The Kresta II class, Soviet designation Project 1134A Berkut A (

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), was a class of

guided missile cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to s ...

(large anti-submarine warfare ship in Soviet classification) built by the

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for the

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. The NATO lists the class as "cruisers" mainly due to the Metel (SS-N-14 ''Silex'') anti-ship missile system capable to strike not only submarines but also surface vessels. They were succeeded by the larger Kara class cruisers.

Design

The Kresta II class was an anti-submarine derivative of the , and were armed with a new anti-submarine missile (

SS-N-14 The ''Metel'' Anti-Ship Complex ( 'Snowstorm'; NATO reporting name: SS-N-14 Silex) is a Soviet family of anti-submarine missiles. There are different anti-submarine variants ('Metel') for cruisers and frigates, and a later version with a shaped ch ...

), new

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s ( SA-N-3) and advanced sonar. Conway's states that the first three ships were to have been armed with the SS-N-9 anti-ship missile but Soviet naval doctrine changed with greater emphasis on anti-submarine warfare. The surface-to-air missiles comprised more advanced SA-N-3 missiles with two twin launchers. New 3D search radar and new fire control radars were also fitted. 4 30mm

CIWS A close-in weapon system (CIWS ) is a point-defense weapon system for detecting and destroying short-range incoming missiles and enemy aircraft which have penetrated the outer defenses, typically mounted on a naval ship. Nearly all classes of ...

guns were also fitted for improved anti-missile defence. A more advanced sonar led to the bow being more sharply raked. The machinery suite comprised two TV-12 steam turbines with high-pressure boilers, identical to the Kresta I class.

General characteristics

The Kresta II-class cruisers were long with a beam of and a draught of . They displaced 6000 tons standard and 7800 full load. They had a complement of 380-400 and were equipped with a hangar aft to stow away a

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Hormone-A helicopter. Kresta II-class vessels were propelled by two TV-12 steam geared turbines powered by four high pressure boilers which created . This gave the cruisers a maximum speed of . They had a range of at and at .

Armament

For their primary role as anti-submarine cruisers, the Kresta II class mounted two quadruple launchers for eight SS-N-14 anti-submarine missiles. They were also equipped with two RBU 6000 12-barrel and two RBU 1000 6-barrel rocket launchers. The Ka-25 helicopter embarked on the cruiser was also capable of aiding in the search and destruction of submarines. Against aerial threats the cruisers were armed with four 57mm L/80 DP guns situated in two twin mountings. They also had four 30mm AK-630 CIWS mountings. They were armed with two twin launchers for the 48 SA-N-3 surface-to-air missiles they carried. The ships also mounted two quintuple mountings for dual-role torpedoes.

Sensors

The Kresta II class were equipped with MR600 air search radar MR-310 Angara Don navigational and Volga navigational radars. For anti-submarine warfare they had MG-322 hull mounted sonar. For fire control purposes they had Grom SA-N-3 fire control, MR103 AK725 fire control and Drakon RP33 fire control. They also had an MG-26 communications outfit and an MG-35 Shtil. The first four ships of the class to be completed were not equipped with the MR-123 Vympel fire control radar for the AK-630, and relied on manual targeting instead.

Ships

All the ships were built by the Zhdanov Shipyard in

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Notes

References

* * Also published as *

External links

Kresta Class - Project 1134
at

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website
article in Russian

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All Russian Kresta II Class Cruisers - Complete Ship List
{{Soviet and Russian ships after 1945 Cruiser classes Ships of the Soviet Navy Ship classes of the Russian Navy