The Project 58181 Centaur (''Kentavr'')/Project 58503 Centaur-LK
class is a series of small armored assault craft being built for the
Ukrainian Navy
The Military Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Військо́во-морські́ си́ли Збро́йних сил Украї́ни, ВМС ЗСУ) is the maritime forces of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Arme ...
. The first two vessels were laid down at the
Kuznya na Rybalskomu
Kuznia na Rybalskomu ( uk, "Кузня на Рибальському") is a ship building and arms industry, armament company in Kyiv, Ukraine. Situated on the Dnieper River and presently concentrating on river ships, the company is also able to ...
in December 2016. The 58181 project was developed by
State Research and Design Shipbuilding Center on the basis of the s, and the 58503 project number was assigned to the altered design used after construction of the first eight units began (by the contractor that oversaw their construction, PJSC ZLK.
Development and design
The project 58181 was developed by State Research and Design Shipbuilding Center on the basis of the s in 2015. However, it was refined during construction. The first contract was signed in 2016.
On September 4, 2018, the first launching ceremony for the first boat of the first series was held. The boat was already built on a revised project, which received new project number 58503 and the code «Centaur-LK». On September 20, the second boat of the series was launched. On November 19, 2018, newly built assault boats arrived to Odessa to continue testing. The top speed of 50 knots is achieved by a pair of New Zealand-made Hamilton Jet
Sir Charles William Feilden Hamilton (26 July 1899 – 30 March 1978) was a New Zealand engineer who developed the modern jetboat, and founded the water jet manufacturing company, CWF Hamilton Ltd.
Hamilton never claimed to have invented the je ...
water jet propulsion engines and can stay at sea for a maximum of five days. The class is armed with two remote weapon stations with 12.7 mm high-caliber machine guns and a 40-mm rocket launcher. The boats also feature two 80-mm rocket-launch systems.
Failure of the first two units of «Centaur-LK» led to a criminal conviction, the halting of construction of future units (besides the third), and the Ukrainian Navy
The Military Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Військо́во-морські́ си́ли Збро́йних сил Украї́ни, ВМС ЗСУ) is the maritime forces of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Arme ...
's decision not to include the first two craft in its active combat fleet. As of 6 February 2022, they had not yet joined its active combat fleet.Taras Chmut
Taras Mykolaiovych Chmut ( uk, Тарас Миколайович Чмут; born 13 October 1991) is a Ukrainian sergeant, volunteer, and military analyst who has worked as the head of the Come Back Alive charity since 2020. He previously serve ...
's reporting, they were accepted into active service.
Deployment
On 8 May 2022, Russian Defence Ministry claimed, that the lead vessel of the class, DSHK-1 ''Stanislav'', was destroyed near the Russian-controlled Snake Island.
Vessels
Gallery
File:Centaur-class fast assault craft.png
See also
*
* Multipurpose Assault Craft
The Multi-Purpose Assault Craft (MPAC) is a type of fast attack assault craft developed for the Philippine Navy. Originally designed to transport troops at a high speed and then land them on the beach, they have since expanded their roles to in ...
* List of active Ukrainian Navy ships
This is a list of vessels used by Ukrainian Navy. It includes main naval ships and cutters which are in service or were recently unlisted in the Ukrainian Navy as well as the auxiliary fleet, and lists ships' project numbers where a written cl ...
Notes
References
External links
Fast assault craft “Kentavr”
at the State Research and Design Shipbuilding Center
*
{{Ukrainian ships
Ships built at Kuznya na Rybalskomu
Patrol vessels of the Ukrainian Navy
Military boats
Landing craft