Baltic Fleet - Safety of Navigation Exercise - April 2025

Daily Events

April 15th

The Russian ministry of defense reports that the Russian Baltic Fleet has started a naval exercise aimed to protect civilian maritime traffic against UAV, USV and submarine attacks. The exercise will involve 20 warships and support ships as well as 5.000 servicemen and 10 helicopters and aircraft link.

Steregushchy class corvettes Soobrazitelny and Boiky headed to sea and engaged in several combat exercises which involved simulated launches of Uran anti-ship missiles as well as air defense exercise with simulated enemy attacks coming from different heights and directions.

Both vessels then took on water and fuel from the small sea tanker Alexander Grebenshchikov. During the replenishment, anti-terrorist teams onboard of the corvettes held several drills aimed to protect the vessels against sabotage link.

Parachim class anti-submarine corvettes Kabardino-Balkariya and Aleksin held gunnery exercises with their 76mm and 30mm weapon systems against unmanned boats that simulated naval targets. Later in the day, both vessels held an air defense exercise with attacks coming in from different heights and directions. Both vessels also laid a defensive minefields with training mines link.

Buyan-M class corvette Zeleny Dol operated together with Tarantul missile boat Morshansk. Both vessels did electronic launches of their respective Kalibr and Moskit cruise missiles against simulated enemy warships. Later on, both vessels used their naval guns against unmanned boats which simulated enemy targets link.

April 16th

A comprehensive exercise was held which involved the Parachim class corvette Kazanets playing the role of a hostile warship attempting to attack civilian traffic. The Baltic Fleet responded by deploying the Tarantul missile boat Morshansk, Bastion coastal defense missile systems, naval aviation and FSB border guard boats to stop the Kazanets.

Morshansk was deployed at full speed to the position of the Kazanets, which had captured a civilian vessel. Morshansk then proceeded to push the Kazanets away, an action that then lead to a simulated artillery duel between both ships with Morshansk using her 76 and 30mm weapon systems, resulting, according to the exercise, in damaging the Kazanets. FSB border guard vessels then boarded and inspected the Kazanets.

At the same time, Bastion coastal defense missiles kept track of the Kazanets and prepared a firing solution against her followed by simulated launches. 

Naval aviation assets held simulated bomb and attack runs against the Kazanets as well.

The exercise ended with all ships rendering assistance to the simulated damaged civilian ship by fighting fires, conduct damage control and search for missing crew members in the water link.

Minesweepers Aleksandr Obukhov, Lev Chernavin and Vasily Polyakov held MCM operations in the Baltic training ranges. The vessels swept the passage from the naval base to the sea in order to assure the safe departure of Baltic Fleet ships. Later on, all three vessels swept a training minefield made up of bottom, anchored and floating mines link.
The day ended with gunnery exercise, air defense exercises with the use of MANPADS and anti sabotage training with the grew throwing grenades to neutralize a simulated attack by special forces attempting to sabotage the ship from underwater.

Steregushchy class corvettes Soobrazitelny and Boiky were engaged in a surface action exercise where the target was a large metal shield being towed that had to simulate a hostile warship. The corvettes made radar contact, and once in range, engaged the shield with their naval guns. During this exercise, both vessels also engaged in electronic warfare and passive jamming.
The day ended with both corvettes searching and tracking enemy submarines with the use of their Ka-27 helicopters link. The submarine was instructed to simulate torpedo attacks against Russian warships and civilian ships. The helicopters searched and tracked the submarine followed by simulating the use of their anti-submarine weapons against the submarine link. Russian sources did not report the name of the submarine tasked to play the role of the enemy submarine in this exercise.

Zubr class hovercrafts Evgeny Kocheshkov and Mordovia fired against simulated naval and aerial targets at the training ranges of the Baltic Sea. Both vessels then proceeded to embark naval infantry units and land them on an undefended piece of coastline link. This exercise appears to have taken place independently from the larger Safety of Navigation exercise.

April 17th

Helicopters of the Naval Aviation regiment held tactical flights with practice attack runs and live firing over the Baltic Sea training ranges. Ka-27 helicopters dropped UPLAB-50 training anti-submarine aviation bombs against simulated underwater contacts.

Mi-24 attack helicopters and Ka-29 transport helicopters used on board weapons and unguided rockets to destroy unmanned boats. Around 20 helicopters were reported deployed in the exercise link.

April 18th

Mi-8 helicopters of the Naval Aviation regiment were deployed to patrol the waters of Kaliningrad, looking for small boats that simulated a USV attack against the Baltic Fleet. The helicopters used machine guns and small arms fire to disable the boats, taking lessons learned from the Ukrainian war in account. A total of 10 Mi-8 helicopters took part in this exercise during which they were in contact with the warships of the Baltic Fleet link.

Anti-sabotage teams trained in underwater battles in the sea near the Khmelevka training ground. The anti-sabotage teams fired their APS underwater riffles and SPP-1 underwater pistols against live-size targets that simulated hostile sabotage units link. It is unclear if this exercise was part of the larger Safety of Navigation Exercise.

April 22nd

Parachim class corvettes Aleksin and Kabardino-Balkaria conducted anti-submarine exercises including detecting, tracking and engaging a hostile submarine. Both vessels launched their RBU-6000 anti-submarine rockets and trained in the launching of torpedo's. The role of the hostile submarine was played by a Kilo class submarine.
Later during the day, both ships held air defense exercises with air attacks being simulated at different altitudes and directions. The vessels fired their air defense weapons during this exercise link.

April 23rd

MCM vessel Pavel Khenov held an air defense exercise near Kronstadt with Su-27 fighters and Mi-24 helicopters simulating the air attacks link.

Steregushchy class corvette Boiky held an anti-submarine exercise at the Baltic Sea training ranges. The vessel cooperated with a Ka-27 helicopter to locate the simulated submarine and setup an attack with the Paket anti-torpedo system link.

The Baltic Fleet reports the end of the Safety of Navigation exercise link.