The Polnocny (or Polnochny)-class ships are amphibious warfare vessels. They were designed in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

, in cooperation with the Soviet Navy and were built in Poland between 1967 and 2002. They now serve in several different navies, and some have been converted to civilian use. The name comes from the '' Stocznia Północna'' shipyard (Northern Shipyard) at

Gdańsk Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...

, where they were built. 107 were built by 1986 (last 16 by ''Stocznia Marynarki Wojennej'' (Naval Shipyard) at

Gdynia Gdynia ( ; ; german: Gdingen (currently), (1939–1945); csb, Gdiniô, , , ) is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With a population of 243,918, it is the 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in th ...

, Poland). In 2002, one ship of a modernised design NS-722 was built in Gdynia for

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the northeast an ...

Characteristics

The Polnocny-class ships are classified as medium landing ships in the Russian Navy, and are loosely equivalent to Western tank landing ships. They are equipped with a bow ramp that allows beach landings. The Polnocny-C version can carry 12 BMP-2 armored personnel carriers, or 4

Main Battle Tanks A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the role of armor-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more powerful engines, better suspension sy ...

, or 250 Infantry Soldiers with their weapons like 82 mm Mortars and ATGMs, or 250 tons of rations & stores. Unlike their Western counterparts, these ships can provide substantial fire support for landed troops with their onboard

multiple rocket launcher A multiple rocket launcher (MRL) or multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is a type of rocket artillery system that contains multiple launchers which are fixed to a single platform, and shoots its rocket ordnance in a fashion similar to a voll ...

s. Other armament consists of anti-aircraft guns and short-range

surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...

Variants

The Polnocny class comprises several sub-types that vary in size and capacity: *Polnocny-A (Project 770) (46 built): :Displacement: 800 tons full load :Length: 73 m :Speed: *Polnocny-B (Project 771) (36 built): :Displacement: 834 tons full load :Length: 73 m :Speed: *Polnocny-C (Project 773) (24 built) :Displacement: 1150 tons full load :Length: 81.3 m :Speed: *Modified Polnocny-C (Project 776) Amphibious Assault Command Ship (1 built - ORP Grunwald) :Displacement: 1253 tons full load :Length: 81.3 m :Speed: *Polnocny-D (Project 773U) (4 built) :Displacement: 1233 tons full load :Length: 81.3 m :Speed: :Aircraft facility: One helicopter platform *NS-722 class (1 built in 2002) :Displacement: 1,410 tons full load :Length: 88.7 m :Speed: :Aircraft facility: One helicopter platform

Operational service

Built in large quantities, the Polnocny-class ships were once the mainstay of the Soviet amphibious forces, and gave the

Soviet naval infantry The Russian Naval Infantry (MPR; ), often referred to as Russian Marines in the West, operate as the naval infantry of the Russian Navy. Established in 1705, they are capable of conducting amphibious operations as well as operating as more trad ...

an effective

force projection Power projection (or force projection or strength projection), in international relations, is the capacity of a Sovereign state, state to deploy and sustain #Power projection capabilities, forces outside its territory. The ability of a state to ...

capability. They were gradually phased out in favour of

hovercraft A hovercraft, also known as an air-cushion vehicle or ACV, is an amphibious craft capable of travelling over land, water, mud, ice, and other surfaces. Hovercraft use blowers to produce a large volume of air below the hull, or air cushion, ...

, and few remain active in the Russian Navy.

Current operators

* - 3 ships * - 1 Polnocny-B * - 2 Polnocny-A, 2 Polnocny-B * - 2 Polnocny-A (1 withdrawn from service, 1 operational ) * - 3 Polnocny-A * 4 Polnocny-D TOPAS 2AP TBiU 53 8

* - 2 Polnocny-C * - 3 Polnocny-B * - 1 Polnocny-C (originally incorrectly reported captured by Russia and moved to Novorossiysk; subsequently noted as still active in the Ukrainian navy as of June 3, 2022) * - 3 Polnocny-B * - 1 NS-722

Former operators

* * * * * * * *

References

* *Watts, A.J.(2006); ''Jane's warship recognition guide''; Collins; *Jarosław Ciślak; ''Polska Marynarka Wojenna 1995'' (Polish Navy 1995); Lampart, Warsaw 1995;

External links

www.globalsecurity.org

Bharat-rakshak.com

{{Ukrainian ships Amphibious warfare vessel classes Polnocny class landing ship Poland–Soviet Union relations Amphibious warfare vessels of the Polish Navy Amphibious warfare vessels of the Soviet Navy Amphibious warfare vessels of the Russian Navy Amphibious warfare vessels of the Indian Navy Amphibious warfare vessels of the Ukrainian Navy Ships built in Gdynia Naval ships built in Poland for export