''Pyotr Morgunov'' () is an

landing ship An amphibious warfare ship (or amphib) is an amphibious vehicle warship employed to land and support ground forces, such as marines, on enemy territory during an amphibious assault. Specialized shipping can be divided into two types, most crud ...

of the

Russian Navy The Russian Navy is the Navy, naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It has existed in various forms since 1696. Its present iteration was formed in January 1992 when it succeeded the Navy of the Commonwealth of Independent States (which had i ...

. The second of the class after her

sister ship A sister ship is a ship of the same Ship class, class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They o ...

''Ivan Gren'', ''Pyotr Morgunov'' was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...

in 2015, launched in 2018, and commissioned in 2020. She was assigned to the

Northern Fleet The Northern Fleet (, ''Severnyy flot'') is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Arctic. According to the Russian ministry of defence: "The Northern Fleet dates its history back to a squadron created in 1733 to protect the terri ...

's 121st Landing Ship Brigade. In January 2022, she sailed with several other landing ships to the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

, shortly before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. She has since been based in the Black Sea.

Design

The ''Ivan Gren''-class landing ships, designated Project 11711 by the Russian Navy, were designed by the to replace the

Soviet-era The history of the Soviet Union (USSR) (1922–91) began with the ideals of the Russian Bolshevik Revolution and ended in dissolution amidst economic collapse and political disintegration. Established in 1922 following the Russian Civil War, ...

and large landing ships. The ships, a development of the Project 1171 Tapir design, are intended to land troops and transport military equipment over a range of . The ships can carry up to 300 troops, or 13

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

s, or 35

armoured personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Acc ...

s or

infantry fighting vehicle An infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), also known as a mechanized infantry combat vehicle (MICV), is a type of armoured fighting vehicle and armoured personnel carrier used to carry infantry into battle and provide direct fire, direct-fire suppo ...

s. The ships also carry Ka-29 transport-attack helicopters.

Construction and commissioning

''Pyotr Morgunov'' was the second ''Ivan Gren''-class landing ship to be built, being ordered by

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

in September 2014, and

at the

Yantar Shipyard Yantar Shipyard () is a Russian shipbuilding company based in Kaliningrad, Russia. Yantar Shipyard builds military ships, including antisubmarine and patrol craft, as well as civil vessels such as fishing trawlers and seiners. It is a part of th ...

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...

on 11 June 2015. Work on her

, , laid down in 2004, was delayed for a number of years, only being launched in 2014. ''Pyotr Morgunov'' was scheduled for delivery in 2018, but this was also delayed.

Sea trial A sea trial or trial trip is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a "shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on op ...

s began on 13 December 2019, with the ship returning to the Yantar yard in late March 2020 for further work. She resumed trials in late May 2020, which were completed on 13 November. She was commissioned into the navy on 23 December 2020 in a ceremony attended by Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov. She was named in honour of Lieutenant-General Pyotr Morgunov, a coastal defence commander of the

Soviet Navy The Soviet Navy was the naval warfare Military, uniform service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy made up a large part of the Soviet Union's strategic planning in the event of a conflict with t ...

who distinguished himself during the Siege of Sevastopol in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Service

On commissioning under her first commander,

Captain 2nd rank Captain 2nd rank () is a rank used by the Russian Navy and a number of List of communist states#Former communist states, former communist states. The rank is the middle rank in the staff officer's career group. The rank is equivalent to lieutenant c ...

Vyacheslav Solovyov, ''Pyotr Morgunov'' was assigned to the

's 121st Landing Ship Brigade. She arrived at her

homeport A vessel's home port is the port at which it is based, which may not be the same as its port of registry shown on its registration documents and lettered on the stern of the ship's hull. In the cruise industry the term "home port" is also oft ...

Severomorsk Severomorsk (), known as Vayenga () until 18 April 1951, is a closed city, closed types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Murmansk Oblast, Russia. Severomorsk is the main administrative base of the Russian Northern Fleet. The town is sit ...

on 30 January. In mid-January ''Pyotr Morgunov'' and two other Northern Fleet landing ships, the Ropucha-class vessels and , set sail for the Mediterranean Sea. En route they joined up with three Ropucha-class vessels sailing from the

Baltic Fleet The Baltic Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Baltic Sea. Established 18 May 1703, under Tsar Peter the Great as part of the Imperial Russian Navy, the Baltic Fleet is the oldest Russian fleet. In 1918, the fleet w ...

, , , and . The six ships were shadowed on their voyage by

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

vessels, including as they passed through the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

by and . After calling at the Tartus naval base for replenishment, the ships entered the

, nominally for exercises with the

Black Sea Fleet The Black Sea Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea. The Black Sea Fleet, along with other Russian ground and air forces on the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula, are subordin ...

. '' The Barents Observer'' reported that the ships were heavily loaded and low in the water, and carrying equipment and troops from the Northern Fleet’s elite forces. ''Pyotr Morgunov'' was deployed in the Black Sea during the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

. She was at times in port at

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk (, ; ) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities designated by the Soviet Union as a Hero City. The population was History In antiquity, the shores of the ...

, and may have been used to ferry supplies and equipment across the

Kerch Strait The Kerch Strait is a strait in Eastern Europe. It connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, separating the Kerch Peninsula of Crimea in the west from the Taman Peninsula of Russia's Krasnodar Krai in the east. The strait is to wide and up ...

following the July 2023 attack on the

Crimean Bridge The Crimean Bridge (, ; ), also called Kerch Strait Bridge or Kerch Bridge, is a pair of parallel bridges, one for a four-lane road and one for a double-track railway, spanning the Kerch Strait between the Taman Peninsula of Krasnodar Krai in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pyotr Morgunov Ivan Gren-class landing ships Amphibious warfare vessels of the Russian Navy 2018 ships Ships built at Yantar Shipyard