Two Project 11356 Frigates Built for Russia Black Sea Fleet Will Be Transferred to the Indian Navy
Two Project 11356 (NATO reporting name: Admiral Grigorovich-class) ASW Frigates hulls built for the Russian Black Sea fleet will be transfered to India, Deputy Director of the Russian Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation (FSVTS) Vladimir Drozhzhov told TASS.
Admiral Makarov, the third Admiral Grigorovich class Frigate of the Russian Navy. Picture: Drakon 64 / forums.airbase.ru
"At present talks are ongoing to agree the technical shape of the warship and draft a corresponding contract. For the vessels built in Russia it is suggested to use the frigate hull of project 11356 which were built for the Black Sea fleet," he said.
In October 2016 Russia and India signed an intergovernmental agreement for the construction of two frigates of project 11356 for the Indian Navy in each of the two countries.
Initially it was planned to build for the Black Sea fleet a series of six frigates at the Yantar Shipyard on the Baltic Sea. The first batch of three has been already built. Two frigates are operational while the third one - the
Admiral Makarov is undergoing government acceptance tests. In 2013 the fourth and the fifth warships of the series - the
Admiral Butakov and the
Admiral Istomin had their keels laid and are now under construction. The sixth frigate, the fate of which the FSVTS did not specify, has not been laid however its hull has been formed at the shipyard.
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First ship of class Admiral Grigorovich joined the Russian Navy on March 11 2016. Picture: Yantar Shipyard
Navy Recognition Comments:
The issue revolves around the propulsion systems of the frigates and is linked to the crisis in Ukraine: Six Project 11356 frigates were planned to be built for the Russian Black Sea Fleet. These vessels are equipped with Ukrainian-made propulsion units. Following the crisis, Ukraine refused to deliver propulsion systems for the second batch of three frigates which has threatened their construction. The United Ship-Building Corporation said in 2015 that the frigates would be built but would have Russian-made engines. However, Russia seems to be facing difficulties to develop and deliver those in time. On the other hand, Ukraine would likely be willing to sell propulsion systems to India if the country was to procure Project 11356 frigates.
India already operates six Talwar-class frigates, which are the Project 11356 frigate’s predecessors developed for export. The vessels entered service in 2003-2004 and 2012-2013.
The Project 11356 frigate has a full displacement of 4,035 t, a length of 124.8 m, a width of 15,2 m, a draft of 4.2 m, a cruise speed of 30 kt, an endurance of 30 days (or 4,850 miles), and a crew of 180 sailors. The ship is powered by two gas-turbine engines (30,450 h.p. each). The frigate is armed with 3M-54K/3M-14K Kalibr anti-ship/land-attack missiles (SS-N-27 Sizzler), one 100mm A-190 naval gun, two AK-630M close-in weapon systems (CIWS), the Shtil-1 naval surface-to-air (SAM) missile system with 36 SAMs, and two twin 533mm torpedo launchers.