Vitse-Admiral Paromov (Small Tanker Project 03182) after its transfer from Kronshtadt to Murmansk.
He would be operating under the Northern Fleet command now.
๐ธ: kotlogradskyi
@spectrecrouton.bsky.social @jjdroxford.bsky.social @thelookout.bsky.social @kaptainloma.bsky.social
Yea, lots of ships are affected by the aneurism-induced decision of their leader to invade Ukraine.
Kuzya is off to the blocks which is as massive waste of a budget as Nakhimov as they had to spin up factories to make components for the ill fated ship and has nothing to show for it.
Also @covertshores.bsky.social, it does have a modernized firefighting and damage control system. It uses the type used by Mosvka's modernized sister, Marshal Ustinov and most newer Russian Navy ships since 2007.
From PO Sevmash's procurement document of Admiral Nakhimov dated January 2015.
The risks of unmanned systems are there and does make a large ship of this size kind of questionable. But their core mission requires a vessel of any kind to fill that role and that modernized cruiser will fill it.
Its just that its sitting on a platform as expensive as the subs they are covering.
While they could opt for a smaller platform to deliver said capability (a Gremyashchiy for example), they were stuck with it and sanctions further delaying corvette and frigate production means its works would continue as they lack a proper modern platform to do such missions.
Its modernized systems while "old" by modern standards (FRESCAN in 2025 for Volume Search is an interesting choice), provides them with a modern platform to secure the submarines from their bases until the time they would need to be launched from their open sea hiding places.
Both Marshal Shaposhnikov and Nakhimov's pre-works purchase list specifically mentioned compatibility with Otvet with other onboard systems as a core requirement.
Nakhimov, which has Vodopad/Stallion equipped by default, would have that removed as part of the modernization.
The use of VLS, while bringing both Nakhimov and modernized Udaloys to the modern era with ASCM and LACM, also gave them access to a newer Anti-Submarine Missile in the form of the 91R Otvet (Answer), the ASM of the Sizzler/Kalibr family.
91R replaces the Silex and Stallion ASMs in modern vessels.
This mindset of protecting the submarine fleet still dictates how some projects are planned and crafted.
Nakhimov's modernization and its fellow ships of the same modernization program ("New ship in an old hull" circa 2010), clearly dictated how this ended up to be.
Since the mid-Cold War, the Soviet Navy has switched their doctrine to heavily focus on protecting the submarime fleet and its associated facilities.
The complete opposite to what the West was thinking on how the Soviets would use their massive submarine numbers (Merchant Shipping Hunting ala WW2)
A good article on the future of large vessels in the evolving theatre of unmanned warfare.
But unmanned solutions does not fit one of the key roles of the two oceangoing fleets where a large ship (not this large though) is needed : The protection of the bastions in the event of all out conflict.
Surprising that there aren't any DELTA IV deployments.
It is often an indicator that a new sub is conducting sub warfare training alongside state trials when Donskoi is also out with the newbuilds.
The better sub commanders in the VMF are also based in, surprisingly, Severodvinsk.
One example was the last CO of Dmitriy Donskoi. Eversince the boat stopped being a Bulava test platform and acting as OPFOR for new subs out of SEVMASH, the boat was manned by veteran commanders.
RF Navy Submarine Patrols in 2025
- Graph 1: chronological order; Graph 2: sorted by class
- Admittedly, there are gaps; this should only be used as a starting part for further analysis
- Data not available for Baltic Fleet or for Black Sea Fleet patrols within Black Sea
Also as of note, some sub commanders that have been assigned to training roles (foreign or domestic), and/or be the commander of a skeletal crew of a ship stuck in R1 or R2 technical reserve status also mean that the "cue" for commanding one is well, few. Esp. if platform choices are few in between
RF Navy ships and submarines deployed as of 1 January 2026
@jjdroxford.bsky.social @spectrecrouton.bsky.social @thelookout.bsky.social
Small fleet tanker Valentin Rykov has started its state sea trials last Dec. 01, after a few test runs back in late October.
South Korean shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has launched the second of six offshore patrol vessels (OPV) on order by the Philippines, on 20 November 2025 in Ulsan ๐ต๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ท
www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2...
bsky.app/profile/gran...
From the articles I've found, it might be a permanent move.
@spectrecrouton.bsky.social noticed tug movement and position location of ships a while back. Plus footage of returning or deployment of Kilos shows most Steregishchiys in the background.
Four years delayed due to many changes in the design, she is finally out of the shed.
If Poseidon/Status-6 doesn't pan out as a second strategic strike weapon, GUGI would find some use of it considering the inherent design of it perfectly fits GUGI's core mission.
While there is an age old Russian adage called "Trust but Verify".
Since people and accounts with enough following and significant social media influence can basically shape what the few sees as regular into something "newsbreaking". Case in point is about this sub in particular.
That Borei would be conducting its first repair and upgrade cycle. Being part of the first three that was born out of recycled Akula-class SSN parts.
Yuri Dolgorukiy has already started its repair and upgrade cycle a year or two prior.
They could have waited for Tor-MF, but delays in demonstrating its functions when baked into a ship and not attached like an appendage like Tor-M2KM, might have pushed them for Shtil-1 instead.
In my opinion, this delay probably sealed any hope of Tor, Kinzhal or related systems being retained in the upgrades for Udaloys.
When Marshal Shaposhnikov was being reworked, it only got a new radar from Ratep contracted by MNIIRE Altair.
Vinogradov went the other route and went for Shtil-1.
RF Navy Northern Fleet unidentified Akula-class nuclear-powered sub (likely "Gepard") departed port on 19 June and remains underway through today.
Previous underway periods for "Gepard" in 2025: 23 February-7 March (13 days); 29 March-15 April (18 days); 20-27 April (8 days); 14-27 May (14 days).
With Ulysses Bay now clear of civilian leisure traffic and the area now reverted back to MOD control, we would see more activities in the area regarding movement of VMF assets.
Also, Ulysses Bay is where the dedicated pier for the Mistrals would have been located. Now its sitting unfinished.
Plus, with the Russian Prosecutor General Office annulling the previous agreements for privatization of the area and returning the control of the bay to the state.
This might be one of their projects in consolidating a basing for PACFLT assets in Vladivostok.
vlad.mk.ru/social/2025/...
Although for the auxiliaries it was a temporary shift in location, for the corvettes, it might have been a permanent move as back in March-April, the admin at Vladivostok and the RU Ministry of Transport imposed a restriction on small vessels leaving in and out of Ulysses Bay.
Also @mikeplunkett.bsky.social
