The 13th ship of the 12700 Alexandrite project will be built for the Northern Fleet
The mine defense ships of the 12700 Alexandrite project will eventually replace all Soviet-built minesweepers, experts interviewed by Izvestia said. On Tuesday, the 13th representative of this line was laid in St. Petersburg. He will receive the name of Hero of the Soviet Union Viktor Korner and will serve in the Northern Fleet. According to the general director of the manufacturer, starting next year, the industry will supply the fleet with two such ships annually.
It will go north
A mine defense ship of the 12700 Alexandrite project was laid down at the Sredne-Nevsky Shipyard in St. Petersburg, the press service of the United Shipbuilding Corporation reported. This is the 13th representative of the line, which will receive the name "Victor Corner". The ceremony was attended by representatives of the Commander-in-chief of the Navy, the State Duma, the administration of St. Petersburg, USC, the developer and the manufacturer.
Vladimir Seredokho, General Director of the Sredne-Nevsky Shipyard, noted that starting next year the company will transfer two minesweepers to the Navy annually.
To date, eight mine defense ships of the 12700 project are in service. Three of them serve in the Pacific Ocean, three in the Black Sea and two in the Baltic. There are four ships under construction.
Photo: USC Press Service
Image source: iz.ru
The construction of the first two representatives of the project — "Alexander Obukhov" and "Georgy Kurbatov" — took six years each. However, in the future, the time frame for the creation of minesweepers was significantly reduced, and now about three years pass from the laying to the transfer to the fleet. The completion of the Victor Corner is scheduled for 2027.
As the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation informed Izvestia, the laid-down ship is intended for service in the Northern Fleet.
— There are no modern minesweepers in the Northern Fleet as such now. Everything that is there is ancient, Soviet—built," military expert Dmitry Boltenkov is sure. — Viktor Korner will ensure the launch of nuclear submarines with ballistic missiles and warships into the sea. These minesweepers serve in Kamchatka, the Black Sea, and the Baltic. It's time for the Northern Fleet to get something.
The expert noted that new mine search systems, including an unmanned boat, have been implemented on mine-fighting ships of the 12700 project.
— Mines are actively changing, new species are constantly appearing. We need to counter this with something," Dmitry Boltenkov added.
The ship has great capabilities for mine clearance and carries drones on board, military expert, captain of the first rank Vasily Dandykin told Izvestia.
— It is called a basic minesweeper, but it can perform tasks not only in the near sea zone, but also in the far sea, — he explained. — This was proved even before the special military operation, when ships of this type were serving in an operational unit in the Mediterranean Sea.
Photo: USC Press Service
Image source: iz.ru
Much more such ships are needed, the expert added. According to him, over time they will replace all Soviet-built minesweepers.
— Many Soviet minesweepers are already under fifty years old. In the timelessness, in the 1990s and even in the noughties, ships of this class were not built," said Vasily Dandykin. — And you can't do without them, especially where the sea is stuffed with mines. And the production of various mines is constantly being improved, it is very difficult for old ships to deal with them. Efforts to build ships of the 12700 project will be increased. So far, this is the main minesweeper of the new Russian ships.
The previous ship of the Semyon Agafonov series was laid down earlier this year. The then commander—in-chief of the Navy, Admiral Nikolai Evmenov, noted at the ceremony that these minesweepers were "workers of the sea" and there were always not enough of them. According to him, there will be many more orders for ships of the 12700 project, the fleet needs them.
On December 25 last year, the eighth built ship Lev Chernavin was transferred to the fleet. He joined the ranks together with the frigate Admiral Golovko and the small missile ship Naro-Fominsk. President Vladimir Putin took part in the flag-raising ceremony. The Head of State noted then that, in accordance with the naval doctrine, work continues on serial production and planned deliveries of modern ships to the Navy.
Robot carriers
The ships of the 12700 project are designed to search for and destroy naval mines in the waters of naval bases both in water and in the marine soil. Their displacement is about 890 tons, length is about 62 m, width is 10 m, speed at full displacement is about 16 knots, crew is 44 people.
The Alexandrite hulls are made of monolithic fiberglass, so that magnetic ammunition fuses do not react to them. The advantage of such a case is its higher strength compared to steel ones.
Photo: Alexey Akentiev
Image source: iz.ru
To search for and destroy mines, the Diamant system is installed on board, which includes two light boats with special underwater robots. The device is designed to neutralize minefields within 10 km and at a depth of up to 100 m. Thanks to the plastic hull and low-noise engine, sea mines do not react to the boats and they can search freely using sonar and magnetometers.
The integrated Alexandrite-ISPUM mine search and destruction system should be engaged in the search for deep-sea objects. It includes a remote-controlled underwater vehicle capable of detecting suspicious objects within a radius of 500 m and at a depth of up to 300 m. Its speed is about 3-6 m/s. The equipment can work underwater with sea waves up to three points.
Underwater drones are sent to the detected objects, which install explosive charges on them. If necessary, they can tow the ammunition to shallow water and destroy it there. Remote mine clearance tactics minimize the risk to personnel.
Photo: Alexey Akentiev
Image source: iz.ru
Viktor Korner, after whom they decided to name the 13th minesweeper of the 12700 project, is a Soviet rear admiral. In 1945, as commander of the Sun Yat-sen monitor, he took part in the war with Japan. "Sun Yat-sen" in the vanguard of the patrol and reconnaissance detachment of ships fought along the Sungari River (northeast China) for over 2 thousand km. In September 1945, Viktor Korner was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
Roman Kretsul
