Coastal Battery No. 981 named after K.E. Voroshilov on Russky Island
More than 30 years ago, during a command post exercise, I had the opportunity to stitch together a large map, approximately 2x2 meters, from several kilometer-sized maps. It depicted the outskirts of Vladivostok and Russky Island, along with various military installations. At that time, the map of Russky Island was literally studded with various symbols denoting the positions of military installations. Defense, radars, communication centers, command posts, long-term defensive structures, artillery At that time, five divisions of S-75M3, S-125M1, and S-300PS air defense systems, as well as several surveillance radars, were deployed on Russky Island alone. Another S-300PS division position was located on the eastern side of nearby Popov Island.
While working on the map, a senior comrade drew my attention to a feature located in the southeastern part of Russky Island, designated as an artillery battery. Considering that the map had several similar features marked with only a letter, I initially didn't understand how this position stood out from the others. Furthermore, given the nature of our air defense, coastal artillery designed to fire at enemy ships didn't hold much interest for me at the time. But given what my senior comrade had told me about this battery, I later wanted to see it for myself. However, this turned out to be no easy task. Until August 2012, transport links to Russky Island were difficult.
A night view of the bridge across the Golden Horn Bay
In July 2012, when I visited Vladivostok again, the cable-stayed bridges across the Golden Horn Bay and the Eastern Bosphorus Strait had not yet been commissioned, and the only way to get to the island was by ferry.
View of the bridge across the Eastern Bosphorus Strait from Russky Island
But finally, the stars aligned, and in September 2025, I was able to realize my dream. My nephew Yaroslav played a significant role in this. Despite his relatively young age, thanks to his numerous talents, determination, and hard work, he now holds a responsible position at the Far Eastern Federal University, where the main events of the Eastern Economic Forum took place from September 3 to 6, 2025.
Hotel complex on the territory of the Far Eastern Federal University
Thanks to Yaroslav's kindness in providing us with transportation, we were able to travel freely around Russky Island, Vladivostok, and its environs. This allowed us to visit not only the Voroshilov Battery but also a number of other interesting places.
Construction of coastal battery No. 981
By the early 20th century, Vladivostok was the only ice-free port in the Far East with a rail link to the European part of the country, and its defense was given special attention. As of 1914, the city was well protected from land and sea. The Vladivostok Fortress comprised 16 forts, 18 fortified positions, and 50 coastal batteries. However, after the end of the Civil War, most of the defensive structures and all coastal batteries needed to be restored, leaving the city without protection from naval attack.
In the current international situation, it was obvious that a military clash between the Soviet Republic and Japan was extremely likely. And given that Vladivostok was the key point of Russian presence in the region, the Japanese fleet Sooner or later, the Japanese army could bombard the city with large-caliber artillery and land troops. After the Japanese army invaded Manchuria in 1931 and soon reached the land border with the USSR, the Soviet leadership decided to strengthen its defensive capabilities in the Far East.
As of 1931, the artillery batteries covering Vladivostok from the sea were primarily intended for anti-landing defense, and the available guns, in terms of range and projectile weight, could not compete with the artillery of Japanese battleships. Consequently, the Revolutionary Military Council decided to dramatically increase the firepower of coastal artillery in the Vladivostok area and improve its protection from enemy fire.
One of the key measures to strengthen Vladivostok's defenses was the construction of a 305-mm turret artillery battery on Russky Island, located west of Novik Bay, two kilometers from the island's southern shore. However, the 305-mm guns mounted in these turrets were neither the only nor the largest caliber of those covering Vladivostok from the sea. Soviet specialists quite reasonably believed that a stationary battery, the coordinates of which the enemy could obtain through human reconnaissance or aerial photography, was not invulnerable even given its high level of protection. Therefore, the Vladivostok Fortress's artillery included mobile railway guns, three of which were 356 mm caliber and three of 305 mm caliber.
The location for the 305mm turret artillery mounts was chosen very carefully, so that the flashes of gunfire from enemy ships during the daytime would not be visible, and the flashes would not allow the precise coordinates of the coastal battery to be determined.
The location of Battery No. 981 on Russky Island
Several sources state that the design and location of the battery were finally approved by K. Ye. Voroshilov, then People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs and Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR. For this reason, the battery was subsequently named after him.
The hill on which the battery was built does not dominate the landscape, and the sea is not visible from it. To counteract the ship's aircraft, which could conduct reconnaissance and adjust artillery fire by radio, anti-aircraft guns were planned to be positioned nearby. Furthermore, wells containing explosive charges were constructed around the battery. In the event of enemy shelling, these charges would detonate sequentially, simulating the explosions of enemy shells and misleading the pilots adjusting artillery fire.
Aerial view of coastal artillery battery No. 981
A significant factor in camouflaging the coastal battery was the frequent fog that obscured the firing position. This, however, did not interfere with firing at naval targets, as two command posts and four observation posts with optical rangefinders, connected to the batteries by cable, were located on well-ventilated, fog-free elevations. The main command post is located on Mount Vyatlina at an altitude of 107 meters (1575 meters from the towers), and the auxiliary post is on Mount Glavnaya (279 meters).
The core of the battery's firepower, numbered "981," consisted of two turrets with three 305-mm guns each from the battleship Mikhail Frunze (formerly Poltava), which had been severely damaged by fire and withdrawn from the fleet's combat complement.
Battleship Poltava
By 1934, most of the work involving rock cutting, construction of underground galleries, and concrete pouring was completed. Gun barrels and turret components were delivered to the island by barge. A railway was built from the pier on the shore of Novik Bay to the construction site to transport the multi-ton components and building materials. Machinery and metal structures were also transported across the ice using tractor-drawn sleds. Crushed stone and concrete production facilities were built near the construction site, also connected to the site by a railway line. Sand was mined in Kholuay Bay (now Ostrovnaya Bay).
The turret installation was completed between February and April 1934. The first firing practice took place in November 1934. Initially, the optical rangefinder was exposed. A protective armored cover was installed for it later.
Full combat readiness was achieved only in 1941, after the command posts were completed and equipped with Zeiss stereoscopic rangefinders housed in rotating armored turrets and VBK-1 periscopic sights, which were used to determine the direction of the target. The main command post housed an electromechanical computer that generated firing data in semiautomatic mode.
In addition, there were four observation posts with horizontal baseline rangefinders, which recorded shell splashes relative to the target's position. Each post was connected to the command post via cable, providing a live view of the battle. Target and splash coordinates were processed on a separate device—a direct course machine. Powerful searchlights were also installed in the southern and eastern parts of the island to illuminate targets at night.
In standard semiautomatic guidance mode, commands were transmitted to the guns via cable, and the gunners aligned the needles on the dials of the receiving instruments. The entire sighting and rangefinding system provided faster and more accurate firing data than on a ship, where it was necessary to take into account the ship's own speed, direction, and pitching.
The structure and tactical and technical characteristics of the Voroshilov battery
The rotating part of the turret mount, removed from the battleship and designated MB-3-12 after conversion, weighed approximately 950 tons. The mass of the entire structure was 1200 tons.
The turret rests on 144 steel balls at its base, and the mechanism itself is driven by electric motors. The entire structure is based on giant columns, around which are arranged the rooms and complex mechanisms used to lift ammunition to the guns and for traverse and elevation. The thickness of the turret block's plating is 2,8 meters, the front wall is 4 meters, the vault is 3,5 meters, and the side and rear walls are 1,5 meters.
The towers' underground floors are connected by a 250-meter-long deep-level tunnel equipped with blast-proof armored doors. Post-war, the tower installations were modernized and, in addition to an improved fire control system, were equipped with blast protection systems. weapons mass destruction.
The battery was connected to the island's centralized power grid, but also had its own backup diesel power plants and the ability to manually rotate the turrets—a task requiring the combined efforts of 10-12 men. The battery had its own 25-meter-deep artesian well, providing an independent water supply for the gunners. Each turret had a crew of 75 men, and the total number of personnel, including those providing life support, logistics, and security, could exceed 400.
For the turret crews directly involved in combat operations, the first underground floor had sleeping berths and lockers, dining areas, and service quarters for commanders.
On the middle level, equipped with a fire extinguishing system, there were charging cellars where 1200 propellant powder charges were stored in special zinc cases on shelves.
Three live semi-charges were used for firing, as well as an auxiliary charge designed to warm up the barrel before live firing in cold weather. The auxiliary charge was fired without a projectile.
In order to ensure explosion and fire safety, all those descending into the artillery cellars were required to hand over smoking accessories, matches, lighters and weapons.
On the third underground floor, 305-mm artillery shells of various types, up to 600 units, were stored on racks.
The supply of charges and shells, as well as loading of guns, were well mechanized by the standards of the early 20th century, which ensured a rate of fire of 1,5-2 rounds/min.
However, given the size and weight of the charges and shells, replenishing the ammunition load was a very difficult task.
The 305mm guns, located in the turrets, could be fired either one at a time or in a salvo.
All tower components and mechanisms are designed with a high degree of robustness, ensuring an enviable longevity. They still appear fully functional.
To increase the firing range, during the Soviet era, a 305-mm lightweight high-explosive shell of the 1928 model, weighing 314 kg and containing 55,2 kg of explosives, was introduced into the ammunition load.
A reinforced propellant propellant charge weighing 140 kg gave the lightweight projectile a muzzle velocity of 950 m/s and an effective range of up to 35 km. The projectile's flight altitude at maximum elevation at the highest point of its trajectory reached 11 km.
This firing range, combined with the 180-mm turret artillery mounts of coastal batteries No. 26 on Askold Island and No. 220 on the Gamov Peninsula, made it possible to reliably control the sea area on the approaches to Vladivostok.
During the training shooting, practice projectiles were used that did not contain explosives and whose initial velocity and weight corresponded to armor-piercing, semi-armor-piercing, and high-explosive projectiles of the 1911 model.
For communication during artillery fire, shockproof ship telephones STA1-2/A were used, allowing for negotiations at high levels of external noise.
The 305mm gun barrels were manufactured before the Revolution at the Obukhov Steel Foundry. Each barrel weighs over 50 tons and is 52 calibers long (15,850 mm).
The photograph clearly shows the dimensions of the 305mm gun barrel, next to which my wife is standing. Also impressive are the dimensions of the breech and breech of the 305mm guns, separated from each other by bulkheads inside the turret.
One of the 305mm gun barrels of the turret closest to the southern end of the island is fitted with a 45mm semi-automatic universal cannon 21-K, which is apparently intended for sighting and training purposes.
Until recently, these rare 45mm cannons were used on large warships of the Russian Navy as salute guns.
It's worth noting that most of the components and mechanisms of the turret artillery mounts are in very good condition. Also, the descriptions of the exhibits are free of any glaring omissions, as is often the case with other military-historical museums, and this speaks to the due attention of the staff of the Voroshilovskaya Battery museum complex and the high level of technical consultants.
Service of the coastal 305-mm turret artillery battery No. 981 named after K.E. Voroshilov
Soon after all command posts and observation posts, equipped with optical instruments, computers, and communications equipment, were operational and full wartime combat readiness was achieved, new gun barrels were installed. The old ones were removed and, after being lined, the spare barrels were stored in a recessed shelter near the turrets, where they remain to this day.
Considering that the enemy could use saboteurs to disable the coastal battery before the attack, a system of anti-landing and anti-sabotage defenses was constructed around the firing position, consisting of trenches and prefabricated reinforced concrete emplacements, and the barbed wire entanglements were electrified. The Voroshilov Battery was assigned a security battalion armed with 45mm cannons, light and heavy machine guns, and 82mm mortars. Defense against enemy aircraft was provided by an anti-aircraft battery armed with 37mm 61-K automatic cannons and quadruple 7,62mm machine guns. The turret mounts were carefully camouflaged. Simultaneously, a dummy battery with wooden turrets was established on the island.
During World War II, coastal artillerymen covering Vladivostok maintained a high level of combat readiness and were highly trained, regularly conducting training exercises. People's Commissar of the Navy N. G. Kuznetsov attended one such exercise in 1944. A moving target was hit by the first salvo.
Unlike Coastal Battery No. 30, located near Sevastopol, which was similar in composition, Battery No. 981 on Russky Island never fired at a real enemy. However, training and control firing exercises at the Voroshilov Battery were conducted regularly (the last time was in 1991). When the guns fired, the blast wave damaged the windows in nearby settlements, so the islanders were warned before the training exercises, and their windows were covered with mattresses.
After each firing, the personnel carried out maintenance and cleaning of the guns, which required considerable physical effort.
The first underground floor still contains equipment for cleaning gun barrels.
Fire control systems were gradually improved. In 1944, the optical rangefinders were supplemented with a British-made radar station, obtained through Lend-Lease. In 1945, the 981st Battery became the first in the entire Soviet coastal defense to conduct firing at an unobserved training naval target using radar guidance. In 1950, the Bolshevik Plant (formerly the Obukhov Plant) repaired the turret mounts. A major overhaul of the battery's electrical equipment was also carried out at the same time. Subsequent repairs of varying degrees were regularly carried out until 1991.
In 1951, the battery changed its name: it was renamed the 1561st Separate Artillery Division. In the 1950s, domestically produced Redan and Shkot radars were installed near the main command post. Soon after the death of I.V. Stalin, the battery was renamed again, this time to the 511th Turret Artillery Division, eliminating its security battalion and anti-aircraft cover.
In 1958, a reduction in personnel was carried out, and two years later, the turret mounts were mothballed, leaving only thirty men to guard them. Simultaneously, all railway batteries covering Vladivostok were disbanded, and the guns were scrapped. The same happened to all small- and medium-caliber coastal artillery. Large-caliber coastal artillery was also partially reduced. Only the Voroshilovskaya and several batteries with 180mm turret guns remained in mothballs.
In the 1960s, all coastal turret artillery mounts of the Pacific Fleet were slated for decommissioning, but after tensions with China worsened, they were reactivated. In 1965, the Voroshilov Battery was reactivated, underwent medium repairs, and was renamed the 122nd Turret Artillery Battalion.
In 1968, the command post received a new Zalp-B gun-guiding radar station, which significantly expanded the capabilities for detecting and firing at visually invisible surface targets.
In 1987, scenes from the film "Moonsund," based on Valentin Pikul's novel of the same name, were filmed at the firing position and inside the turrets. The sailors were played by Voroshilov Battery artillerymen dressed in pre-revolutionary uniforms.
Until the early 1990s, the equipment and training of personnel operating 305mm turret artillery mounts were high. The final firing tests, held in 1991, resulted in a "good" rating.
In the 1970s, consideration was given to radically enhancing the combat capabilities of 305mm coastal turret artillery mounts by introducing guided projectiles or rocket-assisted projectiles "with a special warhead" into their ammunition complement. However, these plans did not receive support from the naval command.
The last battery commander from 1991 to 1997 was Lieutenant Colonel G. E. Shabota, who organized the protection of the equipment entrusted to him from looters and put a lot of effort into organizing the museum.
A significant portion of the battery's infrastructure remains intact. The firing position with its turret mounts has become a museum. However, the main command post was looted, and the concrete structure of the post itself, along with the rangefinder unit and radar unit, remains in its place. On the searchlight platform at Cape Vyatlina, the personnel barracks remain, as do the searchlight installations themselves.
In 2017, a branch of Patriot Park opened near the battery's firing position. Unfortunately, the battery's historic appearance was damaged in the process.
Google Earth satellite image of the Voroshilov Battery Museum and Patriot Park branch. The image was taken in November 2024.
The site where military equipment and artillery pieces from the Patriot Park exhibit are now located was for a long time a large grassy clearing where tents for personnel were placed in the summer.
When the park was created, this clearing was filled with clay mixed with crushed rock, and then topped with concrete slabs. The niche housing the crane used to replace gun barrels was covered with a shooting gallery.
Artillery guns on display at the Patriot Park branch
While visiting the museum complex, I noticed that the Voroshilov Battery and the exhibits from the Patriot Park branch were of great interest not only to Russians but also to Chinese tourists. The Chinese citizens reacted enthusiastically to the museum exhibits, and I asked my nephew Yaroslav, who understands Chinese quite well, to translate what they were saying.
It turns out that Chinese tourists had a long and emotional discussion about whether it was possible to manually lower the barrel of a T-54 tank's gun, and if so, how low, and whether it would be possible to lock it in that position.
Despite the very reasonable price of an adult ticket (300 rubles), my overall impression of the Voroshilov Battery was positive. I can confidently say that there are very few military historical sites in our country that are preserved to such a high level of original authenticity.
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