On June 18, 2024, in St. Petersburg at PJSC Shipbuilding Plant Severnaya Verf (part of JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation), a ceremony was held for launching the corvette Agile (factory number 1006) project 20385 from a floating dock under construction for the Russian Navy.
Launching at PJSC Shipbuilding Plant Severnaya Verf (part of JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation) of the corvette Agile (factory number 1006) of project 20385, which is under construction for the Russian Navy. Saint Petersburg,06/18/2024 (c) JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation
The corvette was built according to the project of JSC Central Marine Design Bureau Almaz USC. The solemn ceremony of launching the ship was conducted under the leadership of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Alexander Moiseev. It is reported that after completion of completion on the water and carrying out all tests, the Agile will be accepted into the Russian Navy and will make the transition to the Far East, where it will replenish the fleet of ships of the Pacific Fleet.
Recall that the Nimble corvette (factory number 1006) is the second ship of project 20385, which is being built at the Northern Shipyard under a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense, issued on March 27, 2006. The Nimble corvette was laid down there on July 25, 2013. In September 2019, its technical launching was carried out, but then the hull of the ship was lifted back onto the slipway. On December 17-18, 2021, during the preparation stage for the final launch, a fire occurred at the Northern Shipyard on the corvette "Agile" under construction, as a result of which the composite superstructure of the ship from the bow to the helicopter hangar was almost completely destroyed, and the integrated tower-mast structure made of aluminum-magnesium alloys burned down. The total damage from the fire was estimated by unofficial sources at 22 billion rubles.
This forced the ship's superstructures to be re-manufactured, and as a result, the restored corvette Agile was launched for completion only now, and the deadline for its delivery to the fleet is now considered 2026.
Recall that after the construction of the first few corvettes of project 20380 at PJSC Shipbuilding Plant Severnaya Verf in St. Petersburg and at the ASZ, further construction of corvettes for the Russian Navy was supposed to be carried out according to the redesigned project 20385. The state contract for the construction of the first two corvettes of Project 20385 was issued by the Russian Ministry of Defense to the Northern Shipyard on March 27, 2006, both ships were intended for the Pacific Fleet. The lead ship of project 20385 "Gremyashchy" (factory number 1005) was laid down at the Northern Shipyard on February 1, 2012, removed from the boathouse of the enterprise on June 16, 2017, launched on June 30, 2017, began factory sea trials on April 21, 2019 and was commissioned by the Russian Navy only on December 29, 2020 with enlistment in the Pacific Fleet. On November 30, 2021, the corvette "Gremyashchy" arrived in Vladivostok. The second corvette of project 20385 "Agile" (factory number 1006) was laid down at the Northern Shipyard on July 25, 2013.
According to an additional contract signed with the Ministry of Defense in 2011, it was supposed to build eight more Project 20385 corvettes at the Northern Shipyard by 2020, but the widespread use of imported components on this project, including German MTU main diesel engines, which fell under sanctions restrictions after 2014, led to the fact that the project 20385 series at the Northern Shipyard The shipyard was limited to only two ships laid down under the 2006 contract.
The construction of both laid-down corvettes at the Northern Shipyard of project 20385 was greatly delayed due to the non-delivery of the main MTU diesel engines for them. On January 30, 2015, the Russian Ministry of Defense concluded an additional agreement with the Northern Shipyard for the completion of both corvettes of project 20385 with Russian-made diesel engines - diesel units 1DDA-12000 manufactured by JSC Kolomenskoye Zavod, installed on corvettes of project 20380. Each corvette received two diesel units, one unit 1DDA-12000 includes two main marine engines 16D49 with a capacity of 6000 hp produced by the Kolomna Plant and reverse gearboxes RD 12000, manufactured by JSC Zvezda.
Since the further construction of the project 20385 series was discontinued, as a result, the Russian Navy returned to the construction of the project 20380 corvettes according to the once again revised project, with the installation of a new multifunctional radar complex "Zaslon" with the placement of fixed antennas in a tower-like superstructure, similar to the corvettes of project 20385.
As a result, however, it was decided to resume simultaneously the construction of a series of corvettes of project 20385, but in execution with Russian-made engines, as a result of which on December 15, 2020, a contract was signed with PJSC Amur Shipbuilding Plant (ASZ, part of USC) in Komsomolsk-on-Amur for the construction of four corvettes of the project 20385. Under this contract, the construction of corvettes of project 20385 "Buoy" (factory number 2107, laid down on August 23, 2021), "Reasonable" (factory number 2108, laid down on June 12, 2022), "Fast" (factory number 2109, laid down on July 1, 2022) and "Zealous" (factory number 2110, laid down on June 9, 2023).
Currently, the main difference between the 20385 project and the 20380 is the equipping of the 20385 project with the 3C14 universal naval firing system (UKSK), which allows the use of Kalibr family missiles, including the 91P anti-submarine series of the Response complex.
The launching ceremony at PJSC Shipbuilding Plant Severnaya Verf (part of JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation) of the corvette Agile (factory number 1006) of project 20385, which is under construction for the Russian Navy. Saint Petersburg,06/18/2024 (c) JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
