''Neustrashimy'' (also transliterated ''Neustrashimyy'', russian: link=no, italic=yes, Неустрашимый, lit. "dauntless" or "fearless") is the

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

of the (Russian designation Project 11540 Yastreb) of the Russian Navy's

Baltic Fleet , image = Great emblem of the Baltic fleet.svg , image_size = 150 , caption = Baltic Fleet Great ensign , dates = 18 May 1703 – present , country = , allegiance = (1703–1721) (1721–1917) (1917–1922) (1922–1991)(1991–present) ...

Design and description

''Neustrashimy'' is

long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and ...

and at the waterline, with a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

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 th ...

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 wei ...

, the ship's power is provided by two M90 and two M70

gas turbine A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directi ...

s arranged in a combined gas turbine and gas turbine (COGAG) installation, driving two fixed-pitch

propeller A propeller (colloquially 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 ...

s. Her maximum speed is and range of at . The ship's complement is 210, including 35 officers. ''Neustrashimy'' is armed with one A-190E gun. Defence against aircraft are provided by thirty two 3K95 Kinzhal (SA-N-9 'Gauntlet')

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 ...

s launched from four octuple

vertical launching system A vertical launching system (VLS) is an advanced system for holding and firing missiles on mobile naval platforms, such as surface ships and submarines. Each vertical launch system consists of a number of ''cells'', which can hold one or mor ...

cells, and two Kashtan

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 ...

s, each consisted of two 30 mm AO-18K rotary cannons and two

9M311 The 2K22 Tunguska (russian: 2К22 "Тунгуска") is a Soviet and now Russian tracked self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon armed with a surface-to-air gun and missile system. It is designed to provide day and night protection for infantry and ...

-1 missile launchers with thirty two missiles each, four of which are ready-to-fire from the launcher. For anti-submarine warfare, the ship are equipped with a single

RBU-6000 The RBU-6000 Smerch-2 (Реактивно-Бомбовая Установка, ''Reaktivno-Bombovaja Ustanovka''; reaction engine-bomb installation & Смерч; waterspout) is a 213 mm caliber Soviet Union, Soviet anti-submarine weapon, a ...

''Smerch-2'' 12-barrel

anti-submarine rocket An anti-submarine missile is a standoff anti-submarine weapon. Often a variant of anti-ship missile designs, an anti-submarine systems typically use a jet or rocket engine, to deliver an explosive warhead aimed directly at a submarine, a depth ...

launcher and six (three on each sides) fixed-mounted torpedo launchers, which could launch

RPK-2 Vyuga The RPK-2 Vyuga (, ''blizzard''; NATO reporting name: SS-N-15 Starfish), also designated as 81R, is a Soviet submarine-launched, nuclear-armed anti-submarine missile system, launched exclusively through torpedo tubes. The system was designed in ...

(SS-N-15 'Starfish') or RPK-6 Vodopad (SS-N-16 'Stallion') anti-submarine missiles and 53-65K wake homing or SET-65 anti-submarine homing torpedoes. The ship also has provisions of two

naval mines A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any v ...

rails. The ship electronic and sensor suites includes ''Tron'' and ''Diplomant'' combat management systems, MR-750 ''Fregat-MA'' air

search radar This is a list of different types of radar. Detection and search radars Search radars scan great volumes of space with pulses of short radio waves. They typically scan the volume two to four times a minute. The waves are usually less than a meter ...

, MR-352 ''Positiv'' air/surface search radar, two ''Nayada-1''

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 ...

s, MP-405-1 ''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 ac ...

(ESM) system, MP-407 electronic countermeasure, and ''Spektr-F'' laser intercept. The frigate has MGK-365 ''Zvezda-1M'' sonar suite, consisted of hull-mounted active/passive sonar and

variable depth sonar A towed array sonar is a system of hydrophones towed behind a submarine or a surface ship on a cable. Trailing the hydrophones behind the vessel, on a cable that can be kilometers long, keeps the array's sensors away from the ship's own noise sour ...

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-145 ''Lev'' radar for the 100 mm gun and 3R95 radar for the 3K95 Kinzhal (SA-N-9 'Gauntlet') missiles. The vessel was also equipped with two PK-16 and six PK-10 decoy-dispenser system which used

chaff Chaff (; ) is the dry, scaly protective casing of the seeds of cereal grains or similar fine, dry, scaly plant material (such as scaly parts of flowers or finely chopped straw). Chaff is indigestible by humans, but livestock can eat it. In agri ...

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-armed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), ...

. The frigate has a helicopter hangar, flight deck and carried a

Kamov Ka-27 The Kamov Ka-27 (NATO reporting name 'Helix') is a military helicopter developed for the Soviet Navy, and currently in service in various countries including Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam, China, South Korea, and India. Variants include the Ka-29 ...

PL anti-submarine helicopter.

Construction and career

Her keel was laid on 25 or 27 March 1987 with

yard number __NOTOC__ M ...

401 at the

Yantar Shipyard Yantar Shipyard (russian: Прибалтийский судостроительный завод «Янтарь») is a Russian shipbuilding company based in Kaliningrad, Russia. Yantar Shipyard builds military ships, including antisubmarine and ...

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...

. The ship was launched on 25 May 1988. The frigate was completed on 28 December 1990 and started sea trials in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

at that month. ''Neustrashimy'' was commissioned to the

of Russian Navy on 24 January 1993. The ship is based at

Baltiysk Baltiysk (russian: Балти́йск; german: Pillau; Old Prussian: ''Pillawa''; pl, Piława; lt, Piliava; Yiddish: פּילאַווע, ''Pilave'') is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District in Kaliningrad Oblast, Ru ...

. ''Neustrashimy'' made a friendly visit to

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...

, Germany for the occasion of 100th anniversary of the

Kiel Canal The Kiel Canal (german: Nord-Ostsee-Kanal, literally "North- oEast alticSea canal", formerly known as the ) is a long freshwater canal in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. The canal was finished in 1895, but later widened, and links the N ...

. She participated in numerous joint exercise with the European navies in the 2000s. The ship paid a visit to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 2003 in conjunction with President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

visit to the city. In late September 2008, ''Neustrashimy'' left the

and was sent to the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden ( ar, خليج عدن, so, Gacanka Cadmeed 𐒅𐒖𐒐𐒕𐒌 𐒋𐒖𐒆𐒗𐒒) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Channe ...

waters off the Somali coast to fight piracy in the region. Russian navy spokesman Captain Igor Dygalo told the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

that the missile frigate ''Neustrashimy'' had left the Baltic Sea port of Baltiisk a day before the hijacking to cooperate with other unspecified countries in anti-piracy efforts. As of 27 October, the frigate was operating independently in the vicinity of a group of

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 ...

warships near the Somali coast. On 11 November, ''Neustrashimy'' helped capture suspected pirates along with

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

from ; the suspected pirates had been attempting to board the merchant vessel . On 16 November 2008, the frigate prevented pirates from capturing the Saudi Arabian ship . From 2014 ''Neustrashimy'' was in overhaul with the deadline for the completion of her refit having passed on several occasions, partly due to the problem of acquiring parts for her Ukrainian-made engines. However, the ship completed her refit in December 2021 and is scheduled to return to the fleet in April 2022. Post-refit sea trials were underway as of February 2022. In July, ''Neustrashimy'' was reported to have fired the SA-N-9 air defence missile during its tests at sea. The ship completed post-refit sea trials and rejoined the fleet in April 2023.https://armstrade.org/includes/periodics/news/2023/0419/094072721/detail.shtml

References

Citations

Bibliography

* *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neustrashimy, 1988 1988 ships Neustrashimyy-class frigates Ships built at Yantar Shipyard