Russian ship Caesar Kunikov

Caesar Kunikov (BDK-64) (Russian: «Цезарь Куников» (БДК-64), romanized: Tsezar' Kunikov) is a Project 775 (NATO reporting name: Ropucha-I-class) large landing ship (Bol'shoy Desantnyy Korabl) of the Russian Navy. She is named after Caesar Lvovich Kunikov, the commanding officer of a landing party that captured the beach-head of Malaya Zemlya, a Hero of the Soviet Union.

Caesar Kunikov in the Red Sea, 2003
History
Russia
NameCaesar Kunikov
NamesakeCaesar Lvovich Kunikov
BuilderStocznia Północna, Gdańsk, Poland[1]
Commissioned30 October 1986[1]
HomeportSevastopol
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeRopucha-class landing ship
Displacement
  • 2,768 long tons (2,812 t) standard
  • 4,012 long tons (4,076 t) full load
Length112.5 m (369 ft 1 in)
Beam15.01 m (49 ft 3 in)
Draught4.26 m (14 ft 0 in)
RampsOver bows and at stern
Installed power3 × 750 kW (1,006 hp) diesel generators
Propulsion2 × 9,600 hp (7,159 kW) Zgoda-Sulzer 16ZVB40/48 diesel engines
Speed17.59 knots (32.58 km/h; 20.24 mph)
Range
  • 6,000 nmi (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
  • 3,500 nmi (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Endurance30 days
Capacity10 × main battle tanks and 340 troops or 12 × BTR APC and 340 troops or 3 × main battle tanks, 3 × 2S9 Nona-S SPG, 5 × MT-LB APC, 4 trucks and 313 troops or 500 tons of cargo
Complement98
Armament
Service record
Part of:

The ship was built at the Stocznia Północna shipyard in Gdańsk, Poland, and launched on 30 October 1986.[1]

She is currently in service with Black Sea Fleet's 197th Landing Ship Brigade, of the 30th Division of Surface Ships, and homeported in Sevastopol. She is under the patronage of the city of Zelenograd (since 1998) and Chelyabinsk Oblast (since 2011).

Service history

Syrian civil war

In October 2015, Caesar Kunikov was sent to Syria with a cargo of weapons and ammunition for the Syrian Arab Army.[3]

Russo-Ukrainian War

On 24 March 2022 the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported that Caesar Kunikov and its sister ship Novocherkassk had been damaged during an attack that destroyed the Tapir-class landing ship Saratov in the port of Berdiansk during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[4] Video of the incident shows two Ropucha-class warships, possibly[5] the sister ships Caesar Kunikov and Novocherkassk, retreating from the port soon after the attack; one of the retreating ships' forecastles was on fire, although it is unclear which.[6][7]

On 18 April 2022 it was reported that the ship's commander, Captain of the 3rd rank Alexander Chirva, died during the invasion of Ukraine.[8][9]

On 24 August 2022 it was reported Caesar Kunikov and sister ship Novocherkassk were out of action due to lack of spare parts to repair the ships. The lack of spare parts was attributed to the sanctions imposed on Russia.[10]

References
  1. "Large landing ships - Project 775". russian-ships.info. 2012. Archived from the original on 4 September 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  2. "Russian Military Unit 197th LS Bde". warfare.ru. 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  3. "Россия направила в Средиземное море корабль с оружием для Сирии" [Russia sent a ship with weapons to Syria to the Mediterranean]. news.rambler.ru.
  4. "Ukraine war latest news". The Guardian. 25 March 2022. pp. block-623d5c878f08118734a72191. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  5. "Russian warships paint off names and hull numbers..." from Russian warships paint off hull numbers to prepare for provocations at sea // Крым.Реалии, March 21, 2022
  6. Coleman, Julie (24 March 2022). "Video shows 2 Russian warships escaping as Ukrainian missiles blast a docked ship". Business Insider. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
  7. Кирилловка.Укр (24 March 2022). "Бердянск: взрывы и пожар в порту 24 марта 2022 года" [Berdyansk: explosions and fire in the port on March 24, 2022]. www.youtube.com. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  8. "Командир корабля "Цезарь Куников" Чирва погиб на спецоперации на Украине" [The commander of the ship "Caesar Kunikov" Chirva died in a special operation in Ukraine]. RIA Novosti. 18 April 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  9. "Russian captain of Black Sea landing ship killed in Ukraine in latest blow for Putin". The Independent. 20 April 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  10. "Польша поставила России контрафактные детали для десантных кораблей" [Poland supplied Russia with counterfeit parts for landing ships]. mash.ru (in Russian). 24 August 2022. Archived from the original on 28 August 2022.
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