The flagship of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Navy, the missile cruiser Moskva, sank during a storm while being towed to the port after a fire and an explosion of ammunition on board. What was the life path of this ship, what is it known for and which vessel in the future will be able to become the new flagship of the Black Sea fleet?
On Friday night, it became known that the missile cruiser Moskva sank while being towed to its destination during a storm due to damage received earlier. This was reported by the Russian Defense Ministry. "During towing, the ship lost stability. In the conditions of stormy sea waves, the ship sank," TASS quoted the agency as saying.
The ministry recalled that the crew of the cruiser was evacuated to the ships of the Black Sea Fleet located in the area. Earlier, the Ministry of Defense reported that the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet was seriously damaged in a fire, and an explosion of ammunition also occurred on the cruiser.
Later it was reported that an American patrol reconnaissance anti-submarine aircraft Boeing P-8A Poseidon flew near the Russian missile cruiser. In addition, the press secretary of the head of state Dmitry Peskov said that President Vladimir Putin received a report from the Ministry of Defense on the situation with the cruiser "Moscow" of the Black Sea Fleet.
Recall that the Guards missile cruiser project 1164 "Moscow" (original name – "Glory") it was laid down at the Nikolaev Shipyard in 1976. In 1982, it was put into operation, and in 1983 it was included in the Black Sea Fleet. In the early 1990s, "Moscow" could fall under the write-off. The ship returned to the fleet in 1999 thanks to the assistance of the Moscow government headed by Yuri Luzhkov.
Until recently, the Moskva was part of the 30th Division of surface ships of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Navy. The main armament is 16 launchers of supersonic anti–ship missiles P-1000 "Vulkan". There are also anti-submarine and mine-torpedo weapons, artillery, air defense systems. The crew of the cruiser is 510 people. Displacement – 11.49 thousand tons. The length of the hull is 186.5 m, width – 20.8 m. The maximum speed is 32 knots (59 km / h), writes Kommersant.
In 2008, the cruiser participated in the Russian peace enforcement operation in Georgia. In March 2014, he participated in the blockade of the Ukrainian Navy in the Donuzlav Bay in Crimea. At the end of 2015, the ship headed the permanent operational unit of the Russian Navy in the Mediterranean Sea, covered the Russian Khmeimim airbase in Syria with its own air defense systems. On July 22, 2016, the ship was awarded the Order of Nakhimov. Also, according to some reports, "Moscow" took part in the capture of Zmeiny Island and the capture of 82 Ukrainian servicemen.
"Unfortunately, in the current realities, we cannot build a new "Moscow". Firstly, the state of our industry does not allow this to be done. Secondly, the design bureau does not have a ready-made project that could be sent to the factory for execution. And thirdly, there is an acute shortage of specialists in this field in Russia," an expert on the Navy, a researcher at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO), told the newspaper VZGLYAD RAS Ilya Kramnik.
"The Russian navy has two cruisers of the type of "Moscow" – "Marshal Ustinov" and "Varyag". But "Marshal Ustinov" serves in the Northern Fleet, and "Varyag" – in the Pacific. There is also the nuclear missile cruiser "Peter the Great", which has been in service since 1998 and already requires repair and modernization. And there remains the Admiral Nakhimov, which should return in the next couple of years after a long repair. To some extent, it could replace Moscow, but only for 10-15 years," the source explained.
At the same time, it is still necessary to look for a replacement for Moscow. "The cruiser at one time perfectly performed the task of combating large enemy surface ships," Kramnik said. "Now this task has faded into the background, but at the same time, large ships are needed to install serious weapons and powerful radar stations," the source said.
"As a result, we will face the decision of the fundamental question of what our fleet should be," Kramnik argues. – For example, the British have long abandoned the construction of large ships. When the USA and the USSR were still building cruisers, they had already stopped doing it."
"Now there is a single and quite effective solution – to speed up the construction of frigates of project 22350 as much as possible," Maxim Klimov, captain of the 3rd rank of the reserve, told the newspaper VZGLYAD in turn. "Two such frigates – Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov and Admiral of the Fleet Kasatonov – are already part of the Northern Fleet, six more are under construction. "Gorshkov" is now in the Northern Fleet, and "Kasatonov" is in the Mediterranean Sea. To date, these are our best ships," Klimov said.
"The frigates of project 22350 are being built at the Severnaya Shipyard in St. Petersburg,– said the captain of the 3rd rank. – We need to increase the number of factories that build these ships. One of the acute problems associated with the construction of these ships was the lack of a power plant. We have successfully replaced it with imports by building our own. Now there is no such problem."
"Our industry is capable of creating more efficient, modern ships. There are a number of positions that are not fully worked out. For example, on the basis of the power plant for the frigate 22350, they were going to build an enlarged version of it, close in displacement to the "Moscow". This will require a lot of time and financial expenses, but we need efficient ships," the source stressed.
Despite the urgent need of the Navy for large ships, it is necessary to deal with those projects for which we already have the capacity, the expert continued. "We have "Karakurts". These are small rocket ships of the 22800 project, which also went very well," Klimov said. – On the basis of these projects, it is possible to launch large-scale construction of ships for the renewal of the Russian Navy in the next five years. Our capacities allow us to build these ships at an accelerated pace, especially project 22350."
The expert noted another significant plus of project 22350 – consistency in terms of import substitution. "Despite the fact that sticks were put in the wheels of the project, now we will be able to build them ourselves, the necessary technical capabilities have been found for this," said the captain of the 3rd rank. – Now the number one task is to realize the growing military threats from unfriendly states and prepare for confrontation with them by the whole country. The economy needs to be put on modernization rails, including in terms of military shipbuilding."
The expert also suggested that one of the frigates of the Admiral's 11356R series could become the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet. "But the frigates of this series are inferior in combat capabilities to the 22350 frigates. When the issue of the construction of the 11356R series was being worked out, the shortcomings of these ships were well understood, but the position was: "first we will build, then we will finalize." This was justified by the opportunity to start mass construction of ships," Klimov said. – Therefore, the ships need to be upgraded. Including the shortcomings of the 11356P need to be eliminated."
Daria Volkova, Alyona Zadorozhnaya
