radar facilities? Sonar? Shock weapons? Anti-submarine rocket torpedoes? None of this is and cannot be - that is why the price for such a large ship is so low. From the point of view of the Navy, the Mistral is an empty box. The presence of 16 helicopters no longer means anything in modern combat - the Ka-52 is not a competitor to a fighter-bomber.
But once you open the news binder for 2013 - where and what the Russian Navy is doing - everything immediately falls into place. The Mistral is not suitable for combating the AUG of a “potential enemy”, but it ideally suits the tasks of ensuring the presence of the Russian Navy in the vastness of the World Ocean. A large ship with a monumental appearance and modern design, capable of being "on the front line" for months - off the coast of Syria or wherever required. Comfortable quarters for the Marine Corps battalion. Cargo deck for armored vehicles. Helicopters. If necessary, you can deliver "humanitarian aid" to the allies - and in a variety of ways. Non-version of the Soviet large landing craft!
In general, the verdict is positive. The only really worthwhile question is: Could the Russian Navy have done without buying these ships? Experts of various levels agree that the purchase of Mistrals is far from the most rational decision. We still have enough BDK from the "Soviet reserve". New ones are under construction - project 11711 "Ivan Gren". But there is a critical shortage of battleships of I and II ranks - cruisers, destroyers, frigates. So much so that you have to collect a Mediterranean squadron from all four fleets.
Finally, if our specialists were so eager to get acquainted with the "advanced" Western technologies, it was possible to acquire equipment more interesting than the French "ferry". Even with the Zenit-9 BIUS and Vampir-NG IR sensors.
For example, it would be curious to see a Franco-Italian frigate (destroyer) of the Horizon class up close, the most powerful and perfect air defense ship in the world after the British Daring. If the "Horizon" turns out to be too secret, a non-nuclear submarine of the "Scopren" type with a Stirling engine could come up as a "demonstrator" of new technologies. Something that we have no analogues yet. The French (DCNS) and the Spaniards (Navantia) are happy to build such equipment for export: for the fleets of India, Malaysia, Brazil, Chile …
Alas, the interests of the sailors remained in the shadow of geopolitical intrigues. We chose the Mistral. So take it back soon, without further ado! So far, the allocated funds have not gone offshore.
Moreover, the boat is really not bad.
