The Project 23900 ''Ivan Rogov'' is the newest class of Russian
amphibious assault ship
An amphibious assault ship is a type of warship employed to land and support ground forces on enemy territory during an armed conflict. The design evolved from aircraft carriers converted for use as helicopter carriers (which, as a result, ar ...
s intended as a replacement for the French , two of which were ordered by Russia in 2011, but that France refused to deliver in September 2014 due to the
Russo-Ukrainian War
The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...
. A contract was signed on 22 May 2020 for the construction of two Project 23900 ships with a displacement of 40,000 tons.
The construction is led by
JSC Zelenodolsk Design Bureau, which is a part of
JSC Ak Bars Shipbuilding Corporation.
Previously, the Lavina (), and Priboy ()
designs were proposed by the
Nevskoe Design Bureau and
Krylov State Research Center as the replacement for ''Mistrals''.
Project 23900 is also a successor class to the unrealized Soviet
Project 11780 program.
History
Initially, the "Priboy" and "Lavina" helicopter carrier designs were first revealed in June 2015 during the "ARMY-2015" military-technical forum, as a replacement for the two undelivered ''Mistral''-class vessels ordered by Russia in 2011 under a $1.3 billion contract. However, due to the
international sanctions against Russia, the French refused to proceed with the delivery and the deal was suspended in 2015. France subsequently returned to Russia the deposit paid for the construction of the two vessels. Both vessels were later sold to the
Egyptian Navy
The Egyptian Navy (), also known as the Egyptian Naval Forces, is the maritime branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces. It is the largest navy in the Middle East as well as Africa, and is the twelfth largest (by the number of vessels) navy in the w ...
.
On 25 May 2017, Russian Deputy Defence Minister
Yury Borisov stated that the construction cycle of new Russian helicopter carrier would last at least four years and the first ship was projected to be completed by 2022.
In June 2017, Vice President of the
United Shipbuilding Corporation
JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC; , ОСК) is an open joint stock company in Russia which unites shipbuilding, repair and maintenance subsidiaries in western and northern Russia, and in the country's Far East, to streamline civilian ship ...
Igor Ponomarev said the "Priboy" helicopter carriers were implemented in Russia's New State Armament Programme for 2018–2025 and that the construction of the ships could be carried either by
Severnaya Verf
Severnaya Verf () is a major shipyard on in Saint Petersburg, Russia, producing naval and civilian ships. It was founded as a branch of the Putilov Plant in the late 1800s. Under the Soviets, the shipyard was generally known as Shipyard No. 19 ...
,
Baltic Shipyard
The OJSC Baltic Shipyard (''Baltiysky Zavod'', formerly Shipyard 189 named after Grigoriy Ordzhonikidze) () is one of the oldest shipyards in Russia and is part of United Shipbuilding Corporation today.
It is located in Saint Petersburg in th ...
or
Sevmash
JSC PO Sevmash () is a Russia, Russian joint-stock company (JSC) under the Vertical integration, vertically-integrated United Shipbuilding Corporation. The Shipyard, shipbuilding operations of Sevmash is in the port city of Severodvinsk on the Whi ...
.
In July 2017, a member of the Russia's
State Duma
The State Duma is the lower house of the Federal Assembly (Russia), Federal Assembly of Russia, with the upper house being the Federation Council (Russia), Federation Council. It was established by the Constitution of Russia, Constitution of t ...
Dmitry Belik announced, the lead ship of the class would be named ''Sevastopol'', after the city of
Sevastopol
Sevastopol ( ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea and a major port on the Black Sea. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important port and naval base th ...
. The cost for the ship is to be about RUB40 billion ($675 million),
and its construction would begin after approval of the New State Armament Programme for 2018-2025.
On 11 September 2019, it was reported that the first and second vessel of the class would be laid down in May 2020 at
Zaliv Shipyard,
Crimea
Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...
.
On 22 May 2020, according to a
TASS
The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide.
TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterpri ...
news agency report, the Russian Defence Ministry had signed a RUB100 billion deal for the construction of two universal landing ships, with construction to take place at the Zaliv Shipyard in Crimea.
, the two vessels had been projected to be delivered to the Russian Navy in 2026 and 2027, respectively.
On 20 July 2020, during the
keel laying
Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a shipbuilding, 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 l ...
ceremony, the names of the first two ships were officially revealed. The ships were named ''Ivan Rogov'' and ''Mitrofan Moskalenko'', the same as two already decommissioned vessels.
On 28 February 2021, it was reported that the shipbuilders had begun to build the hulls of the two future amphibious assault ships. It was also reported that construction was going on schedule, that the displacement of each of them would be 40,000 tons, and that the ships would have the capacity of up to four
Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik-B
The Sukhoi S-70 ''Okhotnik-B'' (), also referred to as ''Hunter-B'', is a Russian stealth heavy unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) that was being developed during the 2010s by Sukhoi and Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG. Several Test arti ...
drones, to both perform strike missions and to perform target designation for the hypersonic
Zircon
Zircon () is a mineral belonging to the group of nesosilicates and is a source of the metal zirconium. Its chemical name is zirconium(IV) silicate, and its corresponding chemical formula is Zr SiO4. An empirical formula showing some of th ...
missiles launched from other ships.
On 11 October 2021, it was reported that ''Mitrofan Moskalenko'' would become the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet. Infrastructure facilities initially intended for the second ''Mistral''-class vessel are being prepared in Sevastopol, scheduled to be ready by the time the ship is commissioned.
Design
"Lavina" was the first designation for the class, revealed at the «ARMY-2015» military-technical forum, and stands for the heavier variant designed by Krylov with a displacement of about 24,000 tons. "Priboy" used to refer to the lighter variant designed by Nevskoe, and displacing about 14,000 tons.
Based on images shown to
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
at a January 2020 exposition devoted to the future for the Russian Navy, the two Project 23900 ships ordered for 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 ...
appear to be a design derivative from the French , having similar architecture and dimensions. The Project 23900 will be even larger and displace about 40,000 tons.
On 20 July 2020, at the official ceremony for the laying down of the Project 23900, a computer-generated image was showcased to represent the warship. Based on that image, the design of Project 23900 looks like a hybrid between the Lavina and the ''Mistral''.
On 14 December 2021, it was reported that the Project 23900 ships will be able to carry strike and reconnaissance drones, which will greatly enhance the helicopter carriers' combat capabilities.
On 6 January 2022, it was reported that the amphibious assault ships will be armed with mine warfare unmanned surface vessels, which will detect, identify, and destroy sea mines. This will allow the vessels to operate independent from the support of minesweepers, allowing them to independently fulfill missions in blue waters.
On 20 June 2024, it was reported that ''Ivan Rogov'' will be ready for factory and sea trials by the end of 2027, and should be delivered to 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 ...
in Q3 2028.
Export
Krylov has also proposed an export version of the Priboy design, dubbed "Priboy-E".
Ships
Italics indicate estimates
See also
*
List of active Russian Navy ships
This list of active Russian Navy ships presents a picture which can never be fully agreed upon in the absence of greater data availability and a consistent standard for which ships are considered operational or not. The Soviet Navy, and the Rus ...
*
Future of the Russian Navy
References
{{Soviet and Russian ships after 1945
Helicopter carrier classes
Amphibious warfare vessel classes
Amphibious warfare vessels of the Russian Navy