Amazing adventures of warships in repair docks
A representative of the Baltic Shipbuilding Plant "Yantar", which is part of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), told a TASS correspondent that the patrol ship "Intrepid" will return to the Baltic Fleet in mid-May of this year.
Of course, if this happens, it will be a significant event for the Navy.
JUSTIFYING THE NAME
The Intrepid has been the face of the Russian Navy for a long time. They are almost the same age, since the ship was commissioned by the Navy in December 1990. And literally from the first days he joined the active service.
The ship participated five times in joint BALTOPS maneuvers with the NATO Navy. In 2003, "Intrepid" provided an official visit of President Vladimir Putin to London. Then a number of Russian-British documents were signed on board the ship.
Its appearance in 2004 in Lisbon was the first visit of a Russian warship to Portugal since the XVIII century and preceded the official visit of the President of the Russian Federation to this country. In the same year, in the port of Cannes, the "Intrepid" took part in the celebration of the Days of Russian Culture in France.
And the following year, the "Intrepid" carried out combat service in the Norwegian Sea. In September 2006, the guard escorted the Danish ship Esbern Snare, carrying the ashes of Empress Maria Feodorovna for reburial in the Peter and Paul Cathedral of St. Petersburg.
Since the autumn of 2008, the "Intrepid" was the first of the Russian ships to start an anti-piracy watch in the Horn of Africa. He provided wiring through dangerous waters for about 60 vessels, used weapons three times to repel attacks by sea robbers. During the seven-month combat service, the TFR has traveled over 40 thousand miles. He had been in need of an average repair for a long time, but he still continued to be driven in the tail and mane.
The ship did not wait for a full-fledged medium repair, although after a trip to the Gulf of Aden, during a six-month upgrade on the Yantar, all four diesel engines, two turbines and all refrigerating machines were replaced on the TFR. And immediately the "Intrepid" was again sent to the shores of Somalia. In 2013, the third anti-piracy raid took place.
In the end, the guard was driven like a racehorse. For 19 years of service, he ran 120 thousand miles. Such merciless exploitation was explained by the fact that by that time the ships of the ocean zone as part of the Navy could be counted on the fingers. And the "Intrepid" was the youngest of them, the most mobile and maneuverable.
THE MOST-THE MOST
"Undaunted" became the head TFR of project 11540 "Hawk" developed by the Zelenodolsk Design Bureau. With a full displacement of 4,350 tons and a maximum speed of 29 knots, the ship is designed to search, detect and destroy enemy submarines, provide anti-ship and anti-submarine defense, strike ships and vessels at sea and bases, support ground forces combat operations, ensure amphibious landings and other tasks.
The "Intrepid" carries balanced armament: a universal 100-mm AK-100 artillery system, a short-range Dagger air defense system (32 missiles), two ZRAK "Dirk" installations, an anti-submarine missile system "Waterfall", two three-tube 533-mm anti-submarine torpedo tubes, a RBU-6000 rocket launcher, an anti-submarine helicopter Ka-27PL.
The regular armament also included two quadruple launchers of anti-ship missiles (PKR) "Uran". But the "Intrepid" did not receive them, because by the time the TFR was handed over to the fleet, this complex was not ready yet.
In total, it was planned to deliver 70 "Hawks" to the Navy. However, with the collapse of the USSR, these plans collapsed. However, in July 2007, it was possible to commission the second ship of the failed series – "Yaroslav the Wise", already with "Urans". Soon he replaced the "Indestructible" in long ocean voyages.
THE LONG RETURN OF THE LEGEND
At the beginning of 2014, the "Undaunted" was finally put on repair and modernization at the Yantar PSZ. The completion of all works was planned in November 2017. Statements by the company's managers about the imminent completion of repairs regularly appeared in the media. And just as regularly, the timing of the return shifted to the right.
In February 2018, a fire broke out on the ship under repair. Thick black smoke poured out of the compartment. The forces of the fire department No. 7, which is located next to the Yantar plant, managed to quickly cope with the fire.
In 2020, when the crew had already settled on the TFR, a fire broke out again, and next to the artillery cellar. The fire could cause the detonation of ammunition and destroy the entire ship. This time, the sailors, petty officers and officers of the TFR showed courage and heroism. They saved the ship from sinking.
In February 2021, the general director of Yantar, Ilya Samarin, vowed that the Intrepid would be handed over to the fleet by the end of the year. But it didn't happen. Only on December 27, the ship was transferred from Kaliningrad to Baltiysk for factory sea trials.
And again the promises came pouring in. The deadline for the delivery of the TFR was called until the end of January – but the ship only began sea trials at the end of February. Then the deadline was set before the end of the first decade of April, and then until the end of the month. And here is another postponement to the middle of May.
It is worth recalling here that the Intrepid was laid down on the Yantar on March 25, 1987, and joined the Navy on December 28, 1990. That is, it took three and a half years to create the lead ship, and it took place in a difficult turning point. But its repair took more than eight years.
Maybe they've done something on the ship that will amaze the world? Nothing like that. Mainly, work was carried out on updating the mechanical part. Afterburner engines have been repaired and installed. The supporting mechanisms have been modernized. Analog equipment was replaced with digital. A new information and control system has been installed - a complex of electronic computing equipment and technical means for the automated development of recommendations for the management of weapons and the ship.
A new artillery control post has appeared on the TFR. The Frigate surveillance radar station has undergone modernization. A new digital navigation station has been installed. But the "Uranus" on the "Intrepid" for some reason did not appear. Although a ship of the far sea zone, as a rule, sailing alone, such a complex is extremely necessary in our turbulent times.
REPEATING THE FATE OF THE "INTREPID"
The large anti–submarine ship Admiral Chabanenko is practically the same age as the Intrepid. The BOD was laid down on the Yantar on February 28, 1989, launched in December 1992, and handed over to the fleet only on January 28, 1999. New economic realities have slowed down the construction of the ship.
The Chabanenko turned out to be the only ship of Project 11551, an improved version of the BOD of the 1155 family developed by the Northern PKB. Its total displacement is 8320 tons, length – 163.5 m, width – 19 m, draft with GAS fairing – 7.8 m. The two-shaft gas turbine unit allows you to develop a maximum 32-node travel speed.
The BOD carried a powerful armament: two quad launchers of supersonic Mosquito missile defense systems with a target range of up to 120 km, the Dagger air defense system, two ZRAK "Dirk" installations, two 533-mm torpedo tubes for firing the Waterfall-NK PLUR and anti-submarine torpedoes, two rocket-propelled anti-torpedo protection RBU-12000 "Boa constrictor", a paired 130-mm AK-130 artillery installation, two Ka-27PL helicopters with placement in a hangar.
Admiral Chabanenko, like the Intrepid, was the crown of Soviet surface shipbuilding. According to a number of characteristics, both ships were superior to their foreign counterparts.
Like the Intrepid, the Admiral Chabanenko BOD became the main "walker" of the Russian Navy. He plied the waters of the North Atlantic, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. The first among our warships since the Second World War passed the Panama Canal. The St. Andrew's flag was displayed in numerous ports. He also carried an anti-piracy watch. From November 2009 to April 2010, he escorted 17 convoys of more than 60 vessels in the Horn of Africa and in the Gulf of Aden.
In April 2014 (three months after the Intrepid), Admiral Chabanenko got up for repairs and modernization – not at the Yantar shipyard, but at the SRZ-35 shipyard in Murmansk (later the ship was transferred to the Nerpa shipyard in Snezhnogorsk). For several years, the work was carried out in a sluggish mode and only recently intensified. Ship repairers even promise that in the fourth quarter of 2022, the BOD, which has been reclassified into a frigate, will be tested.
This is hard to believe, since the amount of work on the Admiral Chabanenko is much more than on the Intrepid. In addition to replacing the electronic equipment, the Mosquito missile launchers will be removed on it, and four four-container Uran PU will be installed instead. In the bow of the superstructure there will be two blocks of 3S14 launchers with eight cells each for vertical placement of Kalibr-NK, Onyx, Zircon cruise missiles and Otvet ballistic anti-submarine missiles. That is, the impact potential of the ship will increase from 8 to 32 units. The lightweight 100 mm A-190-01 artillery piece will replace the twin AK-130. Some sources report that the Dagger air defense system will be replaced with a new version of the Shtil medium-range air defense system.
We are talking about a deep modernization of the ship, and it is unlikely to be possible to cope with the adaptation of weapons and electronics systems by the end of the year. Even if the work on updating mechanisms, replacing pipelines and cable routes has already been completed. Therefore, we will not rush with forecasts, but wait until the Admiral Chabanenko goes to the test.
THE PITFALLS OF IMPORT SUBSTITUTION
Here, of course, one cannot help but recall the nuclear missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov, which is undergoing modernization under the 11442M project. The cruiser arrived at Sevmash for repairs in 1999. But in fact, work on its radical rejuvenation began only in 2013. According to the initial contract, the ship should be handed over to the fleet in 2018. But where is that year? I've been behind the stern for a long time.
As is customary at USC, the deadlines for the delivery of Admiral Nakhimov were repeatedly postponed. Now they are talking about the end of 2023. However, here, too, it seems that what is desired is once again given out as valid. There is still a lot to do and experience. Therefore, a cruiser earlier than the end of 2024 – the beginning of 2025 should not be expected.
The industry can not cope with the repair of the only Russian aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov". Photo by RIA Novosti
The situation with shipbuilding and ship repair in Russia may become more complicated due to new Western sanctions. They say that in the defense industries, the volume of imported components is small and concerns some small things - for example, ship fittings. But without these little things, the ship cannot be sent to sail. According to Alexey Rakhmanov, General Director of USC, the share of import substitution in shipbuilding in key ship competencies is already 97-99%. There's just a little bit left, just a little bit more.
"We have an understandable action plan on the part of our suppliers, who over the next 3-16 months will be able to find a solution to replace those missing elements that will allow us to consider the products 100% manufactured in the Russian Federation," Alexey Rakhmanov said recently during a visit to the Yantar plant. One can only guess how long these 3-16 months will stretch.
And then I remember the promises of Mr. Rakhmanov's boss, the Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov, who in 2014, after the start of the first wave of sanctions, convinced President Vladimir Putin that the problem of import substitution would be solved by the end of 2017. Did something go wrong?
BITTER FATE
So far, we have listed only large surface ships that have been stuck in repair for a long time. Unfortunately, the practice of delaying work extends to submarines to no lesser extent.
Here, the most significant is the fate of the submarine with the K-132 Irkutsk cruise missiles of Project 949A developed by the MT Rubin Central Design Bureau. Its underwater displacement is almost 24 thousand tons, length – 154 m, width – 18.2 m, maximum speed of the underwater course – 32 knots, working depth of immersion – 520 m, maximum – 600 m. Sailors dubbed these cyclopean submarines for the shape of the hull "loaves".
The armament of the submarine turned out to match its heroic size. 24 supersonic cruise missiles "Granite" with a 500-kilogram conventional or nuclear warhead. Two 650-mm and four 533-mm torpedo tubes with a total ammunition of 24 torpedoes and torpedo missiles. Abroad, nuclear-powered ships of this type were justifiably dubbed "aircraft carrier killers".
Sevmash handed over the K-132 to the fleet in December 1988. In September 1990, the boat made an ice crossing from the Northern to the Pacific Fleet. There she regularly served, and on May 23, 1996, together with the same type of submarine K-456 "Vilyuchinsk" (now "Tver"), she successfully carried out a group firing of cruise missiles at one target.
But the next year, the submarine was taken into reserve to save money. That is, the ship, which had not served for nine years, was sent to the reserve. In November 2001, Irkutsk turned out to be at the Far Eastern Zvezda plant, where it was supposed to carry out an average repair.
Due to lack of funding, the slow renovation began only in 2008. And in 2013, the plans were revised. It was announced that the submarine would undergo a deep modernization under the 949AM project, which, in particular, provided for the replacement of 24 Granit cruise missiles with 72 Kalibr-PL and Onyx missiles. Thus, the strike potential increased three times, and the boat was able to attack not only sea, but also coastal targets, and to a considerable depth.
Well, something didn't work out here. In fact, the modernization began in 2019. Changes were made to the 949AM project. In the updated version, the boat will receive 48, not 72 missiles. However, hypersonic "Zircons" are now included in their nomenclature.
It was reported that the submarine will return to the Navy in 2022 and will serve for at least another ten years. But it is already clear that the submarine will not replenish the Pacific Fleet before the middle of next year.
Simple arithmetic shows that for 34 years as part of the Irkutsk Navy, he spent more than 25 years in sedimentation, repair and modernization. This is a completely abnormal situation. The same applies to other Russian submarines and submarines that have found themselves in repairs and upgrades.
On May 14, 2014, a contract was signed for the overhaul and modernization of the B-239 "Carp" and B-276 "Kostroma" titanium submarines of Project 945 "Barracuda" developed by the Lazurit Central Design Bureau. It was assumed that the Carp would return to the fleet in 2017, and the famous Kostroma, which "sank" the American Baton Rouge submarine in the Kola Bay on February 11, 1992, in 2020.
The hulls of the boats were "dug out", but already in March 2015 all work on them was stopped, considering that updating the Barracudas would turn into a lot of money. Since the technologies associated with underwater titanium shipbuilding have been largely lost.
WHO WILL REPAY THE COSTS?
It would seem that the multipurpose steel submarines of project 971 "Pike-B" developed by SPMBM "Malachite" were a little more lucky.
At the end of the last and the beginning of this century, they were the most advanced domestic nuclear-powered ships. Their underwater displacement is 12,770 tons, length – 110.3 m, width – 13.6 m. Equipped with a 190 MW OK-650 reactor, they develop a maximum 33-node underwater speed. The working depth of immersion is 520 m, the maximum is 600 m, the autonomy is 100 days. The armament includes four 650-mm and four 533-mm torpedo tubes, from which it is possible to fire cruise missiles "Grenade", anti-submarine torpedo missiles "Waterfall-PL" and "Squall", different types of torpedoes. With all that, the crew of these low–noise submarines, saturated with technical means, thanks to the introduction of automation tools, turned out to be small - 73 people.
At the end of June 2011, the K-328 Leopard submarine, which had served for 18 years, was repaired and upgraded according to the 971M project at the Severodvinsk Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center. It was promised to be returned to the fleet in 2015. But they were only taken out of the boathouse on December 25, 2020. The deadline was postponed to 2021. However, the boat has not even entered sea trials yet. And although the Asterisk CS claims that the nuclear-powered vessel will return to the Northern Fleet before the end of the year, it seems that this will happen only next year.
The situation is more complicated with two "Pike-B" of the Pacific Fleet – K-391 "Bratsk" and K-295 "Samara", which were commissioned in 1989 and 1995, respectively. Bratsk became famous for the fact that during combat service from September 10 to November 25, 1991, it detected submarines of foreign navies 12 times with continuous tracking of 380 hours, which still remains a record among the anti-submarine forces of the Russian Navy. And on December 2, 1993, for the first time in the history of the Navy, the nuclear-powered vessel successfully fired two "Granat" cruise missiles with different flight tasks. In October 2003, the submarine arrived at the Northeast Repair Center (SVRC). For nine years, virtually no work was carried out on the boat.
The Samara submarine inherited the Guards rank from the K-133 submarine of Project 627A, which had already been decommissioned by the time the K-295 entered service. And Samara proved that it was not in vain that it was awarded this honor. In the 2000s, she performed the largest number of combat services among the boats of the Pacific Fleet.
When it became clear that the SVRC could not cope with the modernization of the submarine according to the 971M project, she and Bratsk were sent by the Northern Sea Route to the Severodvinsk SS Zvezdochka on board the Dutch (former Soviet) Transshelf dock vessel in 2014. For seven years, Bratsk and Samara stood on the Zvezdochka waiting for repairs. Rumors were circulating that one of the boats would be remade by order of India. But it seems that Delhi has changed its mind about leasing second-hand.
And suddenly, in January of this year, sensational news was heard that Bratsk, after nine years of waiting for repairs, after transportation on a foreign vessel chartered for foreign currency and seven years on the Zvezdochka, was recognized as "unfit for repair and will not be restored." Is anyone responsible for anything in our country? And who will repay the losses incurred?
Samara seems to be lucky. It was decided to carry out "repair according to technical condition with the extension of the inter–repair service life" on the submarine - that is, complete modernization will not take place. The delivery of the boat to the Pacific Fleet is scheduled for 2023, but sources in the Ministry of Defense do not exclude that this may happen later.
The issue of repair and modernization of the K-461 "Wolf" nuclear submarine of the Northern Fleet, which has been waiting for an upgrade on the Asterisk since 2014, has not been resolved according to the 971M project. It is quite obvious that the deadline for her return to the fleet, previously scheduled for 2023, is impossible.
The repair of the diesel-electric submarine B-871 "Alrosa" of the project 877V "Halibut" developed by the Central Design Bureau MT "Rubin" at the Sevastopol 13th ship repair plant is painfully long. Until 2014, this submarine was considered the first in our fleet with a water jet propulsion and the only one in the Russian Black Sea Fleet. She also spent a long time on hikes and exercises.
After the annexation of Crimea to Russia, someone came up with the idea to overhaul the well-deserved submarine at an enterprise that had not been doing this for a long time. And it went-it went. The deadline for the DAPL was set for 2015, then for 2017, then shifted to 2019. Only in May 2021, the submarine entered the tests. In short, the repair lasted for eight years. That's how the new project 06363 submarines are built in three years.
VICTIM OF UNDER-REPAIR
And, of course, it is impossible not to say about the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, the Guards missile cruiser "Moscow". Today it does not matter why there was a fire on board, which led to the detonation of ammunition. One thing is clear: the cruiser, which has been in the Navy for 40 years, was not ready for combat and campaign in its technical condition.
A ship of the 1st rank simply should not die due to a short circuit or a Neptune-class RCC hitting it. It can be argued with good reason that the death of the "Moscow" was the result of under-repair.
Back in July 2019, it became known about the low technical condition of the cruiser. It had to be either written off or overhauled and modernized. At first, they wanted to upgrade the ship on the Severodvinsk Asterisk according to the type that was carried out on the Marshal Ustinov cruiser of the same type in 2011-2016. But they thought it was too expensive.
As a result, the repair contract, which was loudly called "capital", was signed with the Sevastopol Marine Plant. In July 2020, "Moscow" left the dock. The power plant was repaired on it, diesel generators, hundreds of meters of cable routes and a number of radio engineering systems were replaced. As representatives of the plant stated, "the ship will last for more than a dozen years after repair."
Did not last. The Sevmorzavod did not possess, as it is now customary to say pretentiously, the necessary competencies for the overhaul of ships of this class. The death of the cruiser was not only a tragedy, but also caused huge reputational damage to the Navy and our entire country.
Alexander Ivanin
Alexander Sergeevich Ivanin is a military journalist.
