The mine defense ship "Afanasy Ivannikov", which belongs to the project 12700" Alexandrite", will be laid in St. Petersburg on September 9. This was reported to journalists on September 6 in the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
"On September 9, in St. Petersburg, the Sredne-Nevsky Shipbuilding Plant (part of the United Shipbuilding Corporation) will host the solemn laying of the newest mine defense ship (PMO)" Afanasy Ivannikov "project 12700" Alexandrite" for the Navy, " the ministry said in a statement.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Nikolai Evmenov, will take part in the ceremony. He noted that the ship will be built to equip the minesweeping forces of the Navy as part of the serial construction of the ships of the 12700 Alexandrite project.
"The ships of the project 12700 have proven their effectiveness in practice and have a number of unique characteristics," Evmenov added.
Earlier in April, the mine defense ship "Pyotr Ilyichev", built for the Russian Navy, was launched. The vessel was laid down in July 2018 and became the sixth in the line of the project 12700 "Alexandrite". It is designed to search for and destroy mines in the waters of naval bases at a safe distance for a minesweeper.
The ship is equipped with the latest means of searching for mines, has high maneuverability and seaworthiness. This is a unique minesweeper with the world's largest hull made of monolithic fiberglass, which is characterized by higher strength compared to steel.
Also in April, experts told Izvestia that next year the Baltic Fleet will include the newest project 12700 minesweeper "Alexandrite", equipped with underwater drones.
The minesweepers of the project 12700 "Alexandrite" have a fiberglass hull "invisible" for magnetic ammunition fuses. To search for and destroy mines, the Diamant system is on board, which includes two light boats equipped with special underwater robots. After detecting dangerous objects, underwater drones come into play, which install explosive charges on them. If necessary, they can tow the ammunition to shallow water and destroy it there.
The project 12700 minesweepers were developed by the Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau. By the mid-2020s, it is planned to build 12 such ships.
