''Menzhinskiy'' (also transliterated ''Menzhinsky'', ) was the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships that are all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very comple ...

of Project 11351 Nerey-class

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

(

NATO reporting name NATO uses a system of code names, called reporting names, to denote military aircraft and other equipment used by post-Soviet states, former Warsaw Pact countries, China, and other countries. The system assists military communications by providi ...

Krivak III) of the

Soviet Border Troops The Soviet Border Troops () were the border guard of the Soviet Union, subordinated to the Soviet state security agency: first to the ''Cheka''/State Political Directorate, OGPU, then to NKVD/Ministry for State Security (USSR), MGB and, final ...

and later the Coast Guard of the Federal Security Service of Russia.

Design and description

''Menzhinskiy'' was one of nine Project 11351 ships launched between 1982 and 1992. Project 11351, the ''Nerey'' (, "

Nereus In Greek mythology, Nereus ( ; ) was the eldest son of Pontus (the Sea) and Gaia ( the Earth), with Pontus himself being a son of Gaia. Nereus and Doris became the parents of 50 daughters (the Nereids) and a son ( Nerites), with whom Nereus ...

") class, was the patrol version of the Project 1135 ''Burevestnik'' for the Soviet Maritime Border Troops. The ships were designated

Border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

Patrol Ship A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval ship, naval vessel generally designed for Coastal defence and fortification, coastal defence, Border control, border security, or law ...

(, PSKR) to reflect their role as patrol ships of the Border Troops. In comparison to other members of the class, Project 11351 ships has a helipad and hangar for a Kamov Ka-27PS search-and-rescue helicopter astern, in exchange to losing one 100 mm gun, one twin-arm surface-to-air missile launcher and the URPK-5 Rastrub (SS-N-14 'Silex') anti-ship missile launchers. NATO classified the vessels as 'Krivak III'-class

s. ''Menzhinskiy'' was long overall, with a beam of and a draught of . Displacing

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...

and

full load The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into weig ...

, the ship's power were provided by two DT59 and two DS71

gas turbine A gas turbine or gas turbine engine is a type of Internal combustion engine#Continuous combustion, continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas gene ...

s arranged in a

COGAG Combined gas turbine and gas turbine (COGAG) is a type of propulsion system for ships using two gas turbines connected to a single propeller shaft. A gearbox and clutches allow either of the turbines to drive the shaft or both of them combined. Ma ...

installation, driving two fixed-pitch

propeller A propeller (often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon a working flu ...

s. Design speed was and range at . The ship's complement was 192, including 31 officers.

Armament and sensors

''Menzhinskiy'' was armed with one AK-100 gun mounted forward of the bridge and two AK-630M

close-in weapon system 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 l ...

autocannons mounted on each side of the helicopter hangar. Defence against aircraft was provided by twenty 4K33 OSA-M (SA-N-4 'Gecko')

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 or the sea to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-ai ...

s which were launched from one set of twin-arm ZIF-122 launchers, mounted aft of the fore 100 mm gun. For anti-submarine warfare, the ship were equipped with a pair of

RBU-6000 The RBU-6000 Smerch-2 (Реактивно-Бомбовая Установка, ''Reaktivno-Bombovaja Ustanovka''; rocket-bomb installation & Смерч; waterspout) is a 213 mm caliber Soviet anti-submarine rocket launcher. The system enter ...

''Smerch-2'' 12-barrel anti-submarine rocket launchers and a pair of PTA-53-1135 quadruple launchers for

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

es, consisted of either 53-65K wake homing torpedo or SET-65 anti-submarine homing torpedo. The ship can also carry 16

naval mines A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are deposited and le ...

. The ship sensor suites includes ''Sapfir-U7'' combat management system, one ''Vaigach-Nayada''

navigation radar Radar navigation is the utilization of marine and aviation radar systems for vessel and aircraft navigation. When a craft is within radar range of land or special radar aids to navigation, the navigator can take distances and angular bearings ...

, and the MP-401 ''Start''

Electronic Support Measures In military telecommunications, electronic support (ES) or electronic support measures (ESM) gather intelligence through passive "listening" to electromagnetic radiations of military interest. They are an aspect of electronic warfare involving ...

(ESM) system. As with other Project 11351 ships, ''Menzhinskiy'' was supposed to be equipped with the more advanced MR-760 ''Fregat-MA'' air/surface radar, but due to delays the ship's radar was substituted with MR-310A ''Angara-A'' instead.

Fire control Fire control is the practice of reducing the heat output of a fire, reducing the area over which the fire exists, or suppressing or extinguishing the fire by depriving it of fuel, oxygen, or heat (see fire triangle). Fire prevention and control ...

for the guns consisted of MR-184 ''Lev'' radar for the 100 mm gun and ''Vympel-A'' radar for the 30 mm autocannons. An extensive

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...

complex was fitted, including the bow-mounted MGK-335S ''Platina-S'' and the towed-array MG-345 ''Bronza''. The vessel was also equipped with two PK-16 and two PK-10 decoy-dispenser system, which used

chaff Chaff (; ) is dry, scale-like plant material such as the protective seed casings of cereal grains, the scale-like parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw. Chaff cannot be digested by humans, but it may be fed to livestock, ploughed into soil ...

as a form of

missile defense Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception, and also the destruction of attacking missiles. Conceived as a defense against nuclear weapon, nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic mi ...

Construction and career

The frigate was the first ship of the class. The keel was laid on 14 August 1981 with

yard number The yard (symbol: yd) is an English unit of length in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement equalling 3 feet or 36 inches. Since 1959 it has been by international agreement standardized as exactly 0.9 ...

201 at the Zaliv Shipyard in

Kerch Kerch, also known as Keriç or Kerich, is a city of regional significance on the Kerch Peninsula in the east of Crimea. It has a population of Founded 2,600 years ago as the Colonies in antiquity#Greek colonies, ancient Greek colony Pantik ...

. The ship was launched on 31 December 1982. ''Menzhinskiy'' was commissioned to KGB Border Troops Naval Service on 29 December 1983. The ship was assigned to the 16th Sakhalinskaya Red Banner Separate Brigade of Border Patrol Ships in

Nakhodka Nakhodka ( rus, Нахо́дка, p=nɐˈxotkə, means "''finding''") is a port city in Primorsky Krai, Russia, located on the Trudny Peninsula jutting into the Nakhodka Bay of the Sea of Japan, about east of Vladivostok (169 kilometers by ...

, part of the Pacific Border District. From 6 September to 22 October 1984, ''Menzhinskiy'' sailed from

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 ...

to its assigned homeport in Nakhodka via

Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...

. ''Menzhinskiy'' was decommissioned in 1998 and was stricken from the coast guard in 2000. According to '' Jane's Fighting Ships 2015-2016'', the ship was extant and non-operational as of 2015.

References

External links

Project 11351 border patrol ship "Menzhinsky" Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Menzhinskiy, 1982 1982 ships Cold War frigates of the Soviet Union Krivak-class frigates Krivak-class frigates of the Border Guard Service of Russia Ships built at the Zalyv Shipbuilding yard Ships built in the Soviet Union

Design and description

Armament and sensors

Construction and career

References

Further reading

External links