Friday, June 19, 2009

DTN News: Russian Navy Frigate 'Yaroslav Mudry' Completes Sea Trials

DTN News: Russian Navy Frigate 'Yaroslav Mudry' Completes Sea Trials *Sources: DTN News / Defense Media
(NSI News Source Info) ST. PETERSBURG - June 19, 2009: Russia's newest frigate, the Yaroslav Mudry, has completed sea trials and the official testing procedure will be over in a few days, a spokesman for the Yantar shipyard said on Tuesday. The ship class was designed as a general purpose ASW frigate to follow on from the Krivak class frigates. This group of frigates incorporates some stealth technology. The program started in 1986 and seven ships were originally planned. As of 2007, only one ship, the Neustrashimy, is in service with the Russian Navy's Baltic Fleet and is active. On February 24 2009 the second ship in the class, the Yaroslav Mudry, left the Yantar shipyard in Russia's Kaliningrad for its first sea-trials. The frigate has a displacement of 4,250 tons and a maximum speed of 30 knots. It is armed with anti-ship missiles, air defense systems, a 100-mm artillery mount, depth charges, and a Ka-27 helicopter. Construction has taken almost 19 years due to lack of financing. Further delays occurred in early May, when a Ka-27 Helix helicopter crashed into the Baltic Sea during the Yaroslav Mudry's sea trial. The crash occurred after the helicopter's blades grazed the frigate. The Baltic Fleet commander earlier said the Yaroslav Mudry could join the international anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden after entering service with the Baltic Fleet.

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