Future of the Russian Navy

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, the Russian Navy struggled to adjust Cold War force structures while suffering severely with insufficient maintenance and a lack of funding. However, improvements in the Russian economy over the last decade have seen a significant rise in defence expenditure and an increase in the numbers of ships under construction with a focus on blue-water vessels.^[1]

An extensive rearmament program is being implemented since 2011, with the Russian Defense Ministry expected to procure 100 warships by 2020.^[2] The purchase of 20 submarines, 35 corvettes and 15 frigates is planned.^[3] The nature of the other 30 ships is as yet unknown. The Black Sea Fleet will receive 18 new surface ships and submarines, including Kilo-class submarines, Admiral Gorshkov-class frigates, and Ivan Gren-class landing ships. There are also plans to lay down Project 21631 small missile boats and Steregushchiy class corvettes. This state arms program also provides funds for the purchase of two Mistral class assault ships. Furthermore, older vessels such as the Kirov class battlecruisers reportedly will also undergo overhauls and modernisation to bring them back into active service after spending over a decade laid up in reserve.

In early 2013 it was reported that the navy is expected to receive 54 new warships of various classes and 24 submarines by 2020.^[4]

Major surface combatants

Future aircraft carriers

In 2005, it was announced that the Russian Navy was planning a class of two to four new aircraft carriers, the production of which could start in 2013–14 for initial service entry in 2017.^[5] Jane's said it was not clear whether "this was a funded programme". In mid-2007, the new Navy chief announced plans to reform the country's naval forces and build a blue-water navy with the world's second largest fleet of aircraft carriers, aiming to create 6 aircraft carrier strike groups in the next 20 years.^[6]

Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev stated in 2008 that Russia intended to build nuclear aircraft carriers in the next decade. However Russia currently does not have a yard capable of building aircraft carriers. All previous Soviet aircraft carriers were built in what was then known as the Nikolayev South Shipyard (Shipyard 444) at Mykolaiv in what is now Ukraine. On August 2, 2010, Vladimir Vysotskiy stressed their importance: "If, for example, we do not have an aircraft carrier in the North, the combat capability of the Northern Fleet's guided-missile submarines will be reduced to zero after Day One because the submarines' principal adversary is aviation."^[7]

Speaking in Saint Petersburg on June 30, 2011, the head of United Shipbuilding Corporation, a Russian state holding company, said his company expected to begin design work for a new carrier in 2016, with a goal of beginning construction in 2018 and having the carrier achieve initial operational capability by 2023.^[8] Several months later, on 3 November 2011 the Russian newspaper Izvestiya reported the naval building plan now included (first) the construction of a new shipyard capable of building large hull ships, after which Moscow will build four nuclear-powered aircraft carriers by 2023. The spokesperson said one carrier would be assigned to the Russian Navy's Northern Fleet at Murmansk, and the second would be stationed with the Pacific Fleet at Vladivostok.^[9]

In February 2015, Russian media said that the Krylov State Research Center in St. Petersburg was on its way towards developing another aircraft carrier. The design was under conceptual testing in Krylov’s laboratory.^[10] There was no announcement of what shipyard would be able to build the carrier. The super-carrier project has been code-named Project 23000E or "Shtorm".^[11]

Cruisers

Modernization of existing Kirov class heavy missile cruisers is ongoing.
Project 21956 class multi-purpose ship destroyer is also in the development along new cruisers and modernizing existing battlecruisers .

Destroyers

In October 2014 it was reported that the specification had been signed off for a new anti-air destroyer. Twelve ships of the 10,000 tonne Leader-class are planned to enter service from 2023-2025, split between the Northern and Pacific Fleets. There will be versions powered by nuclear or conventional power and they will carry the ABM-capable S-500 SAM and Kalibr (SS-N-27) cruise missile.^[12] The Lider-class destroyer concept is a project of JSC Severnoye. In May 2015, Jane's reported that the Krylov State Research Center has also developed the Project 23560 destroyer design concept.
Project 23560M Shkval
Project 22350M

Frigates

An initial order of six Admiral Gorshkov-class frigate are under construction for the Russian Navy. The Northern Shipyard has thus far announced having received orders for six units.^[13] The first of the class, Admiral Gorshkov was laid down in 2006, launched on 29 October 2010 and planned to be delivered by 2012.^[14]

As of April 2015 the Admiral Gorshkov, lead ship of class, is undergoing trials.

In addition, six Admiral Grigorovich-class frigate have been ordered and under construction at Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad, with the first laid down on 18 December 2010 and scheduled for delivery by 2013. These frigates will all serve in the Black Sea Fleet.^[15][16]

Lead ship, the "Admiral Grigorovich", was commissioned on 11 March 2016.

Jane's Defence Weekly and NavyRecognition.com reported in March and January 2015 respectively that the Project 20385 (Gremyashchy), Project 21631 (Buyan-M), Project 22350 (Admiral Gorshkov), and Project 11356M (Admiral Grigovich) class corvettes and frigates are dependent on German and Ukrainian engines.^[17] Projects 20385 and 21631 use German diesel engines, while the 22350 and 11356M use Ukrainian-assembled turbines.^[18] Given the sanctions and standoff over the War in Ukraine, these components may not be available from 2015. As a result, two more Steregushchiy class corvettes, the seventh and eighth of the class, were laid down in February 2015. The Steregushchiy class uses Russian-built Kolomna engines.

Corvettes

Buyan class corvette

• Gepard-class corvette
• Steregushchiy-class corvette
• Gremyashchiy-class corvette
• Derzky-class corvette
• Buyan-class corvette
• Project 22800 Karakurt-class corvette
• Project 22160 stealth corvette in development .
• A perspective frigate project class planning .

Submarines

The State Arms Program 2011–2020 is expected to build and deliver up to 24 submarines (both nuclear and conventional) to the Russian Navy.^[4]

Borey SSBN

Yuriy Dolgorukiy is a Borey class submarine, one of the two nuclear submarine classes (the other being the Yasen Class attack submarine the Russian Navy has ordered).

Three new boats of the Borey class ballistic missile submarines are now under construction, but the first had been under construction since 1996 with its completion was expected in 2008. The lead boat, Yuriy Dolgorukiy, was launched in April 2007, began sea trials in June 2009 and was commissioned as a part of the Northern Fleet in 2012.^[19][20] The second boat of the class, the Aleksandr Nevskiy was scheduled to be delivered to the Pacific Fleet in 2012 ^[21] The third of class is named Vladimir Monomakh. The fourth unit was scheduled to be laid down in 2010. The mainstay of the SSBN force, the Delta IVs, joined the fleet during 1985–91. While the service life of an SSBN normally is twenty to twenty-five years, without maintenance, it may be as short as ten to fifteen years.^[22]

In recent years there have been only about ten nuclear submarine patrols a year, each lasting three months at most and usually a lot less. Most have not gone far from Russian waters and some were by recently built SSNs (nuclear attack subs) or SSGNs (SSNs equipped with cruise missiles) and not by SSBNs.

Yasen SSN

12 Yasen-class submarine nuclear attack submarines are to be delivered to the Russian Navy. With its keel laid down on 21 December 1993, the first boat of the class was slated for launch in 1998 but was delayed due to problems in financing. In 1996 work on the submarine appeared to have stopped completely. Some reports suggested that as of 1999 the submarine was less than 10 percent completed.^[23] In 2003, the project received additional funding and the work of finishing the submarine continued. In 2004 it was reported that the work on the submarine was moving forward, but due to the priority given to the new Borei-class submarine, Severodvinsk, the lead unit of the Yasen class would not be ready before 2010. In July 2006 the deputy chairman of the Military-Industrial Commission, Vladislav Putilin, stated that two Yasen-class submarines were to join the Russian Navy before 2015.^[24] On 24 July 2009 the work on a second Yasen submarine, named Kazan, was started. On 26 July the Russian navy command announced that one multipurpose submarine would be laid down every year, not necessarily of this class, starting in 2011.^[25] The launch of the first boat of this class and the beginning of sea trials was reported in September 2011.^[26]

On November 9, 2011 Russia signed a contract for four additional Yasen class submarines to be delivered by 2016.^[27]

Kilo

Following on from the success of the Kilo class submarines. In Addition Russian Navy has six more Improved Kilo-class submarines for Black Sea Fleet, and ordered six units for Pacific Fleet.

Lada and Amur

On 18 May 2013 Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Viktor Chirkov announced that the Russian Navy would get the first air-independent propulsion system for Project 677 Lada-class submarines by 2016-2017. He stated that the Central Design Bureau Rubin is now at work on the propulsion system which is expected by 2015-2016 but the first three Lada-class submarines will have classic diesel-electric propulsion.^[28]

Kalina

Project Kalina -new project on AIP, H2 - O2, submarine, by TsKB Rubin and others

Haski

New SSGN

Amphibious vessels

Landing ships

The first of an unknown number of new Ivan Gren-class landing ship class of amphibious ships was laid down in 2004 and was launched in May 2012. The ship will be delivered to the Navy in 2013.^[29] In 2010 it was announced that work on a second unit had begun.^[30]

Amphibious assault ships

Russian officials have been negotiating a purchase of four Mistral-class amphibious assault ships. On 24 May 2010, the Russian Defense Minister said that Russia was in pre-contract discussions with Spain, the Netherlands, and France on purchasing four Mistral-class ships. It was planned to have one ship built abroad, two with the participation of Russian shipbuilders, and at least one built in Russia. The Minister also said that the first ships of this type would be based in the Northern and Pacific Fleets.^[31] On December 24, 2010, Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev announced France as the winner of a tender to build four Mistral-class ships for Russia.^[32] As the MISTRAL project continues it has been plagued with controversy with arguments that the ships are not required, that Russian ship builders could have built a similar vessel and that they cost too much. In January 2013, Russian Deputy Prime Minister for the Defence Industry Dmitriy Rogozin has been critical about the purchase of French helicopter carriers Mistral. The contracts signed in 2011 had been also criticized by first deputy head of the Military-Industrial Commission Ivan Kharchenko, who blamed former Defence Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov. "It is very strange that we, given our climate, are purchasing ships to transport troops that do not work at temperatures below seven degrees," Rogozin said at a general meeting of the Academy of Military Sciences on Saturday 26 January 2013.^[33]

On 18 May 2013 it was announced that the second Mistral-class helicopter carrier will be named Sevastopol and join Russia's Black Sea Fleet in 2017. It was speculated that it would be based in the Novorossiysk naval base which Spetsstroy, the strategic infrastructure builder, is to complete by that time. Other sources reported that both of the first two Mistral-class helicopter carriers, the Vladivostok and the Sevastopol would be assigned to the Pacific Fleet in 2014 and 2015 respectively after their completion in France. In Vladivostok, Berth 33 is being renovated for them.

On 3 September 2014, French President announced that due to Russia's "recent actions in Ukraine", the two ships would not be delivered.^[34] In November 2014, François Hollande placed a hold on the delivery of the first Mistral to Russia in view of the conflict in east Ukraine. Hollande set two conditions for delivery: the observation of a ceasefire in Ukraine and a political agreement between Moscow and Kiev.^[35] On 5 August 2015 it was announced that France was to pay back Russia's partial payments and keep the two ships initially produced for Russia.^[36][37]

Russia has announced its own, Lavina-class landing ship (ru:Универсальные десантные корабли типа «Лавина») equivalent more or less than a Mistral and smaller variant (with different or more specifics) Priboy-class landing ship. Four of the 'Lavina' ('Avalanche') class ships have been discussed, with construction possibly beginning in 2016 or 2018.

Mine-countermeasure vessels

At least four Alexandrit class minesweepers are planned. The first of the class has been ordered and is expected to be launched sometime in 2012.^[38]

Minor surface combatants

BK16, Raptor (CB90 analogue), Antares RA (modified stealth Muravej, more than half Visby in length), Project 12150 Mangust, Pr 14310 Mirazh, Grachonok-class anti-saboteur ship, other corvettes frigates patrol ships and boats.

See also

• List of current Russian Navy ships
• Russian Armed Forces

References