Russian Navy - News and Analysis

November 24 Steregushchy class corvette RFS Boikiy conducted a replenishment at sea from the sea tanker RFS Kola. The replenishment took place in the English Channel and involved the transfer of fuel and water. During the replenishment, anti-terrorism units, presumably made up of naval infantry servicemembers, practiced several counter-terrorism for when the vessels would be anchored in an unprotected area. [ 1 ] The Baltic Fleet at Kaliningrad have received their first Project 02510 BK-16 high speed amphibious landing boat. The BK-16 is a Russian variant of the CB-90 assault boats and was build at the Rybinsk Shipyard. The vessel will be used to transport up to 18 special forces operators at a speed of 40 knots over a distance of 400 nautical miles. The boat is equipped with remote controlled weapons and has armor protection against 7.62mm armor piercing bullets. [ 2 ] November 25 The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that a visit by an Indian military delegation took place at...

  November 16 Project 160 Altay class replenishment oiler RFS Kola passed the Great Belt Bridge at 08:22 local time. The vessel was photographed on a northbound course out of the Baltic Sea. Russian sources did not report where the vessel would be heading to. It is possible that she is heading towards the North Sea to supply the Udaloy class destroyer RFS Kulakov which is heading from the Pas-de-Calais towards the Barents Sea but this is yet to be confirmed. Over 500 NCOs, most of the sergeants leading sections, crews and teams, have started training to increase their professional skills. Special attention will be given to on combat training, observance of the standing rules during service time and the management of company. Special attention will be paid to the development of command qualities in the upbringing and the training of subordinates. [ 1 ] Demolition units of the Baltic Fleet and Caspian Flotilla were engaged in a friendly competition which involved their...

On November 11, Interfax  reported that a draft proposal was worked out between Russia and Sudan for creating a logistic support base at Port Sudan. Though both countries have yet to make an official decision on this mater, talks about a Russian naval base, or at least a support base, have been ongoing since 2017. Should this logistic support base become a reality, Russia would be able to support a permanent naval presence in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and possibly project power into the Indian Ocean as well. The details that are currently available speak of a logistic support base where Russian warships can be resupplied and undergo minor repairs. A maximum of four vessels are allowed to dock in this base at any given time and the maximum number of servicemen inside the base is set at 300. Sudan must be warned 12 hours in advance when a Russian vessel is due to arrive in the support base. This time is reduced to a minimum of six hours in the case of operation needs. Another impo...

November 10 Pilots of the Naval Aviation regiment trained in landing  Ka-27 anti-submarine and rescue helicopters practiced landing on board of the helidecks of the corvettes RFS Steregushchy and RFS Boiky. Over 30 landings were conducted with the corvettes laying stationary and on the move. According to Russian sources, night time deck landings were trained as well. The training flights also included training the tactics for detecting and tracking hostile submarines. [ 1 ] A small scale amphibious landing was held at an unspecified location on the coastline of the Kaliningrad Region. A subunit of the 879th Air-Assault Battalion, 336th Naval Infantry Brigade, conducted the amphibious landing. This subunit was mounted in ten BTR-82A APCs which is the standard size of a Russian company. Transit to the coastline was done on board of two Zubr class hovercrafts, the RFS Evgeniy Kocheshkov and the RFS Mordoviya. During the transit, both hovercrafts trained in engaging...

November 05 Northern Fleet: Reconnaissance units held a training exercise in mountainous terrain during which they had to raid and destroy a base belonging to a simulated insurgent force. The training exercise took place near the village of Sputnik, Murmansk, where the Naval Infantry established a training ground three years ago. The training involved tactical operations in a wooded environment, climbing techniques to overcome steep cliffs and ravines as well as small arms firing during simulated engagements with insurgent forces. Exercises like these allow the Naval Infantry to be deployed in a counter-insurgency rol as well as light infantry operating in wooded and mountainous terrain. [ 1 ] November 07 Black Sea Fleet: Newly recruited conscripts are being thought on how to drive the BTR-82A APC at the Cossack Bay in Sevastopol. The training takes place under the supervision of experienced driver mechanics and consists of both theoretical and practical courses. Before being allow...

November 02 Amphibious landing ship RFS Petr Morgunov has left the Yantar shipyard and set course for the Baltic Sea to complete her state trails before delivery to the Russian Navy. The state trails will involve the checking of the artillery systems and her capabilities of operating helicopters. [ 8 ] Training facilities in Kaliningrad are being updated in preparation for the new academic year which is to start at December 01. A total of 300 facilities for live firing training will be repaired and several combat vehicles well be made available for the new recruits to practice on. Training minefields, wire and mine-explosive barriers and other engineering structures also being installed on the training area. Preparation of the training grounds is said to continue until the end of the month November. [ 1 ] Daily disinfection of military buildings is continuing in the Kaliningrad Region. Specialist units focus on the  internal premises of military units, headquarters, ...

November 01 Slava class cruiser RFS Varyag and Udaloy class destroyer RFS Admiral Panteleev left their port at Vladivostok and started a long range deployment in the Pacific Region. The warships are escorted by the light fleet oiler RFS Pechenga. During the first day of their deployment, the warships checked their communication systems, held joint maneuvers, held an air defense exercise, conducted emergency rescue operations and held a replenishment at sea. During the air defense exercise, Russian aircraft played the role of hostile aircraft. [ 1 ] November 02 Slava class cruiser RFS Varyag and Udaloy class destroyer RFS Admiral Panteleev were photographed at anchor near Vladivostok after completing several exercises. The open source report did not mention if these pictures were taking during the morning or evening hours. [ 2 ] November 05 The Russian task force was captured on a Sentinel satellite image as it passed through the Sea of Japan around noon local time. The task force w...

On Monday, October 26, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved the Strategy for the Development of the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation which calls for the construction of 400.000 tons of shipping in the coming years. [ 1 ] Central in this document is the construction of several icebreakers and rescue vessels as well as laying a transarctic optic fiber cable on the ocean floor. These plans form a basis for the maritime development of the Artic Region which is believed to be rich in energy and mineral supplies that could become accessible due to global warming. Strengthening maritime trade Central in the document is the construction of additional shipping tonnage to be used in the Artic Region. This plan involved the construction of at least five icebreakers of Project 22220 and three icebreakers of Project 10510, also known as Leader class. Sixteen additional rescue vessels are to be constructed to supplement the fleet. Artika - lead vessel of Project 22220 and named after h...