Project 20385: design features and purpose

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

Project 20385 was also announced to be bookmarked in February 2012. This event means the development of a ship under the sonorous name "Thundering" and its modifications. The event took place at a shipyard in St. Petersburg. This action can be called unique in connection with the simultaneous laying of two combat surface ships.

General information

The ceremony was attended by high-ranking officials of the country and generals of the Armed Forces. Project 20385 itself is focused on the construction of frigates and shipboard corvettes equipped with modern weapons and adequate protection.

This development is not just an improved variation of the 20380 project, but also the introduction of completely new solutions. It is worth noting that the St. Petersburg Severnaya Verf has contracts for the supply of four ships of the previous format, two of which have already been built. A similar ship of this series is being completed at the Amur Shipbuilding Plant. The updated project is expected to become stronger in terms of strike, including air defense systems.

Purpose

Project 20385 ships aremulti-purpose corvettes designed to detect and eliminate enemy submarines and surface ships. In addition, they are capable of solving various combat missions in the coastal zone, and also serve for landing troops. On board there are artillery, missile, anti-submarine weapons and advanced radar stations. Installation of hydroacoustic systems is provided.

An innovative solution was the possibility of placing a special hangar on a ship of a small size, which can fit a Ka-27 helicopter. This further increases the likelihood of detecting enemy submarines and enhances the ship's combat capabilities. The peculiarity of the project of Russian corvettes 20385 is that they are built using the latest technologies that reduce their radar detection.

Additional strength and protection is ensured by the use of composite materials, which are developed by the world leader in this field - St. Petersburg Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Prometheus". The components proved their practicality and reliability during the construction of project 20380.

Features of development and construction

The ships in question were developed by the Almaz Design Bureau. After the construction is completed, the ships will presumably be sent to the Northern Fleet. According to experts, project 20385 is a more serious unit than its predecessors. First of all, this concerns the improvement of tactical and technical characteristics, weapons, combat capabilities, a modernized power unit and navigationsystems.

It is assumed that St. Petersburg manufacturers will build ten corvettes for the Russian Navy under this project. Representatives of the Navy say that the need for such ships is at least twenty units. They will strengthen the army and solve the problem of protecting the near sea zone. The Severnaya Verf plant entered into an agreement with OJSC Sredne-Nevsky Shipbuilding Plant for the manufacture of parts from polymer composite materials. The amount of the contract was over four hundred million rubles.

Technical plan parameters

Project 20385, the photo of which is presented above, has the following performance characteristics

• The corvette is 104 meters long and 13 meters wide.
• The displacement indicator is 2200 tons.
• The speed limit is twenty-seven knots.
• The maximum sailing distance is 5600 kilometers.
• The autonomy of the ship is at least fifteen days.
• The crew is 99 people.
• Power system - a pair of diesel units type 1DDA-12000.

Project 20385 corvettes with reinforced weapons are equipped with the Kalibr universal missile system, the Redut anti-aircraft missile system, radar and acoustic stations. Of the artillery weapons on the ship, there is a hundred-millimeter installation A-190-01, a pair of anti-aircraft machine guns AK-630-M (caliber 30 mm). Anti-submarine weapons of the "Packet" type are provided, as well as a Ka-27 helicopter.

Superstructure

At the warship in questionthe superstructure is made of non-combustible composite materials, including multilayer fiberglass and carbon fiber components. This solution (ste alth technology) allows for low radar detection.

At the stern there is a hangar with a special platform for a Ka-27 anti-submarine helicopter with a fuel reserve of about twenty tons. Corvettes of project 20380, 20385 differ among themselves in favor of the latter. Modernization and better equipment made it possible to implement almost all the moments required by the customer, from general ship systems to weapons.

Case

Steel smooth-deck hull of the ship has a fundamentally new design. The modified contours reduce the water resistance by a quarter when the corvette is moving at top speed. In addition, such a solution allows to reduce the load on the main power plant.

An updated version of the underwater part of the ship's hull makes it possible to use a power unit with a lower mass, which allows you to release about twenty percent of the displacement. Therefore, it is possible to further strengthen the combat equipment of the corvette. Another point in terms of the effectiveness of the new hull and ease of displacement is an increase in the speed of the ship by 1.5-2 knots.

Main Propulsion System

The original plan was to equip project 20385 with German MTU engines. But in connection with the import substitution program, domestic motors were developed specificallyfor these corvettes. The main power unit is a pair of DDA-12000 diesel units developed by specialists from the Kolomensky Zavod and OA Zvezda.

Each engine consists of two 16-D49 motors and a reverse gear. The units are equipped with a microprocessor-based monitoring and control unit. Main parameters:

• Work resource - up to fifty thousand hours.
• Estimated range at an average speed of 14 knots is four thousand miles.
• Piston head - made of heat-resistant steel EI-415.
• The base of the engines is AK-6 aluminum alloy.
• The capacity of each diesel generator is 630 kilowatts.
• Power consumption - 380 V (50 Hz).

DDA installations provide a high percentage of power in reverse modes with minimal fuel consumption, and reducing the noise of the power plant makes it possible to reduce the hydroacoustic visibility of the vessel.

Main ammunition

Project 20385 Thundering and Agile corvettes are equipped with the following weapons:

1. Anti-ship installation. It consists of two combat complexes with four containers and eight anti-ship missiles with a range of up to 260 kilometers. Launch containers are located in the middle part of the hull along the diametral platform.
2. SAM. Anti-aircraft weapons include the Redut complex with three modules of four cells, portable Igla air defense systems, a pair of six-barreled anti-aircraft guns (30 mm caliber) at the stern.
3. Anti-torpedo protection"Package-N". This includes two 330 mm devices placed in the lazports of each side, the "Frontier" system.
4. An ASW helicopter Ka-27.
5. Melee weapons - two grenade launchers and a couple of machine gun mounts.
6. Artillery - 100mm A-190 gun mount with a maximum rate of fire of up to eighty volleys per minute. The complex is controlled by the Puma system.

Ship-launched torpedoes can hit both oncoming enemy submarine missiles and submarines.

Radio equipment

In this regard, corvettes are equipped with a number of systems, namely:

1. CICS "Sigma".
2. Furke-2 General Detection Station.
3. The suggestive complex "Monument A".
4. Sonar equipment such as Zarya and Minotaur.
5. Rouberoid automated communication center.
6. OGAS Anapa-M.

All these complexes reduce the probability of hitting a ship by three times, operate in the range from 64 to 2000 MHz, and can simultaneously detect more than two hundred and fifty targets. Four launchers fired by the "Brave" jamming kit allow you to resist enemy systems. Helicopter navigation is carried out by means of antenna posts on the roof of the hangar (OSP-20380).

Seaworthiness and survivability

The Thundering corvette of project 20385 has improved seaworthiness compared to similar vessels, with the same restrictions in the case of roll. itallows you to use weapons in a storm up to five points.

Special emphasis in the design of the ship was placed on the combat survivability of the vehicle. The designers have introduced the latest developments in terms of protection against radar visibility. For this, innovative architectural solutions and special materials with high radio absorbing qualities were used.

The average indicator of the circular efficiency of the scattering area has decreased compared to analogues by almost three times. On some models of this series, operational survivability is ensured by introducing a set of measures for constructive protection against enemy weapons.

Modifications

In the category of ships under consideration, there are several main modifications:

1. Project of the border guard ship - 20380P.
2. Export version of 20382. The main difference between this model and the base ship is that it is equipped with simplified weapons and the ability to change the ammunition load to foreign analogues.
3. Project 20385 – Provorny corvette for the Black Sea. It has improved weapons and improved protection.
4. 20386 - a modernized version of the previous project with the ability to install military complexes of the "Horizon" type.

In closing

It is worth noting that of all the developments of project 20385, according to the plan, the construction of only the Thundering corvette continues. The rest of the ships ("Agile", "Able", "Zealous", "Strict") will be built according toimproved regulatory document under the index 20380. This is due to the high cost of ships, to a greater extent due to the presence of not always technically justified weapons on them. According to the designers, changes in the planning of the installation of German power plants on domestic counterparts did not affect the work schedule. All corvettes are expected to be launched on schedule.