Ocean going capabilities for Russian frigates

Northern Fleet frigate RFS Admiral Gorshov recently conducted a Replenishment at Sea (RAS) on the Atlantic Ocean. The RFS Gorshkov and her escorting group were transiting from Cuba towards her home base when the RAS took place. RAS is not considered to be a special maneuver and is a common practice for warships who operate for extended periods at sea. RAS allows warships to extend their duration at sea by taking on supplies from logistic vessels. During this operation, the RFS Gorshkov and her escorting ships took on fuel from the sea tanker RFS Kama.
Northern Fleet light tanker RFS Kama

Russian shipbuilding programs are currently focused on the construction of smaller warships such as frigates and corvettes. The smaller displacement of these warships also restricts the space available to store supplies such as food and fuel, lowering the time these ships can spend at sea. The only way these ships can extend their operational endurance at sea without returning back to port is through RAS.
The circumnavigation of the world conducted by the RFS Admiral Gorshkov showed us that at least the warships of the Project 22350 class have ocean –going capabilities and can operate at long distances from home provided if they can be supplied during their transit. Gorshkov-class frigates could thus form a part of  future Russian blue water navy capability, provided of they can be supplied at sea when it operates at long distances from its home bases. Should Russia seek to use its frigates in a blue water navy role and maintain a global maritime reach, then it will have to depend on the necessary logistical capabilities.
Future Russian deployments in oceanic regions could mirror those of the US Navy where a logistical fleet train carrying supplies follows a naval task force. Most of the Russian fleet tankers were however build during the 1960s-1970s and are thus over 50 years old. These ships are in need of replacement in the coming years. If these ships are not replaced then Russia will use the capability of sending frigates on extended missions across the oceans.

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