The cruiser "Moscow" - the combat flagship of the Black Sea Fleet

In the history of the modern Russian navy there are ships that not only personify the sea power of the state, but also adorn the combat composition of the operating fleets. The flagship of the Black Sea Fleet missile cruiser project 1164 "Moscow" is just such a ship. The cruiser can rightly be called the backbone of the naval force of Russia at the Black Sea Theater.

Causes of the appearance of the project 1164 cruisers

The appearance in the 70s of the vast expanses of the US Navy’s large aircraft carrier formations put the Supreme Naval Command of the USSR in a difficult position. The results of the Vietnam War showed how much the role of naval aviation in modern military conflicts has increased. The US Navy and aircraft carrier groups of the NATO countries could freely block any coast, simultaneously striking attacks on targets located deep in the enemy’s territory. The maritime borders of the USSR in this situation turned out to be practically defenseless in tactical terms. A strategically probable enemy could completely paralyze shipping not only in the ocean, but also in the inland seas.

The Black Sea Fleet, like the Baltic Sea, did not have ships capable of resisting the strike power of aircraft carriers. The eastern flank of the Soviet Union was almost bare. In the Pacific Ocean in the composition of the Pacific Fleet there was not a single ship capable of eliminating the threat from the strike forces of foreign fleets. As a matter of urgency, it was necessary to wait for an adequate military-technical response to the increased threat at sea. This was the main motive for the development and subsequent construction of project 1164 missile cruisers at Soviet shipyards.

Since the appearance of ships of this class in the composition of the Soviet Navy, the situation at sea has changed dramatically. The naval command of the Soviet Union succeeded in neutralizing the power of American aviation units operating in the waters of the internal seas. Thanks to their weapons and tactical and technical data, the new ships earned the flattering nickname "aircraft carrier killer", calling into question the military power of aircraft carriers. They received the code "Atlant", and in the classification of NATO Soviet cruisers - code Slava. From this point on, potential adversaries were forced to reckon with the increased power of the Soviet Navy. The actions of the US Navy and NATO aircraft carrier strike groups near the maritime borders of the Soviet Union have become cautious and not defiant.

After the collapse of the USSR, Atlant-type missile cruisers formed the backbone of the Russian fleet, strengthening Russia's position on the Black Sea, on the Baltic and on the Pacific Ocean. The first-born of the series, the missile cruiser of project 1164 "Moscow" today continues to bear military service as part of the Black Sea Fleet, controlling not only the entire Black Sea theater, but also areas of the eastern Mediterranean.

The main design features of the cruiser "Moscow"

According to the technical task, which came from the leadership of the fleet, the new ships were to become gas turbine strike cruisers. The beginning of the development of technical documentation for the project 1164 was in the spring of 1972. The decision to start designing new cruisers was made at the highest level. The Military Commission under the USSR Council of Ministers designated the Northern PKB, located in Leningrad, as the designer of the draft design of Atlant ships. At the time of this collective, there were at that time quite a few ready-made projects of combat ships, among which it is worth highlighting the BOD of Project 61 and the Burevestnik type of guard.

The stake in the project was made on gas turbine propulsion systems, the cheapest in comparison with engines on nuclear fuel. By displacement, the new ships were to become full-fledged ocean-going ships, equipped with powerful rocket weapons. The cruiser was planned to be equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles "Basalt".

The first ship of the new series was laid in 1976 at the Nikolayevsky Shipbuilding Plant. 51 Communards The cruiser received the serial number 2008 and the name "Glory". The name of the ship was not chosen by chance. Ships with this name had a special status in the history of the Russian fleet. Since the era of sailing ships and ending with heavy battleships, ships named "Glory" have always been the pride of the Russian fleet. Despite the urgent need for such vessels, the first cruiser was under construction for almost 6 years. Only at the end of 1982, the ship was handed over to the selection committee, after which it was sent for sea trials. The new missile cruiser entered service the following year, becoming a full-fledged combat unit of the Black Sea Fleet and becoming part of the 150 strike brigade of surface ships.

The length of the cruiser was 186 meters, which made it at that time one of the largest military vessels on the Black Sea. The ship’s total displacement was 11,380 tons. Despite the excess of the design displacement of more than a thousand tons, the cruiser did not lose anything from this. The maximum speed of the vessel was 32 knots. The cruising range at an economical course of 18 knots was 6000 miles. Without refueling and providing the ship could be in autonomous navigation for up to 30 days. The crew of the cruiser was 510 people.

The implementation of project 1164 provided for the construction of 10 ships of the same type. However, in view of the start of the construction of the Orlan nuclear-powered missile cruisers, the Atlant cruisers construction program was reduced to 6 ships. The result was the laying of 4 ships of this type, of which only 3 ships were able to enter.

Today, all three ships of the GRKR Moscow (formerly Glory) are the flagships of the Black Sea Fleet. Twin brother missile cruiser "Varyag" is part of the Pacific Fleet. The third cruiser - project 1164 "Marshal Ustinov" - until recently had been overhauled in Severodvinsk and again became part of the strike force of the Northern Fleet.

Ship hull and power plant

Initially, the ship was built as an alternative to strike ships with a nuclear power plant project 1144, larger and more expensive in the construction of ships.

By design, the cruiser was a long-deck two-masted vessel with a developed three-sided superstructure. The ship had improved seaworthiness due to the use of larger camber and tilted stem in the ship's set of frames. The main part of the hull was made of ship steel, but inside the hull the bulkheads and the enclosures are made of durable aluminum alloys. Similarly, deck superstructures were constructed, which were reinforced with steel sheets at the launch sites of combat missiles. All rigging on the cruiser, including chimneys, was also made of aluminum alloys. The use of light metal in the design of the ship allowed the project developers to fit into the estimated displacement.

Under the fuel tanks there was a double bottom. The ammunition cellars were located in different parts of the ship and were separated by strong bulkheads. All the interior of the ship was equipped with a fire extinguishing system and irrigation. All these measures significantly increased the survivability of the ship. Even with the flooding of three adjacent compartments, the ship had to remain afloat, without losing its combat capability.

The power plant of the cruiser deserved special attention. In the project, the tendency is to separate the engines into two groups, mid-flight and afterburner. The main course of the ship was provided by 2 M21 gas turbines with a capacity of 110 thousand hp. To increase the cruising speed, the M70 gas turbine engines, whose power was 20 thousand hp, were put into operation. The motive groups were distributed throughout the ship, thus providing an independent power supply to the ship.

Armament of the cruiser

The warship on the project 1164 was originally created specifically for the new anti-ship missiles P-500 "Basalt", with great destructive power. Starting containers were installed in pairs, four paired installations from each side. The ammunition of the cruiser was 16 missiles. Each P-500 missile had a length of 12 meters and weighed up to 5 tons in the equipped state. The speed of the rocket at the surface reached 1800 km / h. The rocket could carry a high-explosive fragmentation or high explosive-shaped charge weighing up to 1000 kg for a distance of 250-350 miles. If necessary, the rocket "Basalt" could carry a nuclear charge.

Guards missile cruiser project 1164 "Moscow" was subsequently re-equipped with more powerful anti-ship missiles P-1000 "Vulcan". New weapons significantly increased the firepower of the ship. Due to the reduction in mass of the warhead, the rocket received a significantly increased combat radius, which is 1000 km.

This weapon became the very "red rag" for the American military command, which saw a real opportunity to lose their precious aircraft carriers at one moment. Thanks to the installation on the cruisers of the project 1164 of the PRK "Basalt", these ships got their loud nickname - "aircraft carrier killers".

In addition to the strike weapons, Project 1164 ships were well equipped with air defense systems. In service of the cruiser "Moscow" were 8 launchers ZRK S300F "Fort", six ZAK AK-630 and two anti-aircraft missile complex "Osa-MA". To combat submarines on the cruisers of this project were installed combat systems "Waterfall" and jet bombers RBU-6000.

The missile cruiser "Moscow", despite the fact that it had a limited displacement, was almost as good as its firefighters to its larger counterparts, the nuclear-powered cruisers of the Orlan-type project 1144. If we compare the tactical and technical characteristics of the project 1164 cruiser with the ships of foreign fleets, then in many ways the domestic missile cruisers are similar to the American ships of the Tikonderoga type and the Japanese destroyers Atago.

Despite its venerable age, the ship is in service for almost 25 years, the cruiser "Moscow" continues to remain today the largest and most powerful ship in the entire Black Sea maritime theater.

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