by River Gunboats- An Illustrated Encyclopaedia (retail) (epub)
As normal with Soviet vessels, the class passed through various name changes, depending on the current political climate and personalities: In February 1922 Vyuga became Sverdlov. Two months later Shtorm became Lenin, and Uragan, Trotskiy. With the latter Bolshevik’s fall from favour, in December 1927 Trotskiy became Krasnyy Vostok. Vikhr, the future seaplane tender, changed her name to Amur in October 1923. In June 1933 she reverted to Vikhr, but finally became Dalnevostochnyy Komsomolets in July 1934. In February 1927 Shkval became Sun-Yat-Sen, only to change to Suchan in July 1949. In October 1932 Tayfun became Vostretsov, and Smerch, Triandafilov. In January 1939 both changed again, Vostretsov being renamed Dzerzhinskiy and Triandafilov, Kirov.
As well as the name changes, the class underwent successive modernisation and upgrading. Beginning in 1934, their diesels were replaced with more powerful units, raising their top speeds. When they were recovered by the Soviet Navy and recommissioned, their armament varied considerably from that originally planned, due to availability or otherwise of large-calibre weapons. Anti-aircraft guns were added progressively to all units, including 75mm, 76mm, 45mm, 37mm and 12.7mm HMG.
The seven survivors had long and eventful careers on the Amur, the Ussuri, the Sungari and Lake Khanka. On 12 October 1929 during the Sino-Soviet conflict, Sverdlov sank the Chinese river gunboat Li Chieh, the ex-German Otter, on the Sungari River. The Flotilla also shelled and sank several armed Chinese paddle steamers, and in 1930 the Amur Military Flotilla received the Order of the Red Banner for their services during the conflict.
In 1945 all the monitors took part in the invasion of Manchuria, and Sun-Yat-Sen came in for particular praise for the actions of her crew in helping overcome Japanese resistance in the Sungari Fortified District. On 20 August 1945 the crews of the Amur Flotilla accepted the capitulation of Japan’s Sungari Flotilla in Harbin. All seven monitors were finally decommissioned in March 1958.
Launched:
1909 by Baltic Works, St. Petersburg.
Dimensions:
Displ: 1,000 tons full load; L: 70.9m/232ft 7in; B: 12.8m/42ft; D: 1.43m/4ft 8in.
Crew:
117.
Power/Speed:
Quadruple screws; 4 × diesel engines, total 1,000bhp/10 knots. Changed in Vostretsov, Triandafilov and Sun-Yat-Sen to total 1,870bhp/11.3 knots; In the remainder to total 2,970bhp/16.6 knots.
Guns/Armour:
As planned: 2 × single 152mm; 2 × twin 120mm; 6 × 7.62mm MG. Except for Sverdlov: 4 × 152mm in shielded mounts and Lenin: 4 × twin 120mm. By 1944 Lenin had: 2 × twin 152mm; 2 × twin 120mm; 2 × 75mm; 2 × 20mm Oerlikon; 9 × 12.7mm HMG/Belt 38–76mm; End bulkheads 9mm; Turrets 76mm; Conning tower 51mm; Deck 19mm.
Fate:
All stricken March 1958.
Pulya Class
Ten armoured patrol boats were ordered in 1908 for the Amur River, named Pulya, Shashka, Pistolet, Palash, Shtyk, Sabliya, Rapira, Kinzhal, Kope and Pika. In 1915, all but the last two were transferred to the Baltic and the Black Sea, to serve as submarine-chasers. Shtyk, Sabliya, Rapira and Kinzhal were last recorded operating on the Caspian Sea, and their fate is not noted.
Kope and Pika were returned to service on the Amur on 16 October 1925. On 15 September 1934 Kope was reclassified BK-103, and Pika as BK-104. Finally on 15 April 1937 they were renumbered as BK-93 and BK-94 respectively.
Launched:
1910 by Putilov DY, St Petersburg.
Dimensions:
Displ: 23.5 tons, 25 tons full load; L: 22.2m/72ft 10in; B: 3.2m/10ft 6in; D: 1.5m/4ft 11in.
Crew:
10.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × petrol engines, total 200bhp/14.5 knots.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 75mm mountain gun; 1 × MG/Bulletproof plating on the wheelhouse and engine room roof.
Fate:
Pulya, Shashka, Pistolet and Palash transferred to Finland 1918. BK-93 and BK-94 scrapped 18 January 1954.
Shashka of the Pulya class with the short-barrelled 75mm replaced by a 3-pounder QF, with a Maxim port and starboard behind the main gun, and the searchlight moved to the bow. The engine-room sides projecting above the deck are bulletproof, as is the wheelhouse. (Photo from René Greger, The Russian Fleet 1914 – 1917)
Profile of the Pulya class, here shown with the original short 75mm forward with gunshield. These long-lived and much-travelled little armoured cutters underwent continuous repairs and modernisations. (Illustration from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Bars Class
Bars and Tiger were built for the Whites and captured by the Red Army on 6 January 1920 on the Kama River. They were subsequently transferred to the Amur River. After being abandoned by her crew on Lake Khanka, Bars was salvaged by the Japanese and in 1932 was transferred to Manchukuo.
Launched:
1919 by Motovilikha Works, Perm.
Dimensions:
Displ: 15 tons; L: 18.3m/60ft; B: 3m/9ft 10in; D: 0.7m/2ft 3½in.
Crew:
11–14.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × petrol engines, total 100bhp/15 knots.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 37mm L/20; 2 × MG/Bulletproof plating.
Fate:
Bars sunk in a storm on Lake Khanka 22 October 1922. Tiger lost 27 July 1924.
The prototype Activnyi. (Photo from Ivan Gogin’s Navypedia)
Activnyi Project SB-30
As it was felt that too much had been attempted with Udarnyi, (see Dneiper Flotilla/Pinsk Flotilla) the next Soviet river monitor design was smaller and armed with two 102mm guns. These were mounted in a lightly-armoured turret, with the bridge structure rigidly fixed to and rotating with it. This harked back to the successors of the original USS Monitor, which had a small armoured pilot house rigidly mounted on top of their turret. In the Activnyi version, however, it was found that this arrangement was impractical, the ships’ officers needing to have full forward vision at all times, even when the turret was turned amidships and astern. Activnyi was intended for service on the Dnieper, but instead she was dismantled, transported to the Far East and reassembled on the Amur. In 1945 she participated in the Soviet invasion of Manchuria. Renamed Kenga, she was used briefly as a training ship from April 1952 until sold to the Amur Shipping Company in November 1953.
Launched:
23 August 1934 by Yard No 300 Leninskaya Kuznitsa, Kiev.
Dimensions:
Displ: 250 tons, 314 tons full load; L: 50.7m/166ft 4in; B: 8.2m/26ft 11in; D: 1.06m/3ft 6in.
Crew:
68.
Power/Speed:
Twin screws; 2 × diesel engines, total 480bhp/8.5 knots.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 102mm; 2 × twin 45mm AA; 1 × quad + 1 × twin Maxim MG; From 1944: + 1 × 37mm AA; + 3 × 12.7mm AA/Belt 16–30mm; Deck 4–16mm; Turret and Conning tower 30mm. HMG.
Fate:
Scrapped 1957.
Bronekater S-40 Series
A variant was planned for use on the Amur, but tanks were given priority in the supply of diesel engines, so only seven of the S-40 type were built. See the section on Bronekater below.
Khasan Class
At the time they were built, the three monitors of the Khasan class were the largest and most heavily-armed riverine combat vessels in the world. Built in the Gorkii Works, they were dismantled and transported to Khabarovsk for reassembly and launch. The parts of Khasan arrived on 4 November 1939, and she was completed on 1 February 1942. Her sister Perekop arrived in pieces on 19 December 1939, and she was completed on 24 December 1943. Because of a lack of twin turrets during the war, she completed with only three single shielded 130mm main guns, and had to wait until January 1946 to receive twin turrets. The final monitor of the class, Sivash, arrived in pieces on 20 August 1940, but due to the fact that priority was being given to building the smaller Bronekater armoured gunboats, she was not completed until after the war, commissioning on 31 October 1946.
&n
bsp; Perekop as completed with single 130mm mounts for lack of twin turrets. (Photo from Website: http://military.sakura.ne.jp/navy3/ur_khasan.htm)
The single stern 130mm mounting on Perekop being manned for an exercise. (Photo from Heldenschiffe der sowjetischen Seekriegsflotte, with thanks to Erwin Sieche)
Profile and plan of Khasan as completed with the original twin turrets. Note the three twin 45mm AA turrets grouped in front of the bridge, the armoured belt amidships, and the mine rails aft. The deep draught of these powerful vessels, and the addition of a raised forecastle, allowed them to carry out coast defence missions in the Tartar Strait. (Plans posted by Bogdan Jadzinski at www.pinterest.dk/pin/249105423120987652/)
Designed for riverine combat but also seagoing patrols in the Tartar Strait, the class were given a high forecastle, and their flat-bottomed hulls were strengthened for ice navigation. Originally they were planned to have four twin 130mm turrets and a seaplane, but as these would have seriously increased their draught, the aft superfiring twin 130mm turret was replaced by a pair of twin 76mm turrets mounted side-by-side, and the seaplane was omitted.
Launched:
Khasan 30 August 1940, Perekop 14 June 1941, Sivash 1 October 1941, by Kirov Works, Khabarovsk.
Dimensions:
Displ: 1,705 tons, 2,400 tons full load (Perekop when armed with single shielded guns: 1,900 tons full load); L: 88.3m/289ft 8in; B: 11.1m/36ft 5in; D: 2.94m/9ft 7¾in full load.
Crew:
242 (Perekop 251).
Power/Speed:
Quadruple screws; 4 × 800bhp 38-KR-8 diesel engines/15.4 knots.
Guns/Armour:
3 × twin 130mm; 2 × twin 76mm; 3 × twin 45mm AA; 5 × twin 12.7mm HMG; 29 mines/Belt 36–77mm; End bulkheads 25mm; Deck 40mm with 25mm at ends; Main turret front + barbette 75mm; Conning tower 50–100mm; Citadel 35mm; Rangefinder 8mm.
Fate:
Khasan and Perekop stricken March 1960; Sivash converted to barracks ship September 1960.
Captured Manchukuo Gunboats For details, see MANCHUKUO.
Pekin
Originally the German China gunboat Vaterland. She had been seized by the Chinese at Nanking in 1917 and renamed Li Sui, then captured by the Japanese in 1932 and transferred to Manchukuo. On 22 August 1945 she was seized by Soviet troops, and commissioned into the Amur Flotilla as Pekin.
KL-55, KL-56, KL-57 and KL-58
These four vessels were Manchukuo Navy gunboats captured on 22 August 1945 by Soviet forces at Harbin and incorporated in the Amur Flotilla. Shuntian became the Soviet KL-55, later Bashkiriya, Chin Yen became KL-56, later Buryat-Mongolia, Yang Min was renamed KL-57 then later Yakutiya, and Ting Pien became KL-58, later Chuvashia. All four became training ships in April 1951, and they were stricken in September 1953.
Hai Feng and Hai Lung
During the Soviet invasion, both vessels were at Port Arthur where they were seized on 22 August 1945. The following month they were recommissioned into the Soviet Navy as the Border Guard Ships Veter and Shtil respectively.
Ta Tung and Li Min
Seized by Soviet troops at Harbin on 22 August 1945, they became the Soviet SK-265 and SK-266 respectively.
Hsin Chun Class
Hsin Chun, Hsing Ya, Hsin Yen, seized at Harbin and incorporated in the Soviet Navy as BK-127, BK-125 and BK-126 respectively.
Wei Ming Class
Fast 30-ton armoured river gunboats, Hsiao Chiang, Chin Min and Chin Chiang were seized by Soviet forces and incorporated into the Soviet Navy as BK-128, BK-129 and BK-130 respectively.
Hai Tien and Hai Yuang
On 22 August 1945 Hai Tien was seized by Soviet troops. Hai Yuang may have been captured by Soviet armoured river gunboats, but her fate is unclear.
On Min Class
Three were seized by the Soviets and incorporated in their Navy: Hai Min becoming SKA-267, Hun Min SKA-268, and Pu Min SKA-269.
Din Shun Class
All were lost or seized during the Soviet invasion.
ARAL FLOTILLA
The Russians formed a naval flotilla on the Aral Sea in 1852, with vessels built in Sweden and Russia, and sent there via the river system. At its height the Flotilla comprised six armed vessels, fourteen large steamers and twenty-eight smaller launches and cutters. Based in the port of Raim, now in Kazakhstan, the vessels supported Russian troops which operated in the area in 1868 and 1873. They disbanded the flotilla in 1883, and several vessels found their way to the Amu-Darya Flotilla. The Aral Sea itself has virtually disappeared following a disastrous 1960s scheme to divert the Amu-Darya and Syr-Darya Rivers to irrigate surrounding arid zones.
Peroyeskiye
Launched:
1851.
Dimensions:
Displ: 140 tons; L: 35.81m/117ft 6in; B: 6.55m/21ft 6in; D: 0.91m/3ft.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 40ihp.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 4-pounder; 2 × 1in (25mm) Nordenfelt MG.
Double-ender Peroyeskiye. (Detail from an illustration in The Russians in Central Asia by E. Stanford, 1865, via Website: www.neatorama.com/2014/10/02/The-Aral-Sea-Flotilla-The-Warships-of-a-Lost-Sea)
Samarkand. (Illustration from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by II Chernikov)
Samarkand
From her Imperial dimensions, it would appear that Samarkand was built in a British yard.
Launched:
1866.
Dimensions:
Displ: 154 tons; L: 45.72m/150ft; B: 6.71m/22ft; D: 0.61m/2ft.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 70ihp.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 6-pounder; 1 × 4-pounder; 2 × 1in (25mm) Nordenfelt MG.
Armed launch Obrutchev. Note the paddle steamer on the slip in the background. (Photo from 1000 Years of Russian Riverine Flotillas by I I Chernikov)
Obrutchev
Launched:
1852.
Dimensions:
Displ: 16 tons; L: 21.34m/70ft; B: 2.79m/9ft 2in; D: 0.61m–0.69m/2ft–2ft 3in.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 12ihp.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 6-pounder.
Syr-Darya
Launched:
29 July 1862.
Dimensions:
Displ: 70 tons; L: 28.96m/95ft; B: 5.26m/35ft 2in; D: 0.61m–0.84m/2ft–2ft 9in.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 20ihp.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 1in (25mm) Nordenfelt MG.
Aral
Launched:
29 October 1862.
Dimensions:
Displ: 149 tons; L: 35.66m/175ft 8in; B: 7.01m/17ft 3in; D: 0.35m–0.9m/1ft 1¾in–3ft.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine, 40ihp.
Guns/Armour:
2 × 1in (25mm) Nordenfelt MG.
Tashkent
Launched:
1872.
Dimensions:
Displ: 86.5 tons; L: 31.93m/104ft 9in; B: 4.88m/16ft; D: 0.61m–0.84m/2ft–2ft 9in.
Power/Speed:
Side paddle wheels; steam engine 35ihp.
Guns/Armour:
1 × 1in (25mm) Nordenfelt MG.
During the Russian Civil War the Flotilla was reformed, but saw no combat, and was disbanded with the end of hostilities.
AZOV FLOTILLA
The Azov Flotilla patrolled the Don and Kuban Rivers where they flowed into the Sea of Azov. In 1941, with the German advance across the Crimea, the Flotilla made a break for the open sea. One of the last vessels to succeed was Zhelezniakov. See Dnieper/Pinsk Flotilla below.
BRONEKATER (FROM BRONIROVANNYIE KATERA – ARMOURED CUTTER)
Before and during the First World War, the Russian Navy designated certain of its patrol boats as Bronekater. These included the armoured gunboats Nos 1–9 and the ten vessels of the Pulya class built for the Amur. In order to demonstrate the development of the lat
er Bronekater types, all the classes are described together in this section, independent of which river or lake the units served on.
BKA Trevoga and Partizan
These two experimental armoured cutters (Bronekater), were originally designed in 1920 by P P Shidlovskiy, with a novel form of gyroscopic righting system intended to compensate for the recoil of their large 102mm gun. They were begun in Kolomna, 97 km (60 miles) south of Moscow on a tributary of the Don, but construction was suspended in 1922. They were only completed in 1930–2 without their gyroscopic righting mechanism, and with the originally-planned 102mm gun replaced by a 76.2mm L/30 Lender AA gun.
Modified in 1941, both low-powered petrol engines were replaced by a pair of standard Mikulin GAM-34 engines for Bronekater, each rated at 800bhp, which dramatically increased the speed of BK 91 and 92. Presumably, due to their shipyard location, they would have been allocated to the Don Flotilla during the Great Patriotic War.
A poor-quality but rare photo of BKA Nos 91 and 92, the former experimental armoured cutters Tregova and Partizan. (Photo from Ivan Gogin’s Navypedia)
Launched:
Laid down 1920 by Kolomna DY.
Dimensions: