Russian Navy

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The Russian Navy (Russian: Военно-Морской Флот (ВМФ) - Voyenno- Morskoy Flot (VMF) or Military Maritime Fleet) is the naval arm of the Russian armed forces. The international designation of Russian naval vessels is "RFS" - "Russian Federation Ship".

The present Russian Navy was formed from the Soviet Navy after the dissolution of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War in 1991.

The Russian Navy possesses most of the former Soviet naval forces, which is currently composed of the Northern Fleet, the Russian Pacific Fleet, the Black Sea Fleet, the Baltic Fleet, the Caspian Flotilla, Naval Aviation, Naval Infantry (marines) and coastal artillery.

Contents 1 Origins 2 The Imperial Russian Navy 3 The Soviet Navy 4 The Modern Russian Navy 4.1 Shipbuilding 4.2 Increase in Activity 4.3 Structure 4.4 Lists of Russian Navy ships 5 References and sources 6 External link

[edit] Origins

The origins of the Russian navy may be traced to the period between the 4th and the 6th century, when Early East Slavs were engaged in a struggle against the Byzantine Empire. The first Slavic flotillas consisted of small sailing ships and rowboats, which had been seaworthy and able to navigate in riverbeds. In the 9th-12th century, there were flotillas in Kievan Rus' consisting of hundreds of vessels with one, two or three masts. The citizens of Novgorod are known to have conducted military campaigns in the Baltic Sea (e.g., the siege of Sigtuna in 1187). Lad'ya (ладья in Russian, or sea boat) was a typical boat used by the army of Novgorod (length - 30 m, width - 5 to 6 m, 2 or 3 masts, armament - battering rams and catapults, complement - 50 to 60 men). There were also smaller sailboats and rowboats, such as ushkuys (ушкуи) for sailing in rivers, lakes and skerries, kochis (кочи), and nosads (носады), used for cargo transportation.

In the 16th-17th century, the Cossacks conducted military campaigns against the Tatars and Turks, using sailboats and rowboats. The Don Cossacks called them strugs (струг). These boats were capable of transporting up to 80 men. The Cossack flotillas numbered 80 to 100 boats.

The centralized Russian state had been fighting for its own access to the Baltic Sea, Black Sea and Sea of Azov since the 17th century. By the end of this century, the Russians had accumulated some valuable experience in using riverboats together with land forces. Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein according to European design and was christened the Frederick. In 1667-1669, the Russians tried to build naval ships in a village of Dedinovo on the shores of the Oka River for the purpose of defending the trade routes along the Volga, which led to the Caspian Sea. In 1668, they built a 26-cannon ship Oryol (Орёл, or Eagle), a yacht, a boat with a mast and bowsprit and a few rowboats.

During much of the seventeenth century Russian merchants and Cossacks, using koch boats, sailed across the White Sea, exploring the Rivers Lena, Kolyma and Indigirka, and founding settlements in the region of the upper Amur. Unquestionably the most celebrated Russian explorer was Semyon Dezhnev, who, in 1648, sailed the entire length of present-day Russia by way of the Arctic Ocean. Rounding the Chukotsk Peninsula, Dezhnev passed through the Bering Sea and sailed into the Pacific Ocean.

[edit] The Imperial Russian Navy

Main article: Imperial Russian Navy

The regular Russian Navy was created at the behest of Peter the Great. During the Second Azov campaign of 1696 against Turkey, the Russians employed for the first time 2 battleships, 4 fireships, 23 galleys and 1300 strugs, built on the Voronezh River. After the Azov fortress was taken, the Boyar Duma understood the vital importance of the Navy for successful warfare and passed a decree on commencing the construction of the navy on October 20, 1696. This date is considered the official birthday of the regular Russian Navy.

During the Great Northern War of 1700-1721, the Russians built the Baltic Fleet. In 1703-1723, the main base of the Baltic Fleet was located in Petersburg and then in Kronstadt. Other bases were later established in Vyborg, Helsingfors, Revel and Åbo. At first, Vladimirsky Prikaz was in charge of shipbuilding. Later on, these functions were transferred to the Russian Admiralty.

Basic principles of the Russian Navy, its educational and training methods, as well as methods for conducting military action were all summarized in the Naval Charter (1720). Peter the Great, Feodor Apraksin, Alexey Senyavin, Naum Senyavin, Mikhail Golitsyn are generally credited for the development of the Russian art of naval warfare. Main principles of naval warfare were further developed by Grigory Spiridov, Feodor Ushakov, and Dmitry Senyavin.

The Russo-Turkish Wars of Catherine the Great resulted in the establishment of the Black Sea Fleet, with its bases in Sevastopol and Kherson. It was at that time that Russian warships started to venture into the Mediterranean on a regular basis. In 1770, Grigory Spiridov’s squadron gained supremacy in the Aegean Sea by destroying the Turkish fleet in the Battle of Chesma. After having advanced to the Danube, the Russians formed the Danube Military Flotilla for the purpose of guarding the Danube estuary from the Turks.

During the Mediterranean expedition of 1799, Fyodor Ushakov single-handedly carved out the Greek Republic of Seven Islands, proceeding to clear from the French Corfu and all the Ionian islands. His squadron then blocked the French bases in Italy, notably Genoa and Ancona, and successfully assaulted Naples and Rome. Ushakov, proclaimed a patron saint of the Russian Navy in the 21st century, was succeeded in command by Dmitry Senyavin who reasserted Russian control of the southern Adriatic, disrupted Dubrovnik's sea trade, and destroyed the Ottoman Fleet in the Battle of Athos (1807). Between 1803 and 1855, Russian sailors undertook over 40 circumnavigations and distant voyages, which played an important role in exploration of the Far East and culminated in Faddei Bellingshausen's discovery of Antarctica.

Notwithstanding these triumphs, Russia’s slow technical and economical development in the first half of the 19th century caused her to fall behind other world powers in the field of steamboat construction. It was in 1826 that the Russians built their first armed steamboat Izhora. At the outbreak of the Crimean War in 1853, steamships were few and sailing ships heavily predominated. The Battle of Sinope, won by Pavel Nakhimov, is remembered in history as the last significant naval battle involving sailing ships. During the Siege of Sevastopol in 1854-1855, Russian sailors set an example of using all means possible for defending their base from land and sea. Although the Russians introduced modern naval mining in the Baltic and repelled the Siege of Petropavlovsk in the Pacific, Sevastopol was finally surrendered on honourable terms. In accordance with the Treaty of Paris, Russia lost its right to have a military fleet in the Black Sea.

As a consequence, the Russian sailing fleet lost its significance and was rapidly replaced by steamboats, including the first steel armored gunship Opyt and one of the first seafaring ironclads Pyotr Velikiy. On January 16, 1877 Stepan Makarov became the first man in the world to launch torpedoes from a boat. He proposed the idea and oversaw the construction of the world's first icebreaker "Yermak", commanding it in two arctic expeditions in 1899 and 1901. At about the same time, Aleksey Krylov elaborated the modern floodability theory.

The Russian Navy was considered the third strongest in the world on the eve of the Russo-Japanese War, which turned to be a catastrophe for the Russian military in general and the Russian Navy in particular. Although neither party lacked courage, the Russians were defeated by the Japanese in the Battle of Port Arthur, which was the first time in warfare that mines were used for offensive purposes. The battleships of the Baltic Fleet sent to the Far East were lost in the Battle of Tsushima.

Soon after the war Russia devoted a significant portion of its military spending to an ambitious shipbuilding program aimed at replacing lost battleships with modern dreadnoughts. During World War I, the fleets played a limited role in the Eastern Front, due to heavy defensive and offensive mining on both sides. Characteristically, the Black Sea Fleet succeeded in mining the Bosporus, thus preventing the Ottoman Fleet from entering the Black Sea. After the revolution forced Russia to quit the war, the Baltic Fleet was evacuated from Helsinki and Tallinn to Kronstadt during the Ice Cruise of the Baltic Fleet.

[edit] The Soviet Navy

Main article: Soviet Navy

For the most part, Russian sailors welcomed the Russian Revolution of 1917, in which they participated. Earlier, in 1905, sailors of the Imperial Russian battleship Potemkin in the Black Sea Navy revolted. In 1906 rebellious soldiers gained control of some Helsinki coastal fortifications during events known as the Viapori Rebellion, which was subsequently put down, following bombardments from ships of the Baltic Fleet which remained loyal to the Tsarist government. The first ship of the Soviet Navy could be considered to be the rebellious Imperial Russian cruiser Aurora, whose blank shot from a forecastle gun signaled the October Revolution. In March 1921, the sailors of Kronstadt rebelled against the Bolsheviks, demanding freedom of speech and closing of concentration camps, but this belated revolt was ruthlessly suppressed by Leon Trotsky. After the Revolution, the Navy's restoration was slow, and only with the beginning of industrialisation in 1930 was a large shipbuilding program developed, but not accomplished before the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. As a result, the Soviet Navy during World War II was comprised of some old World War I-era ships, some modern pre-war built cruisers and destroyers, as well as a number of torpedo boats.

Unfortunately for the Soviets, much of their fleet on the Baltic Sea was blocked in Leningrad and Kronstadt by Finnish and German minefields during 1941–1944 and heavily maimed by mines and air attacks, nevertheless numerous sorties by attack boats and submarines actions were held. On the Black sea with the loss of main naval base - Sevastopol, and effective actions of axis aviation as well as minefields navy limited the efficiency of large surface ships. The Northern Fleet, composed mostly of destroyers (World War I Novik-class and more modern project 7 and 7u vessels), played a major role in anti-aircraft and anti-submarine defence of allied convoys heading to Murmansk.

During the Cold War, the Soviets gave their navy a number of missions, in addition to its role as one of the legs of the nuclear triad, the navy was supposed to destroy American SSBNs and carrier groups, interdict NATO lines of communications, and assist the ground forces in continental theatre offensives.^[1] They were quick to equip their surface fleet with missiles of various sorts. In fact, it became a hallmark of Soviet design to place large missiles onto relatively small, and fast, missile boats. The Soviet Navy also possessed several very large guided missile cruisers with great firepower, such as those of the Kirov class and the Slava class cruisers. In the 1980s the Soviet Navy acquired its first true aircraft carrier, Tbilisi (subsequently renamed Admiral Kuznetsov).^[2]

In some respects, including speed and reactor technology Soviet submarines were, and remain, some of the world's best. Their primary shortcomings were insufficient noise dampening (American boats were quieter) and sonar technology. The Soviets possessed numerous purpose-built guided missile submarines, such as the Oscar class, as well as many ballistic missile submarines and attack submarines. The Soviet navy's Typhoon class boats are the world's largest submarines. The Soviet attack submarine force was, like the rest of the navy, geared towards the interception of NATO convoys, but also targeted American aircraft carrier battle groups.

[edit] The Modern Russian Navy

The collapse of the Soviet Union led to a severe decline in the Russian Navy. Defence expenditure was severely reduced. Many ships were scrapped or laid up as accommodation ships at naval bases, and the building programme was essentially stopped. However Sergey Gorshkov's buildup during the Soviet period had emphasised ships over support facilities, and Gorshkov had also retained ships in service that were beyond their effective lifetimes, so a reduction was due anyway.^[3] What made matters worse was the impractical variety of vessels which the Soviet military-industrial complex, with the support of the leadership, forced on the navy - taking modifications into account, the Soviet Navy in the mid 1980s had nearly 250 different ship types. ^[4]The Kiev class aviation cruisers and many other ships were prematurely retired. Funds were only allocated for the completion of ships ordered prior to the collapse of the USSR, as well as for refits and repairs on fleet ships taken out of service since. However, the construction times for these ships tended to stretch out extensively: in 2003 it was reported that the Akula class SSN Nerpa had been under construction for fifteen years.^[5] Storage of decommissioned nuclear submarines in ports such as Murmansk became a significant issue, with the Bellona Foundation reporting details of lowered readiness. Naval bases outside Russia, such as Cam Rahn Bay in Vietnam, were gradually closed, with the exception of the bases in the Crimea, leased from Ukraine to support the Black Sea Fleet. Naval Aviation declined as well from its height as Soviet Naval Aviation, dropping from an estimated 60,000 personnel with some 1,100 combat aircraft in 1992 to 35,000 personnel with around 270 combat aircraft in 2006.^[6] In 2002, out of 584 naval aviation crews only 156 were combat ready, and 77 ready for night flying. Average annual flying time was 21.7 hours, compared to 24 hours in 1999.^[7] However since 2002 these figures may have improved.

Training and readiness also suffered severely. In 1995 only two missile submarines at a time were being maintained on station, from the Northern and Pacific Fleets.^[8] The decline culminated in the loss of the Kursk submarine during the Northern Fleet summer exercise that was intended to back up the publication of a new naval doctrine.^[9] The exercise, involving some 30 submarines and surface ships, was to have culminated with the deployment of the Admiral Kuznetsov battle group to the Mediterranean.

As of 2006, The Russian Navy has 50 atomic submarines, compared to 170 vessels in 1991, but only 26 of them are in operation now. The Navy plans to reduce the number to 20 submarines, 10 missile submarines of the strategic purpose and 10 multi-purpose atomic vessels, under unofficial reports.^[10]

[edit] Shipbuilding

The recent improvement in the Russian economy has led to a rise in defence expenditure and an increase in numbers of ships under construction, focusing on submarines, such as the conventional Lada class and nuclear Graney class. Some older ships have been refitted as well. Jane's Fighting Ships commented in 2004 that the construction programme was too focused on Cold War scenarios, given the submarine emphasis. ^[11] The Steregushchy class corvettes, the lead ship of which was laid down on 21 December 2001, is the first new surface construction since the collapse of the Soviet Union.^[12] The Steregushchy and its sister-ships are the only surface ships under construction, despite the average age of frigates now being above 19 years.^[13] In 2005 plans were announced for a class of two new aircraft carriers which would start construction in 2013-14 for initial service entry in 2017. ^[14] Jane's said it was not clear whether 'this was a funded programme'. New amphibious ships are planned as well. The economic situation 'makes most of these plans look unrealistic for the immediate and mid term future',^[15] and even the nuclear deterrent force is in trouble. While three new SSBNs are now under construction, (the Borei class SSBNs), the first has been under construction for at least ten years. The mainstay of the SSBN force, the Delta IVs, joined the fleet in 1985-91. Apparently while the service life of an SSBN normally is twenty to twenty-five years, without maintenance, it may be as short as ten to fifteen years.^[16]

[edit] Increase in Activity

In the last years of the 1990s naval activity was very low. Even at the height of the Kosovo war crisis a planned battlegroup deployment to the Mediterranean was reduced to the dispatch of the intelligence ship Liman. 2003 saw a major increase in activity, including several major exercises. A May joint exercise with the Indian Navy saw two Pacific Ocean Fleet destroyers and four vessels from the Black Sea Fleet, led by Moskva, deploy for three months into the Indian Ocean. The largest out of area deployment for a decade, the INDRA 2003's exercise highlight was a series of missile launches by two Tu-160s and four Tu-95s which made a 5,400 mile round trip flight from Engels air bases to the exercise area. ^[17] In August 2003 the Navy also participated in the Far Eastern exercise Vostok-2003, which saw the Varyag and the Sovremenny class destroyer Bystry active, as well as an amphibious landing carried out by three Pacific Ocean Fleet Ropucha class LSTs. Warships and helicopters from the Japanese and South Korean navies also took part. The Northern Fleet followed in January 2004 when thirteen ships and seven submarines took part in exercises in the Barents Sea. The involvement of Admiral Kuznetsov and Pytor Veliky was overshadowed however by two ballistic missile launch failures, made more embarrassing because President Vladimir Putin was afloat aboard the Typhoon-class SSBN Arkhangelsk to witness the tests. Neither Novomoskovsk nor Karelia were able to successfully launch what were apparently RSM-54 SLBMs.^[18] Former Navy Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Kuroyedov's early dismissal may have resulted from these gaffes. He was replaced by Admiral Vladimir Masorin in September 2005.

Embarrassments for the Navy have unfortunately continued, with a mine accident during rehearsals for the Baltic Fleet's celebration of Navy Day in July 2005 and the Priz class mini-submarine AS-28 having to be rescued by a Royal Navy submarine in the Far East in early August 2005. However exercises and operations continue - Peace Mission 2005 in August 2005 involved a new level of cooperation between the Russian and the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy. Two months later Varyag led Russian participation in INDRA 2005, which was held off Vishakapatnam between 14 and 20 October 2005. It included surface firings, air defence, and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) exercises.^[19]

[edit] Structure

Recruitment is a mixture of conscripts serving two year terms and volunteers (Officers and Ratings). In 2004 the Navy had about 160,000 sailors. By 2006 the IISS estimate of strength was 142,000.

The Russian Navy consists of four fleets and one flotilla:

• Russian Northern Fleet is headquartered at Severomorsk and spread around various bases in the Murmansk area. This is the main fleet of the Russian Navy and as of 2004 consisted of about 55,000 service personnel. The Fleet has 11 missile submarines, of which four are in reserve. It has 22 tactical submarines: 16 nuclear powered attack submarines (SSN)/nuclear powered cruise missile submarines (SSGN) and 6 attack submarines (SSK). According to the IISS, it has eleven surface combatants, including Admiral Kuznetsov, two Kirov class battlecruisers, one Slava class cruiser, four Udaloy class destroyers, Besstrashny, a Sovremenny class destroyer, and two Krivak class frigates. There are also an estimated 26 patrol and coastal combatants, 18 mine warfare vessels, eight amphibious ships, and 130+ logistics and support ships and craft.^[20]
• The Pacific Ocean Fleet (Russia) is based around Vladivostok and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, consisting of 15 submarines and eight principal surface combatants. The IISS estimates there are four missile submarines and eleven cruise missile and attack submarines (SSGN/SSN) with the Fleet. The major surface ships are the Slava class cruiser Varyag, the Sovremenny class destroyer Burny, four Udaloy class destroyers and two frigates. There are also 30 coastal combatants, eight mine warfare vessels, four amphibious ships, and 57 logistics and support vessels.
• The Black Sea Fleet is based at the Sevastopol, Karantinnaya, and Streletskaya Bays in Sevastopol, and at Novorossiysk. It has one Kilo class submarine, Moskva, a Slava class cruiser, Kerch, a Kara class cruiser, two destroyers, including Smetlivy (a Kashin class vessel), and two Krivak class frigates. The IISS comments that 'the Fleet's overall serviceability is low.' ^[21]
• The Baltic Fleet is based in Kronstadt and Baltiysk, and consists of two Kilo class submarines, two Sovremenny class destroyers, three Krivak class frigates, and the single Neutrashimy class frigate. It also includes around 26 patrol and coastal combatants, thirteen mine warfare vessels, five amphibious ships, and about 130 logistics and support ships.
• Caspian Flotilla based in Astrakhan and Mahachkala

[edit] Lists of Russian Navy ships

• List of Russian Navy ships and submarines for current strength of the Russian Navy
• List of Russian Navy frigates
• List of Russian Navy cruisers
• List of Russian Navy equipment

[edit] References and sources

[edit] External link

• (Russian) "Northern Fleet... Will Not Let You Down!" - independent information portal, Severomorsk City