''Ternopil'' (U209) is a Grisha-class anti-submarine corvette of 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 Ar ...

, In March 2014 the ship was captured by the Russian forces during the Crimean crisis.

History

''Ternopil'' is the 1124ME project ship ( NATO reporting name: Grisha V class, of the Soviet classification: ''Albatros''-class russian: Альбатрос). The Russian type designation is Small Anti-Submarine Ship. The Grisha-class anti-submarine ship is designed to search for and destroy enemy submarines found in coastal areas. They were equipped with a variety of ASW weapons and an

SA-N-4 The 9K33 ''Osa'' (, literally "wasp"; NATO reporting name SA-8 ''Gecko'') is a highly mobile, low-altitude, short-range tactical surface-to-air missile system developed in the Soviet Union in the 1960s and fielded in 1972. Its export version na ...

surface-to-air missile launcher. All were fitted with retractable fin stabilizers. The Grisha II class was built for the border guard. The Grisha V-class ships were built between 1985 and 2002. They incorporated further modifications with a single 76 mm gun replacing the twin 57 mm guns. Thirty ships were built. About 28 ships remain in the Russian Navy. Two ships — and ''Ternopil'' were built in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. ''Lutsk'' was launched on May 22, 1993, and ''Ternopil'' entered service on February 16, 2006, with the

Service

The corvette was laid down on April 23, 1991, at the Leninska Kuznya shipyard. The ship was launched on March 15, 2002. The corvette was moved from

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

Mykolaiv Mykolaiv ( uk, Миколаїв, ) is a city and municipality in Southern Ukraine, the administrative center of the Mykolaiv Oblast. Mykolaiv city, which provides Ukraine with access to the Black Sea, is the location of the most downriver brid ...

. The corvette was moved again to the port of

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

for trials testing. On February 15, 2006, an act was signed adding the ship to Ukrainian Navy; and the Ukrainian naval flag was raised on the ship on February 16, 2006. The first sea trip was the ship in late 2006 for

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Mission Oriented Training/MОТ. The Ukrainian crew practiced tactical episodes between May 25 and July 2007 while ''Ternopil'' took part in the

Active Endeavour anti-terrorist operation. ''Ternopil'' participated in Operation Active Endeavour regularly in 2008, 2009 and 2010. On March 20, 2014, the ship was captured by Russian forces during the Russian annexation of the Crimea. The ship scheduled to be handed back to Ukraine in May 2014. As of August 6, 2014 it was not; Russia suspended the return Ukrainian Navy materials from

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

to Ukraine proper ostensibly because Ukraine did not renew its unilaterally declared ceasefire on July 1, 2014 in the

War in Donbass War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular ...

. In 2016 it was reported that pieces from the ''Ternopil'' were being used to repair Russia's Black Sea Fleet.

References

External links

Photogallery of Ternopil
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ternopil (U209) Corvettes of the Ukrainian Navy Ships built at Kuznya na Rybalskomu 2002 ships Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation Vessels captured from the Ukrainian Navy Ternopil Ships involved in the Russo-Ukrainian War