Large anti-submarine ships of the USSR Navy
The main headquarters of the USSR Navy was penetrated by slippery tentacles of horror: the nuclear aircraft carrier Enterprise Enterprise seemed everywhere to the commander in chief, officers in a panic were thrown from the windows shouting “Aircraft carriers are coming!” The pistol shot clicked - the Deputy Headquarters of the General Staff shot dead in his office, data about the laying of new aircraft carriers like the Nimitz comes from the US ...
If you believe the "journalistic investigations" of the last years, the USSR Navy was only engaged in chasing American aircraft carrier groups, for which they built "aircraft carrier killers" - special surface and submarines destined for the destruction of "Enterprise", " Nimitsev "," Kitty Hawk "and other floating airfields" probable enemy. "
Of course, the strike aircraft carrier Enterprise - a notable goal. Large, with a huge combat potential. But it is very vulnerable - sometimes an unexploded 127 mm missile is enough for an aircraft carrier to “exit the game”. But what will happen if a firestorm of about fifty 100 and 152 mm caliber shells hits the flight deck of the Enterprise? - A Soviet cruiser, traveling in direct visibility, tirelessly holds an aircraft carrier at gunpoint. Constant tracking of the "probable enemy" is an indispensable attribute of peacetime. And it does not matter anymore that the combat radius of deck "Phantoms" is ten times more than the firing range of the guns of the old cruiser - in the case of the outbreak of war, the first move will be for the artillerymen.
The jolly cruiser Ave. 68-bis is just a warm-up. In the sleeve of the Soviet commanders hidden real trumps - nuclear submarines of projects 949 and 949А, missile carriers Tu-22М, space reconnaissance systems and anti-ship ultra-long-range missiles. There is a problem - there is a solution.
But they were at the Soviet fleet and Real Problems. It is no coincidence that most of the surface forces of the USSR Navy were classified as "Large anti-submarine ships." The Soviet leadership was well aware of who the main threat was coming from - one George Washington with a Polaris SLBM could do more harm than a thousand Enterprise carriers.
Quite right, dear reader, - the Soviet Navy was focused primarily on the search and combat of enemy nuclear submarines. Especially with the "city killers" carrying long-range ballistic missiles. The ocean surface was continuously scanned by anti-submarine aircraft IL-38 and Tu-142, underwater killers of 705 and 671 avenged in the water column, and legendary BOD, Soviet cruisers and destroyers focused on anti-submarine missions, were on duty at anti-submarine lines.
Singing frigates
Large anti-submarine ships project 61. The total displacement is 4300 tons. Crew 270 man. Full move 35 nodes. Range 3500 miles on 18 nodes.
Armament:
- 2 M-1 “Wave” launchers (32 ammunition anti-aircraft missiles);
- 2 automated AK-726 automatic installations of 76 caliber mm;
- 2 rocket-bombing installations RBU-6000 (192 depth charges);
- 2 rocket-bombing installations RBU-1000 (48 depth charges);
- five-pipe torpedo tube caliber 533 mm;
- helipad, aviation fuel storage (5 tons), cellar for aviation torpedoes and equipment.
A series of twenty * Soviet patrol ships of the early 60s, later classified as BOD. The world's first warships with a gas turbine power plant, designed for all modes of travel.
The 61 project became an important stage in domestic shipbuilding - for the first time a ship with an aluminum hull and a gas turbine unit was created. Two anti-aircraft missile complexes, universal artillery, jet depth charges and deep-sea torpedoes - a small glorious ship could use its weapon even in a storm: the sharp “snub-nosed” hull lines allowed the BOD to easily go against any wave.
* More 5 ships of this type were subsequently built for the Indian Navy
There were drawbacks: the sailors complained about the high noise in the cabin - the powerful roar of gas turbines penetrated into each room, making the service on the BOD Ave 61 a rather unpleasant event. But a much more serious issue was the survivability of the ship - fears were confirmed in 1974, when the Brave submarine died in the roadstead of Sevastopol - after the explosion of the rocket cellar the fire quickly spread through the ship, destroying the AMG aluminum-magnesium alloy bulkhead in its path.
However, some circumstances make it possible to disagree with the statement about the low survivability of “singing frigates” - 480 kg of explosives and six tons of gunpowder detonated 5 in the “Brave” cellar, but the small ship continued to fight the fire for XNUMX hours.
Until now, the Russian Black Sea Fleet has one ship of this type.
BOD "Sharp-witted" in the Mediterranean. In the background - Aegis destroyer of the US Navy "Mahen"
Large anti-submarine ships of the project XNUMHA (code "Berkut-A")
The total displacement is 7500 tons. Crew 380 man. Full move 33 node. Range 5500 miles on 18 nodes.
Armament:
- 8 PU anti-submarine missile system "Metel";
- 2 M-11 "Storm" launchers (48 missile ammunition);
- 2 universal automatic artillery systems AK-725 caliber 57 mm;
- 2 battery AK-630 six-barreled anti-aircraft guns;
- 2 RBU-6000 (depth bomb 192);
- 2 RBU-1000 (depth bomb 48);
- 2х5 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm;
- anti-submarine helicopter Ka-25PL, deck hangar.
A series of ten BOD, built in the period 1966 on 1977. for the Navy of the USSR. Just good ships, without any special frills. Provided the Soviet naval presence in the oceans, regularly served in the Atlantic, in the Indian and Pacific oceans. They rendered military-political support to “friendly” regimes, patrolled in zones of military conflicts, submarine strategic missile-carriers of the USSR Navy were brought to combat positions, provided combat training to the fleet, and took part in firing and naval exercises. In short, they did everything that a warship had to do during the Cold War.
Anti-submarine cruisers project 1123 (code "Condor")
Full displacement 15 000 tons. Crew 700 man. Full move 28 nodes. Range 6000 miles on 18 nodes.
Armament:
- air group of 14 helicopters: anti-submarine Ka-25PL, helicopters of long-range radar detection and targeting Ka-25TSU, search and rescue vehicles Ka-25PS.
- 4 helicopter pads, underdeck hangar, small hangar aft superstructure, two helicopter lifts;
- Anti-submarine missile complex "Whirlwind" (1 PU, 8 special ammunition with YABCh);
- 2 M-11 “Storm” launchers (96 missiles);
- 2 RBU-6000 (depth bomb 144);
- 2 universal automatic systems AK-725 57 caliber mm.
- initially the ship had a torpedo weapon and AK-30 anti-aircraft guns 230 mm (they were removed during the upgrade).
Anti-submarine cruisers "Moscow" and "Leningrad" were the first aircraft carriers (helicopter carriers) of the Navy of the USSR. The reason for the emergence of these large ships was the launch of American strategic missile-carriers of the George Washington type — the 16 ballistic missiles “Polaris A-1” with a range of 2200 km — pretty much frightened the Soviet leadership.
The result was a "hybrid" with powerful rocket armament, the entire aft part of which was a runway with a long underdeck hangar. To detect enemy submarines, in addition to X-NUMX Ka-14 helicopters, there was an Orion under-sonar sonar and a Vega hydroacoustic station on board.
The 1123 project is not BOD, but based on the purpose of the anti-submarine cruiser and its weapons, it has the right to occupy a place among the “big anti-submarine ships” like it - an extremely vague definition, covering different in size and characteristics of the ships of the Soviet Navy.
The main drawback of “Moscow” and “Leningrad” became clear already during the first combat services on anti-submarine lines. A total of 4 helicopter pads (flight deck space where take-off and landing operations can take place) and 14 helicopters turned out to be too small to provide a 24-hour anti-submarine patrol over a given area of the ocean. In addition, by the time the “Moscow” lead cruiser-helicopter carrier entered service, the US Navy had received a new ballistic missile “Polaris A-3” with a range of 4600 km — the Washington and Eten Allenov combat patrols had expanded, which made counteraction to strategic rocket carriers is even more challenging.
Anti-submarine cruisers served for nearly thirty years as part of the Soviet Navy, made numerous visits to the ports of friendly states ... Cuba, Angola, Yugoslavia, Yemen. The antisubmarine cruiser "Leningrad" was the flagship of the detachment of the ships of the USSR Navy during the mine clearance of the Suez Canal (1974 year).
Both cruisers were part of the Black Sea Fleet. “Leningrad” after two overhauls finished its service in 1991, and “Moscow” was put in reserve in 1983, and decommissioned - in 1997.
Patrol ships of the 1135 project (“Petrel” code)
The total displacement is 3200 tons. Crew 190 man. Full move 32 node. Range 4000 miles on 14 nodes.
Armament:
- “package” PU of the anti-submarine complex “Metel” (4 rocket-torpedoes);
- 2 short-range Osa-M SAM launchers (40 missile ammunition);
- 2 automated AK-726 automatic installations of 76 caliber mm;
- 2 RBU-6000 (depth bomb 96);
- eight torpedoes caliber 533 mm;
- sea mines - up to 20 pcs. on the upper deck.
A series of 32 sentry ships (up to 1977, were classified as BOD rank II) to solve a wide range of tasks in providing anti-submarine and air defense defense of ship connections in open sea areas and the littoral zone, escorting convoys in areas of local armed conflicts and protecting territorial waters.
The 1135 project differed from its predecessors not only in its elegant appearance, but also in its solid armament, the newest means of detecting enemy submarines, and its high level of automation — the Petrels brought anti-submarine defense to a new level. The successful design provided them with long active service in all the fleets of the Naval Forces of the USSR, and two of them still remain in the Russian Navy.
TFR "Petrel" and USS Yorktown (CG-48)
Objectively, due to the weakness of the air defense system and the absence of a helicopter, the Petrel lost by its capabilities to its famous peers, the American frigate Knox and Oliver H. Perry. But the circumstances were such that the US Navy remembers the “Petrel” much better than its “Knox” and “Perry” - in 1988, the patrol ship “Selfless” in a rough form drove the missile cruiser “Yorktown” from the Soviet territorial waters. The watchman broke the American boat and the launching boat and the Garpun anti-ship missile launching unit, broke the skin in the superstructure area, deformed the helipad, and demolished all guard rail on the port side.
Large anti-submarine ships of the project 1134-B (code "Bercut-B")
The total displacement is 8500 tons. Crew 430 man. Full move 32 node. Range 7000 miles on 18 nodes.
Armament:
- 8 PU anti-submarine missile system "Metel";
- 2 M-11 “Storm” launchers (80 missile ammunition);
- 2 short-range Osa-M SAM launchers (40 missile ammunition)
- 2 universal automatic artillery systems AK-726 caliber 76 mm;
- 2 battery AK-630 six-barreled anti-aircraft guns;
- 2 RBU-6000 (depth bomb 144);
- 2 RBU-1000 (depth bomb 48);
- 2х5 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm;
- anti-submarine helicopter Ka-25PL, deck hangar.
Constellation of seven large anti-submarine ships of the Soviet Navy. Large oceanic BOD with tremendous combat potential - anti-submarine missile torpedoes, four anti-aircraft missile complexes, universal and rapid-fire artillery, depth charges and anti-submarine helicopter. Outstanding seaworthiness, 6500 miles sailing range is enough to go from Murmansk to New York and back. “Boukari” (as they were affectionately called in the 1134-B fleet) were indeed the best BOD in the Soviet navy, the most balanced in performance and most fully meeting the tasks of the Navy.
Most of the BOD Ave 1134-B served in the Pacific. Reduced into several anti-submarine groups, the Boukari continuously “combed” the Philippine Sea, where the combat patrol area of American strategic submarines, which were preparing to launch a missile attack on the Far East and Siberia, was located.
There were big plans for the modernization of the BOD Ave. 1134-B - the modernization potential of the ships allowed to mount on board a new anti-submarine missile system "Rastrub-B" and even a long-range C-300 anti-aircraft complex! As an experiment, one of the BOD of this type - "Azov" received instead of the fodder SAM "Storm" two half-deck launchers and a fire control system SAM-C-300F - turned out great. In the future, the naval staff of the USSR Navy could replenish unique BOD, whose foreign counterparts would appear only after 10 years. But, alas ...
Large anti-submarine ships of the project 1155 (cipher "Remove")
The total displacement is 7500 tons. Crew 220 man. Full move 29 nodes. Range 5000 miles on 14 nodes.
Armament:
- 8 PU anti-submarine missile system "Rastrub-B";
- 8 underdeck launchers of the drum type ZRK Self-Defense "Dagger" (64 missile ammunition);
- 2 automated artillery guns caliber 100 mm;
- 2 battery AK-630 six-barreled anti-aircraft guns;
- 2 RBU-6000 (depth bomb 96)
- 2х4 torpedo tubes of caliber 533 mm
- 2 Ka-27PL helicopter, 2 hangar.
"Remove" was a mistake of the leadership of the Soviet Navy.
No, at first glance, the BNP 1155 Ave. is a real masterpiece of shipbuilding, equipped with the Polynom 700-ton sonar complex, the multi-channel Dagger air defense system to repel massive attacks of anti-ship missiles, two helicopters and a whole range of naval weapons - from universal artillery to self-guided torpedoes.
“Remove” would be an undoubted masterpiece ... if it were not for its predecessor - 1134-B. Compared with "Bukarem", BOD Ave 1155 was a step backwards.
Because of the 30-meter fairing GAS Polynom, the driving performance and seaworthiness of the new ship were severely affected - the complex was too heavy for a modest BOD. Of course, “Polynom” provided great opportunities in detecting enemy's submarines, which he spotted at a distance of up to 25 miles, which to some extent compensated for the deterioration in the navigable qualities of the “Demery”. But a much more serious disadvantage was the complete absence of medium-range or long-range air defense systems - the Dagger had a range of all 6,5 miles and could only fight with anti-ship missiles, but not with their carriers.
The rest of the BOD Ave. 1155 was a wonderful ship with a noble line of forecastle and powerful anti-submarine weapons. In total, before the collapse of the USSR, the fleet managed to get 12 large anti-submarine ships of this type.
In 90, only one BOD was built using the modified 11551 project - the only representative of this project, Admiral Chabanenko, retained all the advantages of 1155 Ave., but additionally received the AK-130 artillery system, Kortik anti-aircraft systems and Mosquito anti-ship missiles .
Conclusion
The above 90 large anti-submarine ships and anti-submarine cruisers are just the “tip of the iceberg” of the USSR Navy anti-submarine defense system. There was a whole base patrol aviation system with hundreds of anti-submarine aircraft and helicopters. The expanses of the ocean plied the usual trawlers with unusual trawls - camouflaged anti-submarine patrols with a multi-kilometer low-frequency antenna stretching behind the stern (try to prove that it wasn’t a trawl!) Patched many nerves of American sailors.
Were developed fantastic projects, such as the nuclear BOD project 1199 "Anchar". Moreover, all four heavy aircraft-carrying cruisers of the 1143 project carried on their decks a squadron of anti-submarine helicopters and had on board a solid complex of anti-submarine weapons (the grandiose SJSC Polynom and anti-submarine missiles Vortex with nuclear warheads). So, contrary to the well-known myth, during the passage through the Bosphorus, the Soviet sailors did not deceive the Turkish representatives at all by calling their aircraft-carrying cruisers anti-submarine ships.
By the way, the United States Navy developed according to exactly the same scenario - the Americans were dying to death of Soviet submarines, that's why they planned the ship composition of their fleet on the basis of “one frigate per Russian boat”. Worldwide sonar submarine tracking system SOSUS, the FRAMM program for converting hundreds of obsolete destroyers into anti-submarine ships, huge series of anti-submarine frigates “Knox” and “Oliver H. Perry”, unique destroyers of the “Spryens” type with hypertrophied anti-submarine weapons, but without systems zonal air defense - just the American "twins" BOD pr 1155 "Remove".
It remains to add that the idea of a “large anti-submarine ship” died with the advent of sea-based intercontinental ballistic missiles with a range of 10 000 km. From now on, strategic missile carriers could launch missiles from the territorial waters of their state.
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