by River Gunboats- An Illustrated Encyclopaedia (retail) (epub)
Drawing of Mihail Kogălniceanu. Note that the rear turret is normally stowed turned 45 degrees to keep the barrel above the deck and clear of the wake. She is bigger all round: superstructure, two main turrets, two twin 30mm AA mountings and a substantial foremast. Not visible are her four diesel engines in an H-formation. (Plan courtesy of The Blueprints)
Mihail Kogălniceanu Class
It was planned to add four of the follow-on Mihail Kogălniceanu class, but financial restraints reduced the final number to three: F-45 class leader Mihail Kogălniceanu launched in 1993, F-46 Ion C. Brătianu launched in 1995, and F-47 Lascăr Catargiu, launched in 1998. (It is probable that the cancelled fourth member of the class was to be named Alexandru Lahovari, after the fourth monitor of the quartet launched in 1907–8.)
The main gun armament has been doubled, with the addition of a second turret at the stern. Making room for this turret and its magazine has meant that the machinery has been displaced further forward, in turn necessitating the raising of the 122mm rocket launchers and their magazines to a higher level, hence the substantial superstructure. The 30mm armament has also been doubled, but the small double turrets from the TAP-77 have disappeared, the quad MG mountings taking their place. No mine rails are carried. Their higher bows allow for more comfortable navigation on the Black Sea outside the mouth of the Danube.
Lascăr Catargiu firing her forward 100mm gun.
‘Stalin Organ’, 2000s style.
The two twin 37mm Mod 80 AA mountings on Lascăr Catargiu.
One of the quad 14.5mm MG mountings on Lascăr Catargiu. Note the square tube structure which holds the MG in position, and the wooden handles for changing the barrels.
Launched:
1993–8, by Drobeta Turnu Naval DY, Severin.
Dimensions:
Displ: 550 tons full load; L: 52.1m/170ft 11in; B: 9m/29ft 63in; D: 1.6m/5ft 3in.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 4 × diesel engines, total 4,900bhp/16 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 100mm tank guns in main turrets; 2 × twin 30mm Model 80 AA; 2 × quad MR4N 14.5mm MG; 2 × forty-barrelled 122mm APRN rocket launchers; 4 × A-94 manpad SAMs/Modified T-55 tank turrets; armoured citadel.
Fate:
All still in service at the time of writing.
VB76 Class Small River Monitors
In 1972 the Romanian Navy began the design of a modern small river monitor to replace the old Soviet BKA units. The first three units underwent modifications such as lengthening the hull and strengthening the keel, to withstand the shock of firing the main armament. In all, eighteen units have been built for service on the Danube. They were known only by their hull numbers up until 1992, when the class received the names of Romanian heroes of past conflicts.
VB-87 Lt. Constantin Dumitrescu, about to land a team of commandos.
Launched:
1972 onward, by Mangalia shipyard.
Dimensions:
Displ: 85 tons; L: 32m/105ft; B: 4.8m/15ft 9in; D: 0.9m/2ft 11½in.
Crew:
25.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × diesel engines, total 1,200bhp/17 knots.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 85mm gun; 2 × twin 14.5mm MG; 2 × 81mm mortars/20mm superstructure; armoured belt (mm).
Fate:
All still in service at the time of writing.
ZK 165 with a quad 14.5mm MG mounting forward.
ZK Class River Minesweepers and Patrol Boats
Launched:
Drobeta Turnu Naval DY, Severin.
Dimensions:
Displ: 97 tons; L: 33.3m/109ft 3in; B: 4.8m/15ft 9in; D: 0.9m/2ft 11½in.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × 870bhp diesel engines/13 knots.
Guns/Armour:
Initially: 2 × twin 14.5mm MG. Then either: 2 × quad 14.5mm MG or 1 × twin 30mm Mod 80 + 1 × Quad 14.5mm MG; 6 mines/Bulletproof superstructure.
Fate:
All still in service at the time of writing.
COASTGUARD AND POLICE VESSELS
VG Class Border Police Patrol Boats
Early versions had a 20mm cannon forward. Here is a later version with a twin 14.5mm MG mounting forward. A similar mounting can be fitted aft.
SNR 17 Class Fluvial Patrol Boats
Five units so far have been built by a Turkish dockyard, and funded by the European Union. They are used for riverine patrol around Romania’s frontiers.
Launched:
2010 by Istanbul Shipyard.
Dimensions:
L: 17.26m/56ft 7½in; B: 4.55m/14ft 11in; D: 1m/3ft 3in.
Crew:
4 + 10 passengers.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × 700bhp diesel engines/27 knots.
Guns/Armour:
Initially: Small arms of the crew. Thermal camera with night vision, explosives and narcotics detector, Geiger counter radiation detector.
Fate:
Entered service November 2010.
RUSSIA
The Russians have long been, and still are, major users of river and lake gunboats. They operated flotillas on all the major river systems and the larger lakes. To represent the developments through the years we have divide this chapter into two main parts.
The first and larger part describes the gunboats of Imperial Russia up to and including the First World War, plus those of the Soviet Union in the Civil War and the Great Patriotic War. This part has been divided up between the various flotillas serving on the different rivers and lakes. In addition there is a separate section devoted to the different types of Bronekater (armoured cutters).
The second part concentrates on purpose-built modern Soviet gunboats and those of the Russian Federation. Many examples of these Soviet gunboats will be found in other chapters describing the minor navies which received Soviet military aid, prior to the breakup of the USSR.
The early river steamers initially introduced as transports often ended up being armed, especially in the far-flung parts of the expanding Russian Empire. This process was continued on a large scale during the Civil War, when vast numbers of river craft were armed with machine guns and artillery, often of large calibre. A complete history of all these armed craft, even if it were possible to trace each one, is beyond the scope of this work, and we have concentrated on describing all of the gunboats designed as such, plus typical examples of civilian vessels converted to gunboats. In respect of the latter category, often all that has survived are photographs, or very basic descriptions. Many of the following depictions of Imperial Russian gunboats come from I I Chernikov’s important work in Russian Pyccкиe peчнЬle флотилии за 1000 лет (907-1917), or 1,000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas, published in 1999. Another important source has been Siegfried Breyer’s classic work Soviet Warship Development Volume 1: 1917-1937. Taken together, these two sources have helped correct many errors and misunderstandings found in other works and on the Web.
PART I IMPERIAL AND SOVIET GUNBOATS UP TO 1945
AMU-DARYA FLOTILLA
Treaties signed in 1873 had given Russia control over the part of the Amu-Darya River which formed the boundary with Khivan territory, and also navigation rights on the sector which bordered Bukharan territory. With continuing Anglo-Russian tensions in the area, which formed part of the long-running ‘Great Game’, in 1886 Governor General Grodekov decided to create a flotilla to control the Amu-Darya River, and communicate with and supply a planned Russian garrison at Kerki.
Accordingly two armed paddle steamers, Tsar and Tsaritsa, were sent in sections by the railway to Chardjui, where they were reassembled and launched in November 1887. Their patrol area during the nine ice-free months of the year extended 375 miles (603km) between Petro-Aleksandrovsk and Kerki. Between 1887 and 1915 a further eleven steamers were added to the flotilla, and several were capable of being armed when necessary. The following are two examples.
Launched:
Tsar and Tsaritsa November 1887.
Displ: 165 tons; L: 30.48m/100ft; B: 6.7m/22ft; D: 0.46m/1ft 6in.
Power/Speed:
Stern-wheeler; steam engine, 120ihp/9 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 3-pounder QF?; MG?
Tsarevitch Alexei from an old postcard. (Illustration courtesy of Andreas von Mach)
Launched:
1895.
Dimensions:
L: 48.77m/160ft; B: 6.71m/22ft; D: 0.91m/3ft.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 100ihp.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 3-pounder QF?; MG?
Velikaya Knazhina Olga. (Illustration from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Launched:
1899.
Dimensions:
L: 45.22m/148ft 4in; B: 7.01m/23ft; D: 0.91m/3ft.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 100ihp.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 3-pounder QF?; MG?
Armoured river gunboats Nos 1–9. (Drawing by Kateri I Yakhti, via S Breyer)
Armoured River Gunboats Nos 1-9
In 1916–17 nine armoured river gunboats were built at Reval using petrol engines supplied from the USA. They saw widespread service in the various flotillas, and two of the class operated on the Amu-Darya River: from March 1921, Istrebitel No 310 (ex-No 3) and from the following April, Istrebitel No 307 (ex-No 4).
Launched:
1916–17 by Boecker & Co DY, Reval.
Dimensions:
Displ: 25 tons; L: 20.4m/66ft 11in; B: 3.17m/10ft 5in; D: 0.61m/2ft.
Crew:
12.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × 150bhp Buffalo petrol engines/12 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 75mm guns; 2 × MG in turrets fore and aft/Bulletproof plating.
Fate:
No 3 hulked August 1922; No 4 sunk following accident 22 April 1921.
AMUR RIVER FLOTILLA
Lewis Nixon Patrol Launches (‘Minonoscy Niksona’ or ‘Gazolinki’)
In 1904 the Russian Admiralty placed an order for ten large petrol-engined motor launches of the Lewis Nixon design to be built in the USA by Flint & Co. They were intended for the Far East, where no doubt they would have been used to patrol the Amur and Ussuriy Rivers, but were instead delivered to the Baltic, where they were used for harbour patrol until laid up for lack of petrol.
The Amur Flotilla prior to 1910 showing Buryat and Kalmyk class gunboats. (Photo from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Buryat Class
In order to assure the defence of Siberia following their defeat in the Russo-Japanese War, beginning in 1905 the Russian Navy ordered a series of river gunboats to operate on the Amur and Ussuriy Rivers. The first three were the Buryat class, inspired by the British Nile gunboats in their armament layout and the fact that they were transported in sections, but some 50 per cent larger and with a stern copied from the German Vaterland China gunboat. The three were built in Nizhniy-Novogord, then broken down into sections which were transported by rail to Shilka, tributary of the Amur, then by water to Khabarovsk-Ossipovskiy for final reassembly.
Buryat as originally built with a tall pole foremast carrying radio aerials. In her general layout she bears a striking resemblance to the British Nile gunboats of 1898, except for her higher freeboard. (Photo from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I. I. Chernikov)
Buryat seen circa 1937 with a new lattice foremast carrying a crow’s nest.
Buryat as first built. (Illustration from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Buryat was taken over by the Japanese in 1918, and was returned to the Soviet Union on 16 October 1925. In the 1930s she was modernised with a more powerful main armament. Orochanin was broken up in 1923. The third vessel, Mongol, was laid up at the start of the First World War, and her guns were used on an armoured train. She was subsequently put back into service, and modernised in line with Buryat, except that she lacked the lattice mast.
Launched:
1907 by Sormovo DY, Nizhniy-Novogord.
Dimensions:
Displ: 193 tons, L: 54.4m/178ft 6in; B: 8.2m/26ft 11in; D: 0.8m/2ft 7½in.
Crew:
40.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × 240ihp VTE steam engines/10 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 75mm; 10 × MG/12mm armour plating (max). By 1944: 2 × 100mm; 2–3 × 37mm AA; 3–4 12.7mm AA MG.
Fate:
Orochanin scrapped 1923; Mongol scrapped 28 February 1948; Buryat scrapped 13 March 1958.
Kalmyk Class
The second series comprised seven gunboats, constructed, transported and reassembled in the same manner as for the preceding Buryat trio. They were also laid up at the start of the First World War. In the 1920s four of the class were scrapped, and several went through a series of name changes: In the early 1920s Vogul became Bodnota, then finally Krasnaya Zvezda; Kalmyk became Proletariy (broken up in 1922); Sibiryak became Krasnoye Znamya and lastly Ussuriets became Volyak and finally the second Proletariy.
Note the sparse upperworks compared to the previous Buryat design, and the scuttles fore and aft marking the positions of the crew and officers’ accommodation respectively.
Three survived in rebuilt form, refitted with diesels, through the Second World War. From the start they had carried a heavier armament than the preceding class, and in 1944 Krasnaya Zvezda had her forecastle lengthened and raised, to allow her to carry a third 100mm gun in a superfiring ‘B’ position.
Launched:
1907 by Sormovo DY, Nizhniy-Novogord.
Dimensions:
Displ: 244 tons, 1944 Krasnaya Zvezda: 318 tons, 388 tons full load; L: 54.5m/178ft 9in, 1944 Krasnaya Zvezda: 60m/196ft 10in; B: 8.2m/26ft 11in; D: 1.1m/3ft 7in.
Crew:
63.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × VTE 250ihp steam engines/10 knots. 1936–40 in Proletariy, Krasnaya Zvezda and Krasnoye Znamya changed for 2 × diesel engines, total 1,600bhp/10 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 100mm; 2 × 75mm; 1 × 122mm howitzer; 4 × MG. By 1940: 2 × 100mm; 3 × 37mm AA; 4 × 12.7mm HMG. 1944 Krasnaya Zvezda: 3 × 100mm; 2 × 37mm AA; 4 × 20mm Oerlikon/Belt 25mm; Deck 25mm. 1940: + 30mm on enlarged bridge on Krasnaya Zvezda and Krasnoe Znamya.
Fate:
Proletariy (ex-Kalmyk) scrapped 1922; Korel and Zyrianin scrapped 1923; Kirgiz scrapped 1925; Proletariy (ex-Volyak/Ussuriets) scrapped 1949; Krasnoye Znamya (ex-Sibiryak) scrapped 1958; Krasnaya Zvezda hulked 1955 as STZH-23.
Vogul as built. Note her heavy main armament and extremely tall mast carrying wireless aerials. (Photo from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Kalmyk class profile as built. (Drawing from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Proletariy with diesel engines and a lookout position supported on four legs above the bridge. (Drawing by S Breyer)
Krasnaya Zvezda rebuilt in 1944 with a lengthened and raised forecastle, three 100mm mountings and a rangefinder tower. (Drawing by S Breyer)
Groza Class
Ordered from the Baltic Works in 1907, these monitors were dismantled for transport to Stretensk where they were reassembled and launched. They were the first large surface warships to be powered by diesel engines. Ironically, the Russians’ inability to obtain the ordered German diesel engines for submarines under construction at the beginning of the First World War meant that several of these monitors were laid up and their diesels removed for use in the said submarines (although some of these engines found their way instead into the four Gruz class minesweepers of the Baltic Fleet). Again, several of the monitors’ main and secondary armament guns were removed for use in coastal fortifications or armoured trains, and many guns would never be reunited with their monitor. In September 1918 they were all seized by the Japanese, apa
rt from Groza. She was blown up by her crew at Khabarovsk to avoid her being taken over, and she would never be salvaged.
Shkval on the launch slip in 1908. (Photo from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I. I. Chernikov)
Shkval as completed. Note the Imperial Russian Navy ensign at the gaff. The tall pipe between the wing turrets is the Diesel exhaust. The column on the bows carries a ventilator cowl at a high elevation, and there is a similar column mounted aft. (Photo from defunct Website: http://wio.ru/fleet/ww2kanon.htm)
Shkval waterline profile as built. (Drawing from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
The Japanese eventually returned the surviving ships to the Soviets, who recommissioned and rearmed the majority of them beginning in the spring of 1921, although Shkval was not returned until four years later. One exception was Vikhr, which was temporarily converted to a seaplane tender in October 1928, carrying four seaplanes. In the same year her sisters were reclassed as monitors.
The monitor Vikhr reconfigured as a seaplane tender in October 1928 and renamed Amur, seen here during the Sino-Soviet conflict of 1929. Note she retains her armoured conning tower. Amur appears to be unarmed apart from individual Maxim MG with their Army style shields. (Photo from Website: bellabs.ru)
View looking forward from the stern of Amur showing her seaplane hangar added from corrugated iron sheeting. Evidently her later reconversion to monitor configuration would not have been too onerous. (Photo from Website: bellabs.ru)
Sverdlov modernised with a crows’ nest on top of a tripod mast, and light AA armament mounted, a 37mm on the stern and a twin 12.7mm HMG mounted in a gun tub on each of the secondary turrets. (Photo from defunct Website: http://wio.ru/fleet/ww2kanon.htm)