Russian Navy's New Frigate - Admiral Gorshkov (Project 22350)

By IndraStra Global News Team

By IndraStra Global News Team

Cover Image Attribute: Admiral Gorshkov (Project 22350/Pennant Number:  417) / Source: TASS

On July 28, 2018, the day before its debut during the Naval Day parade, the Russian Navy (Flot Rossiyskoy Federatsii - ВМФ/VMF) commissioned the frigate Admiral Gorshkov (Project 22350/Pennant Number:  417)  - the successor of the Krivak-class (Project 1135 Burevestnik-class). According to Vice Admiral Viktor Bursuk, deputy chief of naval armaments, the navy intends to operate "four multi-purpose Gorshkov-class surface combatants for the purpose of patrolling off-shore maritime zone." The ship has been assigned to the Northern Fleet's 43rd Missile Ship Division, (home port -Severomorsk).

The lead ship is named after Admiral Sergey Gorshkov is the first in its class of new blue water frigates for the VMF, specially designed by Severnoye Design Bureau (also known as FSUE Severnoye PKB -SPKB) to execute long-range strikes, conduct anti-submarine warfare and to carry out escort missions. The design is based on the Talwar / Krivak IV-class frigate developed by Russia for India and incorporates stealth technology.

The keel of this ship was laid down on February 1, 2006, in Severnaya Verf Shipyard at St. Petersburg. In late October 2008 the Russian deputy prime minister, Sergei Ivanov, announced that the first ship in the class would be ready by 2011. The frigate was floated out of the launch dock on 29 October 2010. The ship was only 40 percent complete and then began to be fitted out. It has been undergoing builder sea trials since November 2014 with a first commissioning date initially set for November 2016. 

The first and second ships of Project 22350 ships – Admiral Gorshkov and Admiral Kasatonov – features combined diesel and gas (CODAG) M55R propulsion plants that consist of two Ukrainian Mashproekt-made DA91 (UTG15000+) gas turbines, two Russian Kolomna-made 10D49 diesel engines, and a Ukrainian Mashproekt-made P055 reduction gear assembly.

Image Attribute: DA91 gas turbine of M55R propulsion system/ Source: Zorya-Mashproekt

Following the 2014 Crimean crisis, Russia developed its CODAG turbine engine - M90FR at an accelerated pace at the Rybinsk facility of JSC NPO Saturn (Under Import Replacement Framework) when Ukrainian company Zorya-Mashproekt, Mykolaiv-based research, and production complex that specializes in a gas turbine manufacturing, refused to supply its DA91 engines for M55R propulsion system of Project 22350 (3rd ship onwards).

Image Attribute: M90FR - a combined diesel and gas (CODAG) turbine engine / Source: JSC NPO Saturn/TASS

However, this new engine will be delivered to the shipyard (by the end of 2018) for the installation in Admiral Golovko (3rd ship of its class) and the Admiral Isakov  (4th ship of its class) frigates of Project 22350 and onwards.

The Admiral Gorshkov has a full displacement of 4,500 tonnes (some experts speculates it to be 5,400 tonnes) and is 135 meters long and 16 meters wide, and a draft of 4.5 m. Frigates of its class will be armed with the 130-mm A-192 Armat shipborne gun mount, 16 launchers of anti-ship missiles 3M55 Onyx or 3M-54/3M-14 Kalibr-NKE anti-ship missiles/surface attack missiles, the 9K96 Poliment-Redut naval air defense system, an RPK-9 anti-submarine rocket launcher, and two 3M89 Palash close-in weapon systems. It is fitted with 3D air search radars, Puma fire control radars and sonar suites with hull-mounted LF sonar and LF VDS sonar. Also, equipped with Garpun-BAL SSM targeting and SAM control systems. The frigate also carries a Ka-27PL anti-submarine helicopter. The ship's M55R CODAG propulsion system (which includes one of the turbine engines - DA91, procured from Ukraine before the Crimean crisis) produces a maximum speed of 30 kt with an operational range of up to 4,500 nautical miles, and endurance up to 30 days. It will accommodate a crew size from 180 to 200.

In total, Severnaya Verf shipyard must build six Project 22350 ships. The series completion was put off to 2025. However, according to Jane's, an anonymous source reported to hat the SPKB started design work on the upgraded Project 22350M frigate in 2018. "The navy is planning to build a larger series of modernized [Project 22350] ships and to receive the first upgraded frigate in 2026," the source said.

According to the sources, sea trials of the second Project 22350 frigate, Admiral Kasatonov, are scheduled for late 2018.

Image Attribute: Admiral Gorshkov (Project 22350/Pennant Number:  417) / Source: TASS

With reporting by Jane's, Navy Recognition, and TASS