Russian Navy, Pacific Fleet: composition, command. Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

The Russian armed forces consist of three types of troops: the Ground Forces, the Air Force and the Navy. This structure allows us to maximize the security of state borders and defend the interests of our country. In recent years, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation has placed special emphasis on the development of the Navy, and in particular the Pacific waters.

Definition

The Navy includes four military formations: the Baltic, Black Sea, Northern and Pacific fleets, as well as a flotilla on the Caspian Sea. Each of these paramilitary units performs many important tasks, the main one of which is ensuring the security of the borders of the Russian Federation.

For several decades now, ships of the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy have been permanently stationed in the Asia-Pacific region. All countries have long been accustomed to reckoning with the militarized naval forces of the Russian Federation, the territory of whose operational zone extends from the Arctic Ocean to the western borders of the Indian Ocean.

The Pacific Association is an operational-strategic association of the Russian Navy. It consists of surface and submarine ships, aviation, ground and coastal forces.

Russian Pacific Fleet: fifth most powerful in the Pacific Ocean

For Russia, the situation in the Far East is becoming catastrophic.
The Russian Pacific Fleet protects Russia’s interests in that region, which has already become the new economic center of the world and is very quickly becoming a military and political center. Due to purely geographical circumstances, in the event of war, it will be isolated from the other three Russian fleets. Moreover, within the Pacific Fleet itself the Primorsky and Kamchatka flotillas will be isolated from each other. At the same time, in the Far East itself, shipbuilding and ship repair are much less developed than in the European part of the country.

What does Russia have in the Pacific Fleet?

Today, the Pacific Fleet includes 3 nuclear missile submarines (RPK SN or SSBN) Project 667BDR (outdated and will soon be decommissioned), 5 SSGNs of Project 949A and SSNs of Project 971 (of which 3 are under repair or conservation), 8 diesel submarines Project 877, missile cruiser "Varyag" Project 1164 (nuclear missile cruiser "Admiral Lazarev" Project 1144 is mothballed and has no chance of leaving it), 1 destroyer Project 956 (3 more in mothballs with no chance for resuscitation), 4 large anti-submarine ships (BOD) Project 1155, 8 MPK Project 1124M, 4 small missile ships (MRK) Project 12341, 10 missile boats Project 12411, 9 minesweepers, 4 large landing ships (LDC) ( 1 extremely outdated project 1171, 2 project 775, 1 project 775M). Almost all of these ships were commissioned in the 1980s. No real renewal of the Pacific Fleet is expected, except for 1 corvette, Project 20380, a very unsuccessful ship in design, designed for export to developing countries, but for some reason imposed on the Russian Navy. In addition, apparently, it is at the Pacific Fleet that two French misunderstandings, known as the Mistral-type UDC, will be stuck. However, this is logical. The only conceivable purpose for these iron boxes in the Russian Navy is to use them as transport ships for transporting troops from Russia to Russia, i.e. from the mainland to the Kuril Islands.

Strike power of the US Pacific Fleet

Comparing the Russian Pacific Fleet with other fleets in the region produces an extremely difficult impression.

American nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George Washington in the port of Busan, South Korea. Photo: Jo Jung-ho/AP

If previously the US Atlantic and Pacific fleets were almost equal in strength down to the ship, now priority is given to the Pacific Fleet, which is expected to have at least 60% of the US Navy. Today, the US Pacific Fleet includes: submarines - 8 SSBNs and 2 Ohio-class SSGNs (SSBNs have 24 Trident-2 SLBMs each, SSBNs have 154 Tomahawk SLCMs each), 30 SSNs (24 Los Angeles-types, 3 Sea Wolf types, 3 Virginia types); 6 Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, 12 Taiconderoga-class cruisers, 33 Orly Burke-class destroyers, 8 Oliver Perry-class frigates, 5 UDCs (1 Tarawa-class, 4 Wasp-class), 5 amphibious helicopter carriers dock ships - DVKD (1 type "Austin", 4 types "San Antonio"), 6 landing transport docks - DTD (4 types "Whidbey Island", 2 types "Harpers Ferry"). The fleet is receiving new Virginia-class submarines, Orly Burke-class destroyers, San Antonio-class DVKDs, Los Angeles-class submarines and Oliver Perry-class frigates are being decommissioned, and the last Tarawa-class UDCs will be leaving in the near future. and DVKD type "Austin". The US Pacific Fleet has a gigantic strike potential, since all submarines, cruisers and destroyers are carriers of Tomahawk SLCMs. In addition, of the 5 cruisers and 16 destroyers of the US Navy capable of solving missile defense tasks, all but one cruiser are part of the Pacific Fleet.

The only rival of the Americans is the Chinese fleet

The only worthy adversary of the Americans in the Pacific Ocean today is the Chinese Navy.

The Chinese submarine fleet is the largest in the world. It includes: submarines - 5 SSBNs (1 project 092 and 4 project 094), 8 submarines (4 each of project 091 and 093) and at least 60 submarines (up to 10 project 041A, 8 project 636EM, 2 projects 636 and 877, 13 projects 039G, 5 projects 035G, 13 projects 035, up to 8 projects 033). All submarines and submarines of Project 041A, 636EM and 039G are armed with anti-ship missiles. The old submarines pr. 033 and 035 are being written off, instead of them submarines pr. 041A are being built, construction of the submarine pr. 095 and submarine pr. 043 has begun.

The aircraft carrier Liaoning (the failed Soviet Varyag) is attracting a lot of attention from outside observers. However, due to the unique design (a springboard instead of a catapult) and the virtual absence of carrier-based aircraft (so far there are only 4 J-15 aircraft), it will forever remain an experimental training ship, and not a full-fledged combat unit. Real aircraft carriers of their own construction will appear in China no earlier than in 10 years.

There are 25 destroyers in the PLA Navy: 2 Project 956, 2 Project 956EM, 3 Project 052С, 2 Project 052В, 2 Project 052, 2 Project 051С, 1 Project 051В, 2 Project 051 "Lyuida- 3", 1 project 051 "Lyuida-2" and 8 project 051 "Lyuida-1" (another ship of project 051 was transferred to the Coast Guard). All “Lyuids” are gradually being written off, and destroyers of Project 052C are being built to replace them (3 more units, i.e. there will be 6 in total). Starting from the 3rd ship of this series, they no longer carry Russian weapons systems. In particular, the S-300F air defense system with a revolver-type launcher was replaced by the NNQ-9 with a UVP.

The destroyer Harbin during Russian-Chinese exercises in the Yellow Sea. Photo: Xinhua/AP

At the same time, the construction of the “Chinese Aegis” began - destroyers Project 052D, which will carry a universal air defense system for 64 missiles of various classes (SLCM, anti-ship missiles, missile defense, anti-ship missiles). There will be at least 10 of them in the Chinese fleet (the first 4 are currently being built, 3 of which have already been launched). China will become the fourth country in the world (after the USA, Japan and the Republic of Korea) to have ships of this class. They will be able to be part of both aircraft carrier formations as escort ships and operational groups for independent operations in the open ocean, incl. at a considerable distance from the coast of the People's Republic of China, including striking coastal targets. This gives the PLA Navy a completely new quality that the Chinese fleet has never had in modern history.

The Chinese fleet now has 48 frigates: 15 Project 054A, 2 Project 054 and 31 Project 053 of six different modifications (10 Project 053N3, 4 Project 053N2G, 6 Project 053N1G, 3 Project 053N2, 6 Project 053N1, 2 project 053N). In addition, two old frigates of Project 053N were transferred to the Coast Guard, one frigate of the same project was converted into a landing support ship (armed with MLRS), one frigate of Project 053NT-N is used as a training frigate. Frigates of Project 053 of early modifications are gradually being decommissioned, ships of Project 054A are being built (at least 20 will be built in total).

Along with the traditional strike weapons for the PLA Navy (8 S-803 anti-ship missiles in container launchers), Project 054A ships became the first Chinese frigates to have adequate air defense for ships of this class: air defense for 32 HHQ-16 missiles (created on the basis of the Russian Shtil air defense system "). Thanks to this, these frigates will become universal escort ships that can be used to guard aircraft carriers near their shores and to reinforce destroyers in the open ocean. China already has the world's largest fleet of frigates. Obviously, their quantity will be maintained at about 50 units with constant improvement of their quality.

Traditionally, the “mosquito fleet” is very developed in China. Today it includes 119 missile boats (83 high-speed catamarans Project 022, 6 Project 037-II, 30 Project 037-IG) and up to 250 patrol boats. A definite sensation of the last year was the massive construction of Project 056 ships in China. Just a year ago, nothing was known about them at all. The first ship of this type was laid down in May 2012. Today, 6 such ships are in service, at least 10 are under construction or are being tested. The total number of ships in the series will certainly exceed 20 units (it can reach 50). This pace of construction has no analogues in post-war history in any country in the world. It is especially impressive given the fact that quite large ships are being built (displacement about 1.5 thousand tons, length 95 m). In China itself they are classified as frigates, in foreign sources - as corvettes. For comparison, we can say that in Russia, 3 units of corvettes Project 20380, similar in size, displacement and armament, were put into service in 12 years (the first one began to be built in 2001), i.e. The Chinese rate of commissioning of such ships is 24 (!) times higher than ours.

The amphibious forces of the PLA Navy are large, they include 3 DVKD Project 071, 30 large and up to 60 medium landing ships. Each DVKD can accommodate up to 800 marines and 50 armored vehicles, which can be transferred from ship to shore using the 4 hovercraft landing craft and 4 helicopters on board the DVKD.

It is also impossible not to note the unprecedentedly high capabilities of the Chinese shipbuilding industry, which it is now demonstrating. Currently, at shipyards and afloat, 6 destroyers, 4 frigates, at least 9 corvettes, as well as about 10 nuclear and diesel submarines and at least 1 DVKD are being built and completed simultaneously. at least 30 units of warships only. Such a pace of fleet construction is inaccessible even for the United States; there is simply no possibility of comparison with any other country.

Russia is not a competitor to the fleets of other Pacific countries

The Taiwanese Navy has fallen far behind the Chinese in recent years and has lost any real prospects of competition with it, however, its surface forces are very large. Taiwan's submarine fleet, consisting of 2 Dutch-built submarines from the 1980s and 2 American-built submarines from the 1940s, can be considered non-existent. As for the surface fleet, Taiwan has 4 American Kidd-class destroyers, 8 American Oliver Perry and Knox-class frigates, 6 French Lafayette-class frigates, about 90 missile corvettes and boats.

The Japanese Navy is one of the five strongest in the world. All their ships and submarines are built in the country itself, while their weapons are mainly American-made or manufactured in Japan under an American license. At the same time, Japan is directly involved in the development of the Standard ship-based missile defense system. The notorious US missile defense system is, in fact, mostly a myth. Its only really existing component is a naval one, based specifically on the “Standard” missile defense system of various modifications. And, in fact, it is not American, but American-Japanese.

A Japanese Kongo-class destroyer during US-Japanese exercises near the island of Kauai, Hawaii. Photo: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force / AP

The Japanese submarine fleet consists only of diesel (non-nuclear) submarines. Now it consists of 5 Soryu-class submarines (2 more are under construction), 11 Oyashio-class submarines, 1 Harushio-class submarine (3 more submarines of this type are used as training submarines).

All large surface ships of the Japanese Navy are classified as destroyers, which is quite strange in some cases. Among these destroyers, in addition to actual destroyers, there are aircraft carriers (helicopter carriers), cruisers and frigates.

"Destroyer" helicopter carriers - 2 ships of the Hyuga type and 2 of the Shirane type. If the Shirane destroyers are truly helicopter carriers, then the newest Hyugas are light aircraft carriers in size and architecture, capable of carrying up to 10 VTOL attack aircraft. However, Japan does not have such aircraft, so de facto these ships are also used as helicopter carriers.

“Destroyers” are essentially cruisers - 2 Atago-class ships and 4 Kongo-class ships. They are equipped with the Aegis system and, thanks to this, can be an integral part of the naval missile defense component.

Among the destroyers themselves, the most modern are three types of ships, which are actually three modifications of one project: 2 Akizuki type (2 more are under construction), 5 Takanami type, 9 Murasame type. There are also older destroyers: 6 Asagiri type (2 more are used as training ones), 5 Hatsuyuki type (3 more as training ones), 2 Hatakaze type.

Finally, “escort destroyers”, i.e. frigates - 6 ships of the Abukuma type.

The Japanese Navy also includes 6 Hayabusa-class missile boats, 28 minesweepers, and 3 Osumi-class motorized landing craft. The latter have significantly increased the landing capabilities of the Japanese fleet, but in general they remain very limited; the Navy and the Self-Defense Forces as a whole are unable to conduct serious landing operations.

The ROK Navy two decades ago consisted of American artillery destroyers built in the 1940s, its own mediocre Ulsan-class frigates, and hundreds of corvettes and patrol boats designed to fight the DPRK’s huge “mosquito fleet.” To date, the Republic of Korea has built an excellent ocean-going fleet, one of the ten strongest in the world, with very powerful strike capabilities and extremely strong air defense.

Thanks to cooperation with Germany, the Republic of Korea in a short period of time created from scratch one of the most powerful submarine fleets in the world, consisting of 9 submarines of Project 209 and 3 submarines of Project 214. In an equally short period of time, 12 destroyers of three modifications were built, the last of which (3 destroyers of the Sejong Daewan class) are, in fact, the most powerful non-aircraft carrier surface combat ships in the world. These ships, equipped with the Aegis system, are armed with 80 Standard missile launchers and 32 Hyunmu-3 SLCMs (comparable in performance characteristics to the Tomahawk, although they have a shorter flight range - 1.5 thousand km) and 16 PLUR "Red Shark", as well as 4x4 PU anti-ship missile missile system "Haesong". All of these missiles, except for the Standards, are of our own design, albeit with American influence. The construction of Incheon-class frigates has begun (there will be from 18 to 24, they will replace 9 Ulsanov), which will also be armed with up to 4 Hyunmu-3 SLCMs. 2 DVKDs of the “Dokdo” type have been built, superior in their performance characteristics to European ships of the same class, and 2 more similar ships are being built. At the same time, up to 100 patrol boats and corvettes remain in the Navy. New corvettes with missile weapons are being built.

If you go even further south, you cannot help but mention the Thai Navy. They consist of a light aircraft carrier, 8 frigates (2 American Knox type, 6 Chinese: 4 Project 053, 2 Naresuan type with Western weapons), 2 training frigates, 7 corvettes and 6 missile boats. Indonesia has 2 German submarines Project 209, 9 Dutch-built frigates (one of them was recently armed with the latest Russian Yakhont anti-ship missiles), 20 corvettes. The microscopic Singapore Navy includes 6 of the most modern submarines, frigates and corvettes. Finally, Australia has 6 Swedish-built Collins-class submarines and 12 frigates - 4 American Oliver Perry class and 8 of its own ANZAC class.

Thus, if the submarine forces of the Russian Pacific Fleet are at least among the top five strongest in the Pacific Ocean, then the surface forces are at the very end of the top ten with a chance of even falling out of it due to the rapid growth of the navies of Malaysia and Vietnam. Of course, not all of the countries from which we have lagged behind are likely opponents. However, the situation in the Far East is becoming catastrophic. Due to the geopolitical situation, the Pacific Fleet should definitely be the main one of our fleets. But he is the one who is completely out of control, and for some reason in Moscow this is considered the norm. All European fleets and flotillas are being renewed, at least little by little. The Pacific Fleet does not deserve this. All European fleets and flotillas in their theaters of operations are among the top three; the Pacific Fleet, as a whole, does not even make it into the top five. But Moscow doesn’t seem to care about this either.

Story

In the 17th century, the authorities of the Russian Empire first paid attention to the Pacific region. The discoverer of the Far Eastern seas is called the Cossack centurion Ivan Moskvitin; it was his team that found access to the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, formerly called the Great Lamskoye. After the first successful travels, several more research expeditions were organized, for example, the industrialist F.A. Popov was able to travel along the mouth of the Kolyma to Kamchatka and even to the Anadyr fort.

The Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy dates back to the 18th century, when Russia’s only shipbuilding port in the Far East was founded in Okhotsk, where the first warship “Vostok” was launched a little later. Thanks to the newly built base, it became much easier for researchers and industrialists to continue exploring the shores of the Far East and access to China and America. In 1721, the first map of these shores was compiled, and a few years later, by decree of Empress Anna Ioannovna, the Okhotsk military flotilla was officially formed here.

Combat history

At first, the activities of the newly created fleet were aimed at performing patrol duty, protecting newly discovered lands and ensuring the safety of fishing zones. It was also the permanent base for various types of research expeditions, including industrialists, traders and scientists. For example, two ships were built here on which Vitus Bering made his famous voyages and discoveries.

In the middle of the 18th century, the country's government finally realized the strategic importance of this region; the best ships and frigates of the empire were sent here, and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky became the main base of the fleet. For many years, warships in the Pacific region have performed critical combat missions. Thus, in 1900, the Russians took a direct part, together with other European powers, in suppressing an uprising in one of the provinces of China. The fleet suffered heavy losses during the Russo-Japanese War; at that time the enemy was better equipped and, moreover, acted suddenly.

In 1941, most of the equipment was redirected to the Northern Fleet to fight Nazi troops. And during the Cold War between the USA and the USSR, ships and submarines with a nuclear arsenal, at that moment located in this region, became a deterrent in the confrontation between the two world powers. Today, the ships of the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy, as well as other military equipment, including nuclear ones, provide round-the-clock protection of the interests of our country on the eastern borders.

The National Interest (USA): Russia's Pacific Fleet is becoming stronger. Here's why it's important

Last November, the Russian corvette Gromky underwent a series of various tests in the Sea of ​​Japan. This is already the seventh ship that will be built as part of the new Russian series of Steregushchiy-class ships, designed specifically for the Russian Pacific Fleet. The Russian Navy command announced plans to lay down a total of 13 corvettes of this class by 2021. In addition to surface ships, in order to support the Pacific Fleet, its underwater component will also be replenished with powerful ships. Last month, Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Nikolai Evmenov announced that six Project 636.3 diesel-electric submarines would soon join the Pacific Fleet, state media reported.

“In the near term, the submarine forces of the Pacific Fleet will be replenished with a series of six diesel-electric submarines of Project 636.3, being built at the Admiralty Shipyards in St. Petersburg,” says the congratulatory telegram from the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy on the occasion of the 289th anniversary of the Russian Pacific Fleet , reports TASS.

The submarines were modernized and equipped with new life support systems for operations in the Far East. The TASS news agency also reported that it is planned to further arm the submarine forces of the Pacific Fleet with 4th generation nuclear submarines, as well as to develop the coastal infrastructure for basing submarines.

“Modernization work on large anti-submarine ships of Project 1155 and multipurpose submarines of existing projects will continue,” Evmenov added. “The resource of these ships and submarines has a large modernization reserve, and it will be used.” Russia's military reforms have already achieved great success in the Russian Black Sea and Baltic fleets, as well as in the Caspian flotilla. In addition, several submarines and warships were sent to the Northern Fleet.

In a telegram sent to sailors on the occasion of Baltic Fleet Day, Evmenov said that the fighting forces had made "an invaluable contribution to the development of Russian naval weapons and naval art." He announced that the surface component of the Baltic Fleet will be replenished with a series of six small missile ships of Project 22800 (Karakurt class), and four of them will carry on board the naval version of the anti-aircraft missile and artillery system - Pantsir-M.

Project 22350 frigates and new Project 20386 corvettes, built at the Severnaya Verf enterprise in St. Petersburg, will become the basis of the Navy’s ocean-going fleet. It is unclear which of these vessels will be part of the Pacific Fleet, but it is clear that Russia intends to once again transform it into a highly effective and full-scale naval force capable of operating in ocean and coastal waters by the end of this decade.

Pacific Fleet today

After the collapse of the USSR, the Pacific Fleet, like the entire army of the new democratic state, found itself on the verge of collapse. The situation was complicated by the fact that all military installations were very far from Moscow, and local control was very weak. For several years, warships disappeared without a trace, were sold whole or in parts, and hundreds of criminal cases were opened against the highest and lowest ranks of the army based on the fact of theft.

Only in the last ten years, with the adoption by the government of a new vector for the development of the country's defense complex, the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy finally received new development. Every year the fleet is replenished with new modern units of military equipment. The training of personnel has also improved, as there are fewer conscripts and they have been replaced by professional military personnel.

Development plans

Despite the positive development trends, the current state of the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy does not allow us to speak with confidence about its full preparation for a possible enemy attack. Practice shows that even with current combat missions, some military units are not fully coping. Such as preventing attacks and combating sea pirates, escort operations, etc.

Therefore, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation and the Government of the country have developed a special program for the development of the navy, which is expected to be implemented before 2022. The update will primarily affect the technical equipment of the fleet; new units of military equipment will be put into service, including modern aircraft carriers, helicopter carriers and nuclear cruisers. The release of several new corvettes, six diesel submarines, three frigates and seven minesweepers is planned for 2024. There are also plans to modernize existing submarines with nuclear reactors.

Summary table for the Russian Navy 2022

Distribution of warships, submarines and combat boats by fleet:

Management

Since 2012, the commander of the Pacific Fleet has been Sergei Iosifovich Avakyants, born in 1958. He is a graduate of several prestigious naval institutions of higher education. He began his service in the North, and was later appointed chief of staff of the Black Sea Fleet. Since 2014, he has been awarded the rank of admiral. He has a number of state awards for excellent service and military merits. The Commander of the Pacific Fleet regularly inspects the progress of reforming the navy: training of personnel, construction of new military camps, and the condition of combat equipment.

Like other commanders of the fleets that are part of the Navy, S. I. Avakyants is directly subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral V. I. Korolev and his first deputy, Vice Admiral A. O. Volozhensky.

A strike group of new submarines armed with Caliber is being created in the Pacific Fleet, Japan is trembling

Photo: Social networks The crew of the Project 636.3 diesel-electric submarine Magadan is preparing for an inter-fleet passage from the Baltic to Vladivostok. This diesel-electric submarine will have a voyage of 23 thousand km. This submarine is the third in its class from a series that is being produced for the needs of the Pacific Fleet (Pacific Fleet). There will be six of them in total. Apparently, a brigade of Project 636.3 submarines with Caliber cruise missiles on board is being created there, intended for duty or combat operations in the Sea of ​​Japan and Okhotsk. This connection appears to be aimed strictly at Japan. Combat training is currently underway on the Magadan submarine. The sailors of the crew of this diesel-electric submarine are preparing for a long journey and are only waiting for orders, as well as their family members. The Pacific Fleet already has two submarines in service: Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Volkhov; in total, it is planned to create a formation of six such submarines.

Diesel-electric submarines of Project 636.3 are significantly improved compared to models of the previous era, they are distinguished by their noiselessness, the power of diesel generators, the speed of full underwater travel, and the cruising range in the underwater diesel operating mode (RDS). They also received new electronic equipment and Caliber cruise missiles, which are high-precision weapons capable of hitting targets at a distance of more than 1.5 thousand km.

The diesel-electric submarine "Magadan" was laid down on November 1, 2022, launched on March 26, 2022. This submarine has a surface displacement of 2350 tons and an underwater displacement of 3950 tons; navigation autonomy - 45 days; working diving depth - 240 m, maximum - 300 m, underwater speed - 18 knots; scuba diving range 400 miles; cruising range in RDP mode with an increased fuel supply at a speed of 7 knots - 7,500 miles, crew - 52 people. It is armed with six bow 533-mm torpedo tubes with an ammunition capacity of 18 torpedoes or 24 mines. The boat's arsenal also includes cruise missiles "Caliber PL. As an air defense system, the submarine carries the Strela 3M portable anti-aircraft missile system.

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General Director of the Rubin Central Design Bureau, Igor Vilnit, described this submarine as follows: “Project 636.3, developed by order of the Russian Navy, is a deeply modernized submarine, which only has a hull in common with the original Varshavyanka.”

Apparently, a formation of diesel-electric submarines is being created as part of the Pacific Fleet, which will be aimed strictly at duty or combat operations in the waters of the Sea of ​​Japan and Okhotsk. Tokyo has a lot to think about given the power of the 636.3-class submarines' weapons. True, the Japanese Self-Defense Forces Navy has 22 diesel-electric boats armed with torpedoes and mines. The numerical superiority in the future will remain on Tokyo's side, even taking into account the nuclear submarines at the Pacific Fleet. However, the qualitative advantage is clearly in our favor, again taking into account the weapons of Russian diesel-electric submarines and nuclear submarines.

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Main goals

In recent years, due to changes in geopolitical forces, the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Navy has become increasingly important. Its tasks are determined by the general provisions of the country's defense, adjusted for the specifics of a given region. Today the fleet is capable of performing the following actions:

1. To carry out measures to deter possible nuclear attacks, to be constantly in readiness, and also, if necessary, to strike at enemy targets on earth.
2. Ensure the protection of territories where the state has an economic interest.
3. Taking measures to suppress illegal activities of citizens or organizations.
4. One of the main tasks of the Pacific Fleet is to ensure the protection of state territory from illegal crossings and control over the movement of merchant ships.
5. Carrying out international operations, joint exercises, anti-terrorist actions, etc.

In the event of real hostilities, the responsibilities of the fleet include the destruction of enemy groups at sea, disruption of enemy sea communications, while simultaneously protecting its own, as well as landing troops and other strategic tasks dictated by the specific situation.

Tasks of the Russian Pacific Fleet

The main tasks of the Russian Pacific Fleet currently are:

• maintaining naval strategic nuclear forces in constant readiness in the interests of nuclear deterrence;
• protection of the economic zone and areas of industrial activity;
• suppression of illegal production activities;
• ensuring the safety of navigation, combating piracy;
• implementation of government foreign policy actions in economically important areas of the World Ocean.

Fleet composition

Most of the military equipment of the Pacific Navy was produced in the 80s and today requires serious modernization. Some of the existing arsenal still remains in the repair docks; for some, a decision was made to dispose of them.

Today the Pacific Fleet includes the following combat units:

• the only cruiser “Varyag”, built back in 1980, it is one of the flagship ships of the fleet;
• a destroyer called "Bystry", launched in 1987, based in Vladivostok;
• anti-submarine ships are among the three created under the Gadfly project;
• four conventional missile ships and eleven large ones, produced during the Soviet period;
• eight anti-submarine ships under the Albatross project - Kholmsk;
• boats designed to commit sabotage behind enemy lines;
• eight minesweepers;
• five conventional landing ships, as well as three large ones.
• five missile submarines;
• nuclear submarines of the Pacific Fleet, which carry cruise missiles;
• nuclear submarine "Pike", designed to destroy targets of various types;
• in addition, six diesel submarines of the Halibut project.

Experts note that in this state the fleet cannot fully ensure the implementation of combat missions to protect strategically important state territories. Therefore, government reforms planned until 2022 should radically change this state of affairs.

Composition of the Russian Pacific Fleet

The Pacific Fleet includes:

• strategic missile submarines,
  Question answer

  What is the essence of the Maritime Doctrine of the Russian Federation?

• multi-purpose nuclear and diesel submarines,
• surface ships,
• missile-carrying, anti-submarine and fighter aircraft,
• ground forces, units of ground and coastal forces.

The Pacific Fleet's bases are Vladivostok (main base), Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Vilyuchinsk (Rybachy), Sovetskaya Gavan (Zavety Ilyich), Fokino.

Combat composition of the fleet:

• missile cruiser "Varyag" (flagship);
• 4 BODs of Project 1155 “Frigate” - “Marshal Shaposhnikov”, “Admiral Vinogradov”, “Admiral Panteleev” and “Admiral Tributs”;
• 3 destroyers (“Stormy”, “Bystry”, “Fearless”);
• several nuclear submarines with intercontinental and cruise missiles.

In the near future, the Pacific Fleet will be strengthened by a Mistral-class universal landing ship - the first French helicopter carrier, Vladivostok, is assigned to the main base in Vladivostok.

In addition, the Amur Shipyard is building a series of Project 20380 corvettes for the Pacific Fleet: “Sovershenny” and “Gromky”.

Question answer

Composition of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Federation. Infographics

It is planned to modernize the Project 956 Sarych destroyers and the Admiral Lazarev cruiser by 2022.

The naval aviation of the Pacific Fleet consists of:

• fighter,
• anti-submarine,
• search and rescue,
• transport aviation.

Navy aircraft

The year of creation of naval aviation of the Pacific Fleet is considered to be 1932, and six years later the pilots managed to distinguish themselves in battles with the Japanese off the coast of Kamchatka. During the entire existence of naval flight units, they more than once performed the most important combat missions in the region, for example, fifteen officers were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Today, the Pacific Fleet's aviation has modern missile weapons and is capable of flying combat missions in any weather conditions. It consists of fighters, anti-submarine aircraft, transporters and special units. The bases are located on the Kamchatka Peninsula, in Khabarovsk and Primorye. Their responsibilities include daily monitoring of the Far Eastern borders of Russia, conducting search operations, as well as conducting reconnaissance. Every year, competitions of paramilitary aviation units are held here, the purpose of which is to develop the necessary combat skills, clearing mines of equipment or buildings, performing flights in extreme conditions, etc.

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Russian-American consultations ended in virtually nothing - and a clear evidence of this was the phrase of Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergei Ryabkov. As the diplomat said, if the United States continues to exert military pressure on our country, Russia may carry out “measures along the lines of the Navy.” What is the state of the Russian Navy today and what “measures” should be taken against the United States?

While one can fantasize about unaccounted for tanks at secret storage bases for a long time, this will not work with ships. All of them are visible, the data on them is completely open, their number is known for certain - both in combat and under construction. Their combat capabilities are also thoroughly understood. How many ships does the Russian Navy have that can be used in the ocean areas of the Far Sea Zone (DMZ) - that is, for example, right off the US coast?

What's available right now

If we exclude small missile and anti-submarine ships and similar trifles, then for all four fleets and one flotilla Russia has exactly 39 (thirty-nine) surface ships that can be sent to the DMZ. This number includes literally everything - even the small-displacement Caspian Tatarstan and Dagestan. The "Kuznetsov" stuck in repairs enters, the "Nakhimov" stuck in reconstruction, the missile cruiser "Moskva" that was difficult to get underway, the BOD "Chabanenko" and "Levchenko" enter, which have been standing at the wall of the shipyard for a long time, the destroyer "Nastoichivy" enters. , which, apparently, will never go to sea again. Of the relatively new pennants, this number includes eight corvettes - not bad ships, but only one of them can carry Calibers, and in the future Zircons.

What if we count large ships capable of performing combat missions even in strong seas, and only those that can go to sea in the shortest possible time? How many are there?

There are seven of them in the Northern Fleet: the heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser "Peter the Great", the missile cruiser "Marshal Ustinov", the BOD "Vice Admiral Kulakov" and "Severomorsk", the old boiler-turbine destroyer "Admiral Ushakov" of Project 956 and two new frigates of Project 22350 - "Admiral Gorshkov" and "Admiral Kasatonov". There are four of them in the Pacific Fleet - the missile cruiser "Varyag", the BOD "Admiral Tributs" and "Admiral Panteleev", the frigate "Marshal Shaposhnikov" (modernized BOD) and, in theory, the old destroyer "Bystry", but, according to a number of reports, it on the verge of being written off and no longer combat-ready.

There is only one such ship in the Baltic so far - the Yaroslav the Mudry SKR of project 11540. At the end of repair, the second is the Neustrashimy of the same project, but, alas, they saved money on it and left it without anti-ship missiles.

Black Sea? It is not clear in what condition the cruiser “Moskva” (it is already forty years old), three frigates of project 11356 - “Admiral Grigorovich”, “Admiral Essen”, “Admiral Makarov” and one TFR of project 1135 - “Ladny” are in. His sistership “Inquisitive” no longer goes to sea, and “Ladny” also has little left - the ships are 40 and 41 years old, respectively, their combat value is questionable, as is their technical condition.

This list, as well as eight corvettes and two Project 11661 missile ships from the Caspian Sea, is all that Russia can put forward right now.

How many of these ships can Caliber use? In the Northern Fleet these are two frigates of Project 22350 (16 missiles each), in the Pacific - the frigate "Marshal Shaposhnikov" (16 missiles) and the corvette "Gremyashchiy" (eight missiles), in the Caspian Sea - "Dagestan" (eight missiles). There are three such ships in the Black Sea: new frigates of Project 11356, each with eight missiles.

But what about the total salvo of long-range cruise missiles from carriers that are not confined to coastal waters due to their low seaworthiness? That's how! To the above ships we must add the combat submarines “Severodvinsk” and “Kazan”, for a total of 64 missiles - this is approximately one average airfield. It is possible that the modernized Project 971 Leopard will also be able to use them, but there missiles can only be in the torpedo compartment, and there won’t be many of them. Let it be 10.

How many of these ships will the Zircons be able to carry? In the North there are two frigates of project 22350, two submarines of projects 885 Yasen and 885M Yasen-M, in the Pacific Ocean - the frigate Shaposhnikov and the corvette Gremyashchiy.

This is all. Is it possible to scare NATO with all this? Very doubtful. The US and NATO have not accepted Russia's de-escalation terms and continue to behave in an extremely insulting manner.

Maybe the naval aviation of the Russian Navy could solve the problem of the lack of ships? But we had two attack air regiments (one in the Black Sea, the second in the Baltic), and so it is. With short flight hours and light subsonic anti-ship missiles X-35. Anti-submarine aircraft are not produced in Russia, the fleet has no Tu-22M3 bombers left, and there are several dozen of them in the Aerospace Forces, their real condition is unknown. Their crews are not trained to work against sea targets.

Maybe the country simply did not have time to build a fleet? Are there new ships on the stocks that have not yet entered service? Let's check.

Forces are coming

Not counting strategic submarines armed with ballistic missiles, by 2030 Russia will have nine nuclear-powered multipurpose submarines of projects 885 Yasen and 885M Yasen-M. Two of them have already been commissioned, the rest are being prepared for commissioning or under construction. There will also be several modernized boats of old designs, which will bring the number of multi-purpose nuclear submarines to 12 units for two fleets. With luck, it will be possible to restore two more. The rest of what we have now will be written off due to old age. In other words, seven Yasen-M nuclear submarines are being built right now.

What is being built in the surface forces? If we consider such ships that can be used to put pressure on the Americans (for example, conducting combat service with cruise missiles near American shores in order to keep the United States at gunpoint), then the picture is as follows - six Project 22350 frigates are under construction and presumably two more have been contracted, that is, their construction not started yet. Of those ships that are known reliably, the last one will be delivered in 2027.

In some cases, corvettes of projects 20380 and 20385 could be used in the Far Sea Zone. Thus, recently the corvettes of the Pacific Fleet boldly displayed the flag off the Hawaiian Islands, and it must be said that the Americans tensed up a little. How many corvettes are in construction? There are only eleven, but one of them is the Project 20386 ship, the prospects of which are very vague. So, guaranteed - ten, of which, however, three have not even been mortgaged yet. All should be completed by the end of the decade.

Thus, regarding valuable ships capable of operating in the DMZ (relatively, because all corvettes have problems with air defense), 13 units are being built in Russia and, presumably, five are contracted. But how can this be? After all, a lot of money was spent on the fleet and it was regularly reported that new ships were being delivered?

What was the money spent on?

Indeed, big money began pouring into the fleet in 2009. Reports in the media about ships being built and delivered to the fleet were very intense. If we now have five new frigates in service and six under construction, and another eight corvettes in service, then what has been being built and delivered to the fleet all this time? Let's list briefly.

Small missile ships of project 21631 "Buyan-M". The same ones who, together with “Dagestan”, fired “Calibers” from the Caspian Sea. There are twelve ships in the series, nine have already been delivered. There is exactly one problem with them - they cannot operate far from the coast.

An inter-base passage from the Black Sea to the Baltic for a couple of such ships showed that it was simply dangerous for them to sail into the Far Sea Zone. Their speed is insufficient; they cannot maneuver together with full-fledged ships. They have nothing to protect themselves from air strikes; they do not have the means to even detect the launch of a torpedo on their own. They cannot use anti-ship missiles on their own; there are no systems for developing target designation. In a sense, these are just floating missile launchers. In addition, most of them have German diesel engines, and when the time comes to repair them, we will find that spare parts for them are under sanctions.

Small missile ships of project 22800 "Karakurt". There are sixteen ships in the series today, three of which have been delivered. These are fast ships with a minimum of imports, good seaworthiness and a large reserve for modernization and new weapons. Those of them that carry the Pantsir-M complex can hit air targets - aircraft and missiles. Ships can engage in naval combat. The problem is with the engines. When the Navy ordered a series of ships, it was not checked whether the diesel engine manufacturer - St. Petersburg - could produce them in the required quantities. As a result, with a very short construction period (the lead ship was delivered faster than similar ships were delivered in the USSR), the series came to a standstill. And then financial problems were added, now unfinished ships are standing against the wall. "Karakurts" are very well thought out ships. The problem is that they don't exist.

Project 22160 patrol ships. Amazing project. The Navy did not even try to use them to solve any combat missions, because they cannot be solved with these ships - they are armed with only one 76-mm cannon. Some media outlets are disseminating false information about supposedly secret container launchers, although due to their shortcomings the fleet did not open this topic. They are not and will not be in service.

Submarines of project 636.3 “Varshavyanka”. These were once good submarines, but a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then. Now they need serious modernization, even new ones.

None of these programs were cheap. Thus, the Buyanov-M series and unarmed low-speed patrol aircraft are priced at about half the price of a heavy aircraft carrier. With Karakurt – half. Is this what all the naval money was spent on? No, not only and not so much. The correct answer is: "Mace", "Boreas", "Ash" and "Poseidon".

It is not worth announcing the exact figures spent on all these programs for reasons of secrecy. In approximate form, we can say the following. The Poseidon program cost the country approximately a brigade of six corvette-level surface ships and one lost nuclear missile submarine, the Belgorod, which could have been completed as a carrier of Caliber.

Serious money was spent on the Bulava missile. But maybe it would have been worth making the Borei for the Sineva missile, and then replacing it with the Liner? It would have been significantly cheaper; there were no technical obstacles to such a solution.

Nuclear submarines "Borey". Of course, these ships were necessary. The Project 667BDRM submarines currently in service will not last long, the ships are already old. The question is quantity. Media reports in December about the construction of additional Boreys, bringing their number to almost fourteen units, are surprising. There is simply nothing to support the deployment of these boats - there are no anti-submarine ships, no minesweepers, no aircraft. But these are very expensive boats.

But the Yasen-M submarines became the most expensive. For the cost of eight units of this project, it would be possible to hold five Olympics in Sochi, rebuilding the city in each case. Or build five to seven heavy aircraft carriers. Time will tell whether the combat effectiveness of these eight Ashes will justify such costs.

Moment of truth

So what “Navy activities” can be carried out with Russia’s current Navy? The only thing that can scare the Americans is the withdrawal of Boreevs and 667BDRMs to attack the United States with ballistic missiles along “short” trajectories with short flight times. Alas, this is a good reason for the United States to start a nuclear war. It is better not to play such dangerous games.

To actually carry out “actions along the lines of the Navy” in order to put pressure on the United States, you need something that can cause significant harm to them. Something that is currently not enough in the Russian Navy.

If this is a ship that carries cruise missiles, then it is not a 900-ton gunboat, a trip around Europe on which could lead to its destruction in a storm, but a ship, albeit small, but capable of crossing into the Western Hemisphere and using missiles there. As a result, there would be no need to think about missiles in Venezuela, Miami would have them right away.

Or, as an option, a ship capable of using anti-ship missiles against US Navy ships in their places of combat duty, in the Mediterranean or the Persian Gulf. Which means he is capable of going there. It is also desirable that a detachment of such ships cannot be simultaneously destroyed by a strike from carrier-based aircraft. And so that their speed allows them to stay behind the aircraft carrier at the required distance, and not let it break away from tracking.

Or more small corvettes with anti-submarine capabilities could be used. Their task would be to ensure the impossibility of the hidden presence of American submarines near our bases - and therefore to ensure the secret entry of our boats into the sea and create a lot of problems for the US Navy with their search. Old submarines could be repaired, modernized and armed with Caliber and new torpedoes.

In other words, it is possible to build a not very large, but balanced fleet, which would have all the necessary forces, albeit in small quantities. The Navy has the resources, and let us hope that there is still time to adjust approaches to fleet construction.

Cooperation with other countries

Reforming the material and technical base alone cannot ensure an increase in the efficiency of the domestic naval forces, therefore the Russian Ministry of Defense and the command of the Pacific Fleet annually conduct large-scale international exercises in this region.

In recent years, Russia has been intensively establishing partnerships with China; this country has not only the largest economy in the world, but also the largest army. The result of this rapprochement has been thousands of interdepartmental agreements, as well as regularly held joint strategic exercises.

Notable dates

Pacific Fleet Day is considered May 21, on this day in 1731, Empress Anna Ioannovna issued a decree approving the Okhotsk military flotilla as a permanent Russian military base in the east. The holiday was established in 1999 by decree of the President of the Russian Federation; today specialized competitions and competitions between different units are usually appointed on this day.

But many sailors call the date of birth of the modern Pacific Fleet April 21, 1932, when the Far East Naval Forces were formed in response to Japanese aggression.

Scandals

In the 1990s, the command of the Pacific Fleet repeatedly found itself in criminal chronicles, many infrastructure facilities unexpectedly ended up in the hands of private individuals, and warships disappeared without a trace.

The scandals of recent years are related to the implementation of reforms scheduled until 2022. Thus, the Russian government planned to purchase a batch of Mistral helicopter carriers, the production and sale of which was carried out by France. But due to disagreement with Moscow’s policies and on some economic issues, the deal was canceled by the French side unilaterally. Russia never received the promised ships, and Paris will have to pay a huge penalty.